Retirement, despite what a lot of people think, can actually be a joy. In a survey of Money readers, roughly 48% of all retirees admitted being much happier in retirement than they originally expected.
As long as these seniors have their health, their family, their purpose, and their companionships, they can continue to live fulfilled lives.
Sadly, many people take advantage of seniors and the more feeble the person, the more brutal these criminals can be.
In Maryland, an ex-convict has been scamming a disabled elderly woman by lying to her and posing as an EPA official.
Southern Maryland Online reports that Anita Louise Schriver, 36, convinced an elderly disabled woman that she was guilty of “environmental violations” and was required to pay the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) a fine of $300.
Schriver was served a summons on July 29, while she was in county jail on unrelated charges of first-degree burglary and theft between $10,000 and $100,000.
This kind of financial elder abuse happens far too often in the United States. According to Consumer Finance, a recent report indicates that hundreds of counties around the U.S. have been forced to develop community-based efforts to stop financial elder abuse because it’s become such an epidemic.
“We’ve learned that an ‘all hands on deck’ strategy can be very effective to fight elder financial fraud,” said Richard Cordra, Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). “Our new guide and recommendations can help more community stakeholders build these very helpful networks to pool information, expertise, and resources in addressing this growing crisis.”
Elder financial abuse is a serious issue for the economy as well, as estimates of the total losses caused by financial elder exploitation range from $2.9 billion to over $36 billion.
People are encouraged to contact authorities immediately if any financial abuse of any kind is detected.
