A Guide to Elder Planning: Everything You Need to Know to Protect Your Loved Ones and Yourself, Second Edition

16. Scams

Willie Sutton, a bank robber, was once asked why he robbed banks, to which he replied, “Because that’s where the money is.” Older Americans own more than half of the financial assets in the country, which may explain why, according to the U.S. Subcommittee on Health and Long Term Care, that although the elderly only account for 12 percent of the population, they account for 30 percent of scam victims. Today, the innocent (and sometimes not so innocent) prey of con men may find themselves victimized primarily through scams on the Internet and by fraudulent telemarketers. Older Americans make up a disproportionately large number of the people who are swindled each year. According to a study of the National Institute of Justice, close ...