You may be worried about potential scams that could influence your elderly parents or other family members experiencing potential cognitive challenges. Taking proactive steps to recognize the common nature of elder fraud could help save your loved one and ensure that their assets are protected.
Especially if your loved one has a diagnosis of dementia or is showing signs of cognitive decline, it’s very important to:
Some of the best tips to keep in mind with regard to reducing elder fraud include:
- Assisting a loved one to set up a system for paying bills automatically and electronically.
- Watch for signs of dementia and the loss of executive processing skills which may make someone more vulnerable to elder fraud.
- Add a trusted contact to certain financial accounts, such as a person who may be able to make decisions or monitor actions on behalf of the loved one.
- Have someone within the family generate a personal balance sheet to keep an overall view of expenses and income in mind.
- Hold family financial meetings regularly when the person is open to doing so.
- Cancel extra or unused credit cards.
- Monitor credit reports.
If you begin to notice sudden changes in a loved one’s finances, you may need to ask them further about the action steps they’ve taken or whether someone else has potentially gained access to their accounts recently.
Call a Pasadena estate planning law firm to work through the plans for your future and to help document your wishes now.
