ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER
Unauthorized ATM Withdrawals
Allegedly Deleted Security Alerts Addressed To Couple
Protecting Older Loved Ones From Caregiver Fraud
Unauthorized use of debit, credit, and ATM cards is a recurring form of financial elder abuse of older persons sometimes perpetrated on them by their in-home caregivers. As a case discussed below illustrates, a team of caregivers may participate in fraud on their shared patients. Whatever the “form” or frequency or size of financial elder abuse, any taking of a senior’s property, or any assistance in that taking is a crime and grounds for civil liability of the person doing the taking and anyone assisting him or her. California Penal Code § 368 and Cal. Welf. & Inst. Code § 15610.30 (definition of financial elder abuse). California broadly defines what constitutes financial elder or dependent adult abuse:
(a) “Financial abuse” of an elder or dependent adult occurs when a person or entity does any of the following:
(1) Takes, secretes, appropriates, obtains, or retains real or personal property of an elder or dependent adult for a wrongful use or with intent to defraud, or both.
(2) Assists in taking, secreting, appropriating, obtaining, or retaining real or personal property of an elder or dependent adult for a wrongful use or with intent to defraud, or both.
(3) Takes, secretes, appropriates, obtains, or retains, or assists in taking, secreting, appropriating, obtaining, or retaining, real or personal property of an elder or dependent adult by undue influence, as defined in Section 15610.70.
If you or a loved one is a victim of elder or dependent adult abuse or neglect in Santa Clara County or the South Bay or elsewhere in Northern California call us today at (415)441-8669. Our toll-free number is 1-888-50EVANS (888-503-8267).
Case Example of Caregiver Fraud/Caregiver Theft
In one reported case, [1] two caregivers have been accused of stealing from the elderly couple in their care. According to police reports, the husband is wheelchair-bound and relies heavily on full-time assistance. Police say that one of the caregivers working for the older couple would take the couple’s ATM card and go and withdraw cash from their account while the other caregiver stayed in the home and intercepted alerts from the bank about the withdrawal. That caregiver, police say, would delete the alert from the couple’s mobile phone before they could see the alerts. In addition to the unauthorized ATM transactions, police say the caregivers also cashed forged checks and deleted the account alerts in a similar manner for those transactions. Eventually, the wife of the elderly couple noticed discrepancies on their bank statements and after consulting with her bank the police were notified. A detailed investigation followed leading to the accusations. Among other checks the police are running, they are reviewing whether the agency that assigned the two caregivers to the elderly couple ran an adequate background check on the assigned the two individuals.
Protecting Seniors From Caregiver Fraud
Always do a background check on any caregiver before he or she is hired. Ask for references and check them. Once the caregiver is on the job have the timecards sent to you so you can verify their accuracy. There are other important steps to follow as well to prevent more elaborate schemes of financial abuse. Careful monitoring of a senior’s checking account – and close review of cancelled checks – may have caught the reported fraud in this case sooner than eight or nine months. Always monitor a senior loved one’s checking account; take a look at it online every day if you can. Never, ever give a caregiver a Power of Attorney, credit card, or a blank check. Stay involved in any senior loved one’s life so a stranger does not have the opportunity for this kind of theft and exploitation.
Contact Us
If you sense any kind of abuse of an older loved one in Santa Clara County or elsewhere in the South Bay or Northern California, call us right away. Ingrid M. Evans has years of experience in representing seniors and their families against abusers of any kind, including in-home caregivers. You can reach us at (415) 441-8669, or by email at info@evanslaw.com. Our toll-free number is 1-888-50EVANS (888-503-8267).
[1] Evans Law Firm, Inc. was not involved in the case in any way.
