Scams On The Elderly: Can We Do Anything About It?

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Term Paper Title	Scams On The Elderly: Can We Do Anything About It?
# of Words	1056
# of Pages (250 words per page double spaced)	4.22

Scams on the Elderly:  Can we do anything about it?

     Scam artists have always preyed on the gullible, but in recent years,

much of the focus of  these thieves has been on the elderly.  It is quite a well

known fact that the elderly possess the greatest percentage of disposable

income with the least amount of debt.  Old people with money.  Scam artists

prey upon these people with unrelenting deception.  It is not a problem that will

just go away.  The problem must be analyzed and only then can we learn

what to do.

     First we must analyze the different "red flags" which identify certain

members of the elderly as targets for scams.  First off, these older consumers

are often living alone, with no one else to watch their finances for them.  Being

alone, they are often very appreciative and receptive of guests, especially

those who pay a visit even to sell them something which will be of benefit to

them or their homes.  They are also very receptive to anything promising

assistance to their health conditions or home repair requirements.

     Scam artists also look at demographic numbers to choose their elderly

targets.  According to Jeanne Mackin, an author for a consumer watch

organization, 80 % of people age 65 and over have at least one major health

problem of some sort and spend a great deal of their monthly budget on health

care.  And combine that with the fact that 71% of those people own their own

homes, of which many were built before 1950, and you have a combination

ripe for fraud against the elderly. (1)

Some examples of fraud against the elderly include:

     - A "city inspector" arrives at the home, stating he needs to check the plumbing, furnace, or wiring, and when problems are found, states that he will call a "friend" to make the repairs.  The work is overcharged and done poorly, if at all.

     - The older consumer receives in the mail newspaper clippings about a new health miracle product with a "personal" handwritten note saying, "Try this!  It works!"  But when money is sent, the product never arrives, is overpriced, or is useless, if not just plain harmful.

     - A product demonstrator arrives at the home and asks the resident to sign a paper just saying that the demonstrator visited.  In fact, the trusting consumer, who hasn't read the form, signs a contract ordering the product. (1)

     Telemarketing is another powerful tool scam artists use to prey upon the

elderly.  By being on the phone, the con is relying on his/her voi...

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