AARP, American Bankers Association Partner to Combat Financial Exploitation

One of the first warning signs of dementia in older adults is having trouble managing finances. Dealing with paperwork and making sound judgments about how to save or spend money become ever more challenging for a person living with dementia. Over time, older clients may need help from family caregivers with banking transactions, bill payment and decisions about savings, health insurance, investments and retirement. Millions of family caregivers help adults manage finances. AARP and the ABA Foundation will respond by developing joint materials for banks, people 50 and older and family caregivers to prevent financial fraud and exploitation. The joint effort will focus on three areas of what AARP calls age-friendly banking: preventing fraud; helping family caregivers who manage finances; and protecting people with dementia.

Specifically, the organizations will develop tip sheets on topics such as top scams, protecting you from financial exploitation, and how to opt out of unsolicited requests. They will conduct survey research on the extent of the problems and proposed solutions. Based on of these findings, we will publish written materials. As the aging population grows dramatically, this significant demographic shift will transform the way banks provide financial services to its customers who are age 50 and older — from frontline interactions to becoming more involved in educating older adults and their families about protecting their assets from increasingly sophisticated scams.

Source/more: AARP Blog

David Wingate is an Elder Law Attorney with the Elder Law Office of David Wingate. The Elder Law Office works in Frederick and Montgomery Counties, Maryland. The elder law practice consists of Powers of Attorneys, Wills, Trusts, Medicaid and Asset Protection.