Consumer Tip of the Day: Protect Elderly Veterans from Financial Abuse

Military veterans are among the jewels of this nation and deserve to be treated with the utmost respect. Therefore, in honor of Veteran’s Day, the Independent Community Bankers of America and the Senior Housing Crime Prevention Foundation have joined forces to offer tips on preventing elderly veterans from becoming the victims of financial abuse.

ICBA and SHCPF offer the following tips:

• Guard valuables in a bank safety deposit box. The ICBA and SHCPF say these can include your Social Security card, passports, credit card account numbers, will and other legal documents, financial statements and medical records.
• Don’t disclose financial information to anyone who calls you, claiming to be a representative from your bank or credit card company. Be very leery if the caller asks you to wire funds or send personal information. If this happens, make sure to contact your bank directly.
• Pay close attention to your bank accounts and bill statements. Banking online will make it much easier to monitor transactions regularly.
• Do not give your personal information, such as bank account numbers or PINs, to anyone over the phone or in a letter, email, fax or text message.

For more information on financial issues that can affect older consumers, see the article Inform Your Elders on the Dangers of Self-Directed IRAs.