Pinnacle Trust has posted a new video on our website that raises awareness about the growing problem of elder financial abuse. Financial elder abuse has exploded in this country in recent years, affecting over 1 million victims and costing over $8 billion per year. This is partially explained by two demographic and economic realities:
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We have a growing senior population. The fastest-growing segment of the total population is the oldest old—those 80 and over. Their growth rate is twice that of those 65 and over and almost 4-times that for the total population. In the United States, this group now represents 10% of the older population and will more than triple from 5.7 million in 2010 to over 19 million by 2050.
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Economic uncertainty and pressure on the caregiving generation. The “sandwich generation,” those over age 45 who are providing some level of care to an aging relative while still working and caring for other family needs, is under enormous financial pressure to maintain a lifestyle that has been stymied by recession, excessive debt, and a housing bust that has shut off easy access to bloated residential equity.
The jump from these two realities to the abusive acts carried out by others – primarily the children or other relatives of the elderly victim – is a moral failure by individuals and by society in general. We should be doing all we can to protect and preserve the dignity and resources of this greatest generation.
When is someone going to bring a class action suit against big insurance companies that sell unsuitable annuities to elders that don’t understand them using third party agents? That is financial elder abuse on a massive scale!
Agreed. This and many other types of financial services abuse occurs all too frequently. As with most forms of elder abuse, regulation and enforcement is one part of the solution. The other is following a self-governing law from an ancient code of conduct: “honor your father and your mother.” I believe “honor” means that we protect and watch out for them when they become more vulnerable.
I have shared this excellent video many times. I became an elder advocate after my mother was financially exploited by a family member and their spouse. It has been devastating and my mother was left penniless in her 90′s.
We have a problem with law enforcement’s reluctance to investigate and prosecute elder exploitation by family members. Impoverishing your parent isn’t a “family dispute.” It’s elder abuse, domestic violence, grand theft, and infringement on human rights to not be able to live your remaining years in a safe environment with quality heath care options.
Our elder law documents need to be modernized to accommodate for the rise in elder financial abuse. Mandated oversight is needed to monitor POA’s who can and do abuse their fiduciary responsibility. A POA isn’t a license to steal.
POA’s also have access to their parent’s personal identifying information that can be used to open and use existing credit cards. In my mom’s case, a family member impersonated her to open credit cards. Not only is my mom destitute, she has debt in her name. One credit card company was diligent and recognized fairly soon that my mom’s identity had been stolen by family members.
Another credit card company empathically states that a POA has the authority to use a principal’s credit cards even for their own personal gain.
I have all of the transactions made on my mom’s accounts. The paper trail shows most of her money was used for a lavish lifestyle for the perpetrators. My mom was evicted from her assisted living facility, and now is in a sub standard board and care where the care givers don’t speak English.
Exploited seniors don’t have the resources to litigate in a civil suit. Criminal cases, I’m told, are difficult to prosecute if there are capacity issues. So where does this leave an abused senior? Legal Aid won’t take these cases, the F.A.S.T. teams don’t perform, and unfortunately, the agencies tasked with protection of seniors don’t collaborate with each other and drop the ball.
The GAO reported recently that 85% of complaints to government agencies are not investigated. They also cited that there is no coordination between agencies on elder abuse and exploitation cases.
This is unacceptable. This year I met another woman whose mother in law was exploited by a family member and left penniless like my mother. We formed the Milli Billie Justice Project to build a coalition in CA to enact new legislation to protect seniors from being financially abused by family members. It will take a huge effort, but we don’t want this abuse to continue to destroy lives. In the future, we hope to have a legal center set up to provide free legal advice and litigation for exploited seniors in our area. We are Milli and Billie’s voices. All victims deserve justice
This happens much more than anyone knows because there is an enormous amount of financial abuse by family members that seniors never report.
The elderly rarely notify authorities if a family member has stolen or misused their money, either because they don’t want to cause legal trouble for the family member or they are unable to report due to dementia, fear, or extensive physical ailments.
Even when this type of abuse is reported it is not taken as seriously as if the abuse occurred at the hands of a stranger.
If Adult Protective Services even opens a case and begin an investigation they question the elderly individual who will often deny or downplay the theft or abuse fearing repercussions. Over my 30+ year career in eldercare and advocacy I have seen this type of scenario many, many times. APS will then close the case without further investigation or warn the family member and move on.
As advocates we must put pressure on Adult Protective Services, educate law enforcement, attorney’s and the court system to the devastating effects this has on the elderly and the loving family members who were not involved in the abuse.
We need to be the voices of the aging adults who cannot speak on their own behalf!
Seniors need protection now!
Bravo Angil! We can do better to protect our seniors from all forms of abuse.