The cold winter months are tough to handle, like battling with the thermostats, shoveling, relying on others for necessities. For many of folks these long, cold, dark days are a real battle for depression and other disorders which tend to keep us isolated and indoors. How about already existing challenges of old age dementia, physical handicap and chronic illnesses and needing to be cared for by others? Abuse happens with or without these circumstances but adding these into the mix makes you an easier target for elder abuse. Below are some statistics as collected by the NCEA.

Types of Abuse

Elder abuse is a growing problem. While we don’t know all of the details about why abuse occurs or how to stop its spread, we do know that help is available for victims. Concerned people, like you, can spot the warning signs of a possible problem, and make a call for help if an elder is in need of assistance.

— Physical Abuse
— Sexual Abuse
— Emotional or Psychological Abuse
— Neglect
— Abandonment
— Financial or Material Exploitation
— Self-neglect

Elder mistreatment (i.e., abuse and neglect) is defined as intentional actions that cause harm or create a serious risk of harm (whether or not harm is intended) to a vulnerable elder by a caregiver or other person who stands in a trust relationship to the elder. This includes failure by a caregiver to satisfy the elder’s basic needs or to protect the elder from harm.

Unfortunately, we simply do not know for certain how many people are suffering from elder abuse and neglect. It appears that female elders are abused at a higher rate than males and that the older one is the more likely one is to be abused.

Signs of elder abuse may be missed by professionals working with older Americans because of lack of training on detecting abuse. The elderly may be reluctant to report abuse themselves because of fear of retaliation, lack of physical and/or cognitive ability to report, or because they don’t want to get the abuser (90% of whom are family members) in trouble.

Below is a sampling of findings that show what is known about the incidence and prevalence of elder abuse and neglect:

— The most recent major studies on incidence reported that 7.6 to 10 percent of study participants experienced abuse in the prior year. The study that found an incidence of 1 in 10 adults experiencing abuse did not include financial abuse.
— Available data from state Adult Protective Services (APS) agencies show an increasing trend in the reporting of elder abuse.
— Despite the accessibility of APS in all 50 states (whose programs are quite different), as well as mandatory reporting laws for elder abuse in most states, an overwhelming number of cases of abuse, neglect, and exploitation go undetected and untreated each year.
— One study estimated that only 1 in 14 cases of elder abuse ever comes to the attention of authorities. The New York State Elder Abuse Prevalence Study found that for every case known to programs and agencies, 24 were unknown.
— Major financial exploitation was self-reported at a rate of 41 per 1,000 surveyed, which was higher than self-reported rates of emotional, physical, and sexual abuse or neglect.

Those Who Abuse

In the only national study that attempted to define the scope of elder abuse, the vast majority of abusers were family members (approximately 90 percent), most often adult children, spouses, partners, and others.

Family members who abuse drugs or alcohol, who have a mental/emotional illness, and who feel burdened by their caregiving responsibilities abuse at higher rates than those who do not self-report rates of emotional, physical, and sexual abuse or neglect.

I was having a conversation with Caryn Kennedy, a local Saratoga Springs financial advisor about the problems of financial elder abuse and the different variations. She stated that people need to be aware of the many arenas of financial abuse that more and more families are experiencing. By understanding how this can happen to your loved one and the reasons their resources have become limited may help correct a serious problem before it’s too late, especially now that people are living longer and the cost of care continues to rise at a very rapid rate. Through Caryn’s research, experiences and along with Merrill Lynch and the SEC, she has put together some astonishing statistics — ones we cannot overlook.

Seniors report some kind of financial abuse. Seventy percent of the nation’s wealth is held by individuals over age 65. This kind of abuse is vastly underreported and incidents are growing quickly. More than 90 percent of financial abusers are family members.

Types of financial abuse:

— Internet/lottery scams
— Predatory lending
— Annuity purchases
— Pyramid schemes
— Identity theft
— Threatening elder with physical harm or withholding care in exchange for money

Things a Financial Advisor is trained to look for with regards to potential Financial Elder Abuse:

— Family member showing a recent interest in the elder’s financial situation
— New Power of Attorney
— New best friend in need
— Elderly client request to do risky or out of ordinary trades
— Elderly client not able to remember conversations with their Financial Advisor
— Recently widowed
— Client not sophisticated in financial matters
— Large unexplained transactions
— Request for additional ATM/debit cards in new name
— Frequent transfers
— Change of address for bank statements
— The elder does not understand financial transactions or arrangements that have been made on their behalf

Where to Report suspected activity:

— Initially report any concerns to the elderly client’s financial advisor. FAs are required by federal law to follow through on all reported concerns.
— Most of the large financial institutions have recently created departments devoted only to financial elder abuse. These are
usually under the umbrella of the Compliance Dept and can be contacted directly.
— SEC and FINRA have put in place laws and regulations to protect elderly clients. Advisors are trained in how to spot red flags and protect elderly clients.

Reporting suspected abuse can be reported to the compliance or legal department of the firm where the abuse occurred:

— Bank manager
— Investment advisor and/or manager
— Sec.gov
— Bits.org
— Investorprotection.org
— Ncea.aoa.gov (National Center on Elder Abuse)
— Aarp.gov

How to prevent:

Before symptoms of dementia begin have a trusted family member assigned to the elderly client’s accounts so the Financial Advisor is allowed to speak to them should he or she have concerns. I would like to add that a trusted attorney is also a person who will work with you and your financial advisor to ensure your best interest and that of your estate are in the right hands. You can also reach out to the Attorney General’s office if you do not have a financial advisor or attorney at your disposal, go to www.ag.ny.gov

Please, stay safe, warm and remember when putting on your sweater, coat and hat never leave the house without your smile!