Home Care in Newport Beach, CA
The elderly tend to be more trusting of people and makes them easy targets for fraud. A crucial factor that makes seniors the ideal demographic for fraud artists is that as people grow older, they tend to want to believe in the goodness of people which leaves them more vulnerable. One UCLA study indicates that higher levels of trust among older adults may have something to do with actual changes in the brain.
Elderly fraud is rapidly rising
Reports show that 10% of seniors fall victim to consumer fraud every year! You may think that scams or fraud crimes against seniors are carried out by strangers who gain their trust over time and steal when the time is right. However, that is not always the case. Surprisingly, most of the reported fraud against seniors is carried out by someone they know, friends, acquaintances, and often their own family members. Financial abuse by family members includes crimes like depleting joint checking accounts and straight out theft of property.
The 3 most common senior fraud scams that you need to know about
- Phone scams: Telemarketing is one of the most commonly used means to scam seniors. One of the current scams targeting the elderly is “Urgent Call from the IRS”. The caller, who can be a live person or a recording says they are calling from the IRS. The target is told they owe money and must immediately call back a certain number or risk going to jail if they don’t comply. The goal of the scammer is to get Social Security or bank account information. If this happens to you simply hang up on these scammers. The IRS will never call you at home.
- Health insurance fraud: Health care fraud exist in many forms. Scammers try to extract sensitive information from seniors in exchange of promised services. Never provide any personal information over the phone.
- Counterfeit prescription drugs: Seniors often browse online for affordable medication they can get for themselves. There are plenty of fake medical dispensaries that sell harmful substances under bogus names as prescription medication. Speak to your medical professional before sourcing prescriptions or over the counter medicines online.
Some of things we can do to protect ourselves and our aging loved ones from financial abuse is to put into place a comprehensive financial plan. This includes decisions about health care, asset management, future housing options, power of attorney and living trusts.
Sources*
https://www.agingcare.com/articles/prevent-elderly-becoming-scam-victims-138455.htm
https://www.huffingtonpost.com/anthony-cirillo/senior-scams_b_11766650.html
If you or an aging loved one is considering home care in Newport Beach, CA or the surrounding Orange County areas, please call us at 949-535-2211. We provide senior care services in Newport Beach, Costa Mesa, Huntington Beach, Irvine, Laguna Hills, Laguna Beach, Mission Viejo and surrounding areas of Orange County California. Contact us today to learn more.
