Elder Financial Abuse: Warning Signs & Protection

June 9, 2025

As an NYCDCC member, your hard work helps build financial security for you and your family in the form of pension benefits, annuity benefits, and savings. However, these assets can make members – especially retirees and older members –targets for exploitation, scams, and fraud. With this in mind, the Fund Office would like to share some information with you about elder financial abuse so that you may better protect your hard-earned benefits, your loved ones, and your future.

What is Elder Financial Abuse?

Elder financial abuse occurs when someone takes or misuses another person’s money (or assets) for their own personal benefit. One common example is online or telephone fraud, where a scammer reaches out to an individual claiming to be someone they are not. The scammer may fraudulently claim to be a relative, or a representative of an organization such as a bank, charity, government office, or credit card company. Using these false pretenses, the scammer tries to get sensitive information from the elderly target, who may not recognize the fraud.

Trusted Person Abuse

Trusted person abuse is a form of financial exploitation committed by someone the individual knows. A trusted person can be a family member, friend, caregiver, or financial advisor. Because of their close relationship with the individual, the trusted person abuser often has access to personal and financial information they can manipulate for their own gain.

Examples of trusted person abuse include:

– Abusing power of attorney privileges

– A family member or caregiver forging the individual’s signature on financial documents, often to obtain property or assets

– Threatening to put an elderly individual in a nursing home unless they comply with the abuser

Warning Signs of Financial Abuse

In many cases of elder financial abuse, you will notice one or more of the following signs:

– A sudden increase in spending

– Unpaid bills the elder would normally have the means to pay

– Abrupt changes in the elder’s will, insurance, trust, or other financial documents

– New “friends” or individuals in the elder’s life who do not promote the elder’s best interests

Protective Measures

If you are an elderly person concerned with abuse, or have a loved one you are looking to protect, the following tips can help prevent financial exploitation and abuse:

– Never give any personal information to strangers over the phone or email. Always withhold your birthdate, social security number (including the last four digits), bank account information, and passwords

– Always ask for more information in writing and get a second opinion before changing your power of attorney, wills, trusts, or any of your personal financial information

– Never sign a blank financial or insurance claim form

– When hiring a caregiver, hire through a certified agency (and be sure to check the caregiver’s references)

– Have an objective third party look over financial statements

Reporting Suspected Abuse and Additional Resources

If you or someone you know may be a victim of elder financial abuse, we encourage you to visit the government websites listed below. These websites provide additional information regarding financial exploitation, as well as proper channels for reporting potential crimes.

– Elder Fraud and the FBI: https://www.fbi.gov/how-we-can-help-you/scams-and-safety/common-frauds-and-scams/elder-fraud

– Elder Fraud in New York State: https://www.ny.gov/tips-preventing-elder-financial-exploitation