Last week I introduced you to a professional group known as the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys (NAELA) and the fact that May is National Elder Law Month. If you missed that post, you can read Elder Law Month is Here! to get up to speed. For this post, I’ll focus on an aspect of elder care that we should all keep our eye on. That is, elder financial abuse. Elder financial abuse is real and here in California, it’s against the law. Depending upon the severity and the crime, you can be prosecuted for either a felony or a misdemeanor.
Let’s start with what is considered elder financial abuse. Basically, it’s engaging in any activity that is fraudulent, illegal, improper, or unauthorized to use a senior’s money for your own personal benefit – even if you are caregiver or fiduciary. If you use a senior’s funds for your own personal benefit, you are committing elder financial abuse. As noted above, this can be prosecuted as either a misdemeanor or a felony.
So, what are some examples of elder financial abuse? If anyone, whether a caregiver or fiduciary, attempts to control the use of, or access by, a senior to their own money, that’s abuse. Abuse is also using a senior’s assets for one’s own benefit without asking, coercing a senior to buy something or give you money, using a senior’s credit cards, checking or savings account, or running up bills in the senior’s name. Basically, taking or using the financial resources of a senior, or ruining their credit history, or outright stealing, is considered elder financial abuse and it is wrong.
Whether your senior has daily caregivers, is in a facility, or even has a family member looking after them, there are signs to watch for. Be on the lookout for changes in mood or a sense of fear in your senior. This could indicate a pattern of intimidation or harassment taking place. At the granular level, be on the lookout for changes in a senior’s money habits such as always needing large sums of cash, unusual and sudden “gifting” to people you don’t know, and an increase in cash withdrawals or use of credit cards. Keep an eye out for “new” friends that seem to rely on your senior to pay for things. If you can monitor the senior’s bills, look for sudden increases or changes in the type, and amount, being paid for bills, and the type of bills. If your senior is in a care facility and there are new monthly charges for a gym, yoga, or streaming service, check to see if it is really their service. If they are in a care facility, this type of charge might not make sense. Make sure all charges are truly your senior’s bills and not someone using the senior’s bank or credit account to enrich themselves.
As seniors age and day-to-day money tasks become too much to handle, it might be a good time to trigger your senior’s financial power of attorney. If you are in charge of care, and the senior’s fiduciary, remember that you can be charged with elder financial abuse if you enrich yourself with the senior’s funds. Be sure that the financial power of attorney clearly outlines your responsibilities.
To report elder financial abuse here in California, contact your local Adult Protective Services. If you are not sure who to contact, ask your local law enforcement and they can direct you as to how and where to file a report. We live in an ever-complex and technological world that can be overwhelming for many seniors who didn’t grow up with all of our new web connected services, mobile banking, auto-pay, etc., and it can be confusing. It can also open the door to elder financial abuse, so keep an eye on your senior, and keep a closer eye on their finances if you are their trusted family member.
If you don’t have your estate plan in place, or haven’t done any financial planning click here to start your plan. Hiring a financial planner, especially a CFP®, is a crucial step to financial health and wealth building. Let me help you take that step.
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