Seniors may need oversight of financial planning

Nearly 100 professionals were on hand last week for a workshop in Brewer called “Conversations about Elder Abuse.”

It was sponsored by the Bangor Coalition to End Elder Abuse, a subcommittee of Penobscot County TRIAD, and the Maine Gerontological Society.

Panels of presenters discussed issues such as cultural perspectives of elder abuse, emergency planning and elder mistreatment – physical and emotional. Also included was a legal and financial issues panel which focused on financial exploitation, including scams that target older Mainers.

Maine seniors make up 65-70 percent of the Northeast CONTACT consumer caseload.

This is the generation that fought in World War II and Korea and lived through the worst and best of financial times in our country’s history.

Many of them remember Amelia Earhart’s flying exploits of the 1930s, humans landing on the moon in 1969, and today’s robots rolling across the surface of Mars. They grew up in a time when neighbor trusted neighbor, a simple handshake sealed many a deal, and seniors of their generation were held in high esteem as they aged in a comfortable rocking chair near the kitchen wood stove with a loving family all around.

Fortunately, many of our wonderful CONTACT casework volunteers are also members of this generation and are wonderful in their professional interactions with our clients.

Sadly, the world has become a very different place.

People with bad intentions spend lots of time learning how to con and fleece seniors of their financial resources. They pretend to be a friend or a confidant. They operate in person, on the phone, on television or on the Internet (the wild, wild West of business transactions).

A quick review of the thousands of people who respond to sweepstakes programs shows there is a not-so-small group of participants who spend an inordinate amount of money to purchase products or magazine subscriptions in the hopes of increasing their odds of winning. (Buying more to increase odds of winning is not permitted by statute). What is most interesting is that the average age of this group of high spenders is 74.

Pandering to the elderly and the handicapped by these charlatans is by no means an accident, but a concerted, studied strategy to separate the elderly from their money.

It is important that concerned family members check into the finances of their loved ones in a sensitive way to assure they are not being victimized.

This is not an easy task and requires skill and sensitivity. Our Maine elders deserve to be as independent as possible as they interact with others in the world.

Offering assistance may be rebuffed. It is well-documented that when senior citizens get fleeced, they feel ashamed and clam up and do not want to broadcast the fact or seek help.

Flimflam artists count on this behavior and exploit their silence to continue extorting for long periods of time. When a family member finally intercedes, much damage has already been done.

The earlier families can talk about the aging process and have positive discussions and develop financial plans or perhaps discuss future power of attorney issues to the satisfaction of all, the better the chance those plans will succeed.

We owe a tremendous debt of gratitude to the golden generation. If we can keep them financially safe and secure and their dignity and freedom intact in the winter of their lives, we will have helped repay that debt. There is much we have yet to do.

Consumer Forum is a collaboration of the Bangor Daily News and Northeast CONTACT for Better Business, Inc., Maine’s membership-funded, nonprofit organization. An individual annual membership is $25; business memberships start at $125. For consumer help and information write: Consumer Forum, Bangor Daily News, P.O. Box 1329, Bangor 04402-1329.