Scams Against Seniors
Scammers must constantly evolve their strategies and tactics because their ruses and tricks get old fast. Once the public learns about a scam, it doesn’t work anymore. Scammers are always attempting up with new ideas, or variations on old ones. Barely into 2017, there have already been several new alerts for senior scams.
A couple of the scams officials have been warning people about are listed below. Familiarize yourself with these trending scams so that you or your older loved one won’t be the next victim:
Medicare Card Scam
In some states, seniors have been receiving calls from a group calling itself “Preferred Benefits for Seniors”. The caller will generally inform the seniors that they need to replace their Medicare card, but their end goal is actually getting the senior to give up a bank account number. Seniors need to know that they should never give any personal information over the phone. Medicare’s policy is to never call and tell individuals they need a new card, nor will they ask for personal information. This same scam is occurring by individuals trying to pass themselves off as representatives of Medicaid as well.
Income Tax Scammers
Seniors are also being warned about a new scam involving income tax returns. Scammers will call and tell victims (usually people receiving social security or disability) that they are eligible for a tax credit as part of a “new stimulus program” (the credit is made up). The scammers will then offer to assist the senior to apply for the benefit, by getting the victims to unwittingly provide all their financial information, including bank account numbers. Scammers will then file fraudulent returns on behalf of their victims, and direct tax refunds to be put in their own account. Victims have predominately been low income seniors.
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