What To Do If You Suspect Your Elderly Parent Is Being Financially Exploited
New instances of frightening nursing home abuse are coming to light each day, but many concerned adult children are still missing out on the warning signs of less obvious forms of abuse. Caretakers, other family members, and complete strangers can all participate in sneaky financial exploitation, a form of nursing home abuse that is often overlooked for years. If you start to suspect financial manipulation on its own or in addition to other forms of abuse, take these steps to build a solid case before the criminals manage to erase proof of their actions.
Gather Evidence First
If the perpetrator catches wind that you're snooping around and looking for proof of their crime, there's always a chance that crucial evidence is destroyed before you can make copies of bank statements and check records. Talk to trusted administrators at the nursing home or family members with no current involvement to try and narrow down who is siphoning money out of an account or taking cash right from a wallet. You will likely need a power of attorney or declaration of incompetence for your parent so you can access their financial records without even letting the elderly individual know what you're doing. Watch out for signs like
- Unusually large withdrawals of cash
- Checks made out to the nursing home or the caretakers working with your elderly parent
- New names added to the bank accounts of your parents
- Unexplained losses in savings accounts
- Reductions in the level of care given to your parent without a request from you.
Look Outside the Nursing Home
You might think the financial abuse must be coming from someone working inside the nursing home, but the setup of long term care facilities often lead to a rotating cast of secondary caretakers coming in and out of your parent's room. A visiting dentist, housekeeper from a contracting company, or even a volunteer reading to the elderly could be the one copying down credit card numbers or slipping cash out. Set aside a few hours each day to watch who visits on a regular basis to catch the real culprit instead of making unfounded claims that upset your parent and the nursing home staff.
Find Intervention Programs
Federally funded programs are established in every state of the country to intervene in cases of elder abuse. Even when the abuse is financial rather than physical, you can find local resources for free legal support, counseling to help the elderly parent understand what is happening, and financial support from Social Security and Medicare if your parent has lost too much of their savings. Don't be afraid to reach out for help from state and federal agencies, especially when the nursing home hid or encouraged the abuse.
Work with the Banks
The bank where your parent keeps their money offers a range of services for reasonable fees that can help in a financial abuse situation. You can pay for an in-depth investigation of every transaction in the account's history, giving you a record showing exactly how the criminal affected your parent's finances. Try locking down payments so only pre-approved amounts are withdrawn to keep the nursing home paid, preventing the fraudster from conning your loved one into signing over other checks.
Get Legal Help
Finally, don't wait to hire a nursing home abuse lawyer until you're sure you have a case. Bringing in legal help as soon as you suspect a problem makes it easier to gather the right evidence and learn more. The lawyer can use the state's laws to request information and catch the nursing home or other criminal in the act. With so much evidence on your side, you can settle the case quickly and with minimal time in court.
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