The climate and amenities in Scottsdale and the rest of Arizona make it a popular area for those who are ready to retire and enjoy the lifestyle they worked their entire lives for. Unfortunately, the large number of retirees also makes Arizona a target for elder abuse and fraud of vulnerable adults. The Arizona Attorney General's Office indicates that reports of elder abuse have increased more than 150% in the last decade.

Pride and dignity are important assets that all of us seek to protect. This is equally true for older individuals. Unfortunately it can be this same pride that gets in the way of accurate reporting of elder abuse. Once a person has realized that they have been the victim of a scam they may be too proud to report it. Experts say that less than ten percent of cases are reported.

An article in the Arizona Republic shared the story of one man who feared that his father had been taken advantage of financially. As his father's only family in the state, he explained that he did all he could to spend time with his dad, but that it still left his father alone much of the time. He said that this father would often overpay or buy services he did not need just so that he could have some company.

After his father passed away, he found that he had purchased a maintenance plan for his air conditioner at a cost of $800 per month, about half of his monthly income. The son contacted the air conditioner business. They confirmed that he was a customer but had no records of such an expensive plan and said that they would never charge those prices. The company said that on several occasions they had found that former employees pretended to represent the company in order to con individuals out of their money.

The Arizona Attorney General's Office is attempting to stem the tide of elder abuse. The recently established a new ask force to help investigate and prosecute this type of fraud. The first line of defense though, is still vigilant families, friends and community members who are on the look-out for suspicious activity or willing to help vulnerable adults retain someone to help them manage their assets safely.

Source: The Arizona Republic "Scams, manipulation, fraud targeting elderly on the rise, studies say" Elvina Nawaguna-Clemente, July 22, 2011