Scams target seniors, who have ways to fight back

It seemed like a good idea when the representative from the landscaping company rang your doorbell that afternoon and gave you a now-or-never, one-time-only deal on yardwork. You thought of your arthritic knee. You gave them a down-payment, and they got to work.

Later, when they told you that the work would cost more than they originally quoted, you began to get a little suspicious but paid them the money they said they needed to finish the job.

Only after they'd gone did you walk around the house and realize that they'd done a shoddy job. You went back inside and opened the phone book to complain, but couldn't find their company name.

Scammed

The "house repair" scam is one of the most common cheats that victimize senior citizens. According to Deputy Chief Steven Heider of the Colonie Police Department, con artists often use seniors' "trusting nature" against them to steal thousands of dollars at a time.

While many scams come to seniors through their front doors, others find their way inside through the U.S. Postal Service.

According to Jill McLellan-Phelps, director for operations for DePaul Housing Management in the Albany Diocese, seniors living in diocesan housing often receive mail scams in the form of blank checks, credit card offers and "free" money, which take advantage of seniors' inexperience with modern mailing methods for their own benefit.

Sign here

Some solicitations include a blank check on which the recipient's name is printed and encourage the recipient to fill in the check for whatever amount of money is needed. The recipient is led to believe that they're getting "free" money, said Ms. McLellan-Phelps. In reality, they're signing up for a high-interest loan -- as per the fine print.

"[Seniors'] credit is affected. There's liability. You have to be really aware of what you're signing up for," she said.

Seniors with short memories can also be tricked by phone scams that claim the victim "helped us last year," according to Ms. McLellan-Phelps. "And, in fact, you didn't help them at all. It's a cold call, but you're already listening differently if you're hearing that you contributed last year."

Suspicious

The New York State Consumer Protection Board lists other scams that come through the mail:

* "retirement estates," or property sold blindly to retiring seniors at an incredibly low rate; when seniors finally see the property they've bought, it's in an undevelopable swamp;

* work-at-home advertisements, which can be attractive for housebound seniors but are mostly scams; after asking seniors to send money for more information, all they get is a "suggestion to place an ad of your own in various publications and have people send money to you," according to a publication put out by the Board;

* identity theft, which can happen by throwing away sensitive documents like bank statements before shredding them, and giving bank account numbers, ATM passwords and Social Security numbers to someone who looks or sounds official without checking first.

Alert

Deputy Chief Heider encourages seniors to be on their guard for too-good-to-be-true offers or contests that require them to send a deposit in order to secure a prize or trip. "You shouldn't need to pay anything to win a contest," he said.

He went on to give seniors some common-sense ways to beat scammers at their own game:

* Know the old adage that "if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is";

* Know that "people will never call you and ask for your Social Security numbers; banks won't do it, police won't do it, the FBI won't do it";

* Deal only with contractors "referred to you by your friends and neighbors" to avoid being scammed by disreputable companies;

* Always get a second opinion, especially if a salesperson is pressuring you to buy something -- now;

* "Don't put all your eggs in one basket" financially;

* Keep your finances to yourself to protect your privacy; talk about your finances only with your advisor or family members you trust;

* Don't let people in the house if you don't know them. Always ask for identification and confirm it with the indicated company or agency;

* Don't buy large items or improvements on impulse, "even if they seem like a great deal"; and

* Stay away from "now-or-never" offers.

What to do

Seniors who suspect they have been scammed should call the police, Deputy Chief Heider said.

Ms. McLellan-Phelps also recommends that seniors contact local senior centers and organizations, which have information and resources relating to identifying -- and recovering from -- fraud. Most senior centers, including those within the DePaul Housing Community, have become proactive in "keeping the information flowing," she said.

"Most of the money lost [in Colonie] is not to people with guns and knives, but to people with sharp tongues," said Deputy Chief Heider.

(3/27/2003) [[In-content Ad]]