The financial ramifications of elder financial abuse can be considerable. And the elderly victim of the abuse is not the only one that can suffer significant financial harm. The harm can spread out to affecting other members of their family. For one, it could impact family members who are their caregivers.
A recent Allianz study compared the situation of caregivers of elder abuse victims and caregivers of seniors who had not suffered such abuse.
There are a wide range of different types of support caregivers provide the seniors they are caring for. This can include financial support. Such caregivers might dip quite a bit into their own pockets to help their loved one.
When a senior suffers elder financial abuse, the amount of financial support they might need to stay in a good situation could increase. Given this, caregivers of such individuals might end up feeling a responsibility to draw even more into their own resources to help their loved one. The study found that caregivers of elder abuse victims generally spent quite a bit more in relation to their caregiving efforts than other caregivers of the elderly.
The study found that the average overall financial burden that elder financial abuse ends up putting on caregivers is $36,000.
Of course, finances are not the only area where elder financial abuse can have wide effects. The emotional effects of such abuse can also spread beyond the victim to the victim’s family.
So, a whole family can end up feeling the ramifications of elder financial abuse. Thus, such abuse and what can be done to help prevent it can be important things for a family to talk about.
Given its ability to impact a whole family, elder financial abuse can not only affect a senior’s goals regarding their own financial security but their goals related to protecting the financial security of their loved ones. Such goals can be among the key goals a person has in their estate plan. So, in addition to talking about financial abuse prevention issues with their family, a senior may want to discuss such issues with an elder law attorney. Such discussions may help a senior understand what steps (such as steps related to trusts or other mechanisms) they can take within their estate plan to try to safeguard their goals regarding helping their family from potential financial abuse and other threats.