Feb 28, 2014 3 min read

After speaking with numerous elderly victims of fraud, state Rep. Jesse White quickly identified a common theme.

“It’s hard for them to get any money back,” White, D-Cecil, said.

In attempt to limit the strain on law enforcement and to provide elderly fraud victims with more options to possibly regain their losses, White recently introduced a piece of legislation that would provide elderly victims with civil options.

“Instead of having to go through law enforcement, which can be difficult or intimidating, they can get a lawyer and go through the court,” he said.

White’s House Bill 2057 would allow financial advisors to report abuse or fraud without fear of criminal or civil liability, elderly victims to take civil action, courts to award attorney fees or punitive damages and would create a trust fund that would assist elderly victims.

The bill would require anyone found guilty of committing a financial crime against an elderly individual to pay an additional fine of $100, which would then go into the fund.

“Scam artists know where the line of the law is,” White said. “This would allow for civil penalty – a burden of lower proof.”

While White said the number of financial crimes against Pennsylvania elderly is hard to quantify, he said it is definitely a problem.

“A lot of scams go unreported,” he said. “They are so embarrassed, they don’t want to tell anybody.”

Washington Police Chief Chris Luppino agreed.

“But that shouldn’t be the case,” he said.

Luppino said financial scams range from Nigerian phone scams to contractors. Certain phone scams, especially those that are committed overseas, are difficult, if not impossible, to solve, according to Luppino.

“Unfortunately, there’s not a good chance they will be solved,” he said. “But if it’s a next-door neighbor or a contractor, we’ve got a good rate of solving them.”

Luppino said any type of legislation would be a “step in the right direction.” South Strabane Township Police Chief Don Zofchak agrees, but he’s doubtful it will make a difference.

“It’s always been an issue,” Zofchak said of crimes against the elderly. “It’s just become easier. This won’t stop (people) from doing it. We need find a way to educate (the elderly) how not to be victims in the first place.”

According to the National Adult Protective Services Association, one in nine seniors reported being abused, neglected or exploited in the past 12 months; with one in 20 older adults indicating some form of perceived financial treatment in the past.

Common scams include lottery and sweepstakes, home repair, grandparent and charity scams, according to the NAPSA. For more information of scams targeting the elderly and what family members can do to prevent scams, visit www.napsa-now.org.

White said the bill has received a good deal of support thus far, and believes it will be successful.

“This bill is a toolbox,” he said. “It provides us with several different tools to help reduce financial exploitation and punish these people, and make sure victims are made as whole as possible.”