Protect your loved one from fraud

This past summer, Michelle Chafee noticed a bounced check in her mother's account. Chaffee, founder and CEO of Twin Cities-based caregiver support platform Alska, has cared for her 71-year-old mother, Cheryl, since a stroke took her sight eight years ago.

“Somebody called her on two occasions, asking her to donate to a charity,” Chafee says. “She did that out of the goodness of her heart and wanting to be helpful. And then we found out that they were taking large sums of money out of her bank account on a regular basis.”

Chafee reported the incident to the police and bank and stopped the transactions. But not before her mother lost a significant amount of money.

These stories are increasingly common in Minnesota and nationwide, where scammers are taking advantage of seniors through phone, email and mail campaigns. A 2015 report from True Link Financial found that seniors lose nearly $36.5 billion each year to financial abuse. That same report estimated that almost a million older adults are skipping meals as a result of that exploitation.

For caregivers, the data is a reminder of the need to be vigilant in the protection of their loved one’s finances. Scammers find vulnerability in older adults for a wide range of reasons.

“Aside from the perception of large cash reserves, seniors are polite, respectful of authority, they always give somebody the benefit of the doubt,” says Kathleen Moore, Safeguarding Our Seniors program liaison for the Better Business Bureau of Minnesota and North Dakota.

“Isolation also plays into this. Scammers rightly assume that sometimes seniors are vulnerable due to isolation,” says Moore.

Moore’s mission is to help seniors and their loved ones keep scammers at bay. She works with about 50 volunteers throughout the region to educate older adults and caregivers about fraud and prevention strategies. She offers a few suggestions for safeguarding loved ones.

1. Prioritize important conversations. “Some of those conversations about power of attorney, beneficiary designations, wills, health care directives, some families have not had those conversations,” Moore says. “Start speaking to one another as early as possible, as the longer you are a caregiver you may begin to feel stymied trying to get information for your loved one.”

2. Try, try again. Initiating conversations about financial management can be challenging and a loved one might not be interested getting help in those areas. But it’s important not to give up on those talks, Moore says.

She suggests gentle conversation and simple questions about observations. Mention you noticed some checks were written, or you thought you heard a strange call recently. Maybe you even received a strange call yourself. Try not to lecture or forcibly take away your loved one’s sense of agency.

3. Help the bank help you. Many financial institutions have safeguards for preventing financial abuse of elderly clients. But they need to be notified of the potential for problems, Moore says.

She relayed one story in which a bank did not release $5,000 to a man requesting it to get his grandson out of trouble in Canada. Instead they told him to first check with relatives to confirm the story, which ended up being false. In that case, the bank was the first line of defense.

“It can be as simple as letting banks and financial advisors know that you’re concerned and if there’s anything suspicious, get in touch with me,” Moore says.

4. Play phone defense. Telemarketing fraud by itself accounts for $40 billion each year, according to the FBI.

Moore suggests that caregivers and their loved ones talk plainly about phone use. The best advice is for a loved one not to answer a phone, Moore says. Though that is not always realistic.

Warning signs to look for include callers asking for credit card information, notifications of sweepstakes winnings and being asked to send money to help someone you don’t know, perhaps even a relative.

The Minnesota Attorney General office offers a lengthy list of common phone scams, as well as other scams and prevention tips. The Minnesota Commerce also offers a guide to preventing fraud.