The problem of elder abuse is epidemic, especially for financial elder abuse. The Ohio Attorney General’s Office recently produced a great video everyone should watch.
https://www.ohioattorneygeneral.gov/Individuals -and-Families/Seniors/Elder-Abuse-Resource
Financial elder abuse — including scams is the most common type of abuse. In July 26, 2025, Newsweek reported older Americans were scammed out of a reported 645 million dollars in the first three months of 2025. That does not reflect all money lost by older unsuspecting Americans. It only reflects those losses that were reported from January 1, 2025 through March 2025.
Romance Scams. Romance scams is a common form of financial elder abuse. The advocates at Serving Our Seniors see it fairly often. Falling in love over the computer / smartphone can happen to men as well as women. Keep in mind, Serving Our Seniors will only hear from those who are beginning to doubt / question if this romantic relationship is real. We don’t hear from those who have fallen in love with their imposter and never question the relationship.
One may ask, “If someone would make harmful financial decisions to themselves can’t they be deemed “incompetent”? Can’t the court force them to have a guardian? The short answer is “No.” In some cases, yes. To answer this correctly would require a separate article.
Adding to the complexity of reporting financial abuse is when there is no one to detect the signs/symptoms that the older person is being financially exploited. It is estimated that, nationally, there are 25% – 27% of older Americans are aging alone. Meaning, they have outlived their spouse and never had children, or they never married and never had children, or maybe they have children, but the relationship is poor or the distance prevents the abuse from being detected. Finally, There are cases when the older adults out-lives their spouse and their children. It is older agers, in such circumstances, who tend to fall victim to their emotional affair, which is stealing them blind, and no one is there to see the signs and symptoms until it is too late.
According to the Newsweek article https://www.newsweek.com/elderly-americans-lose-745m-scams-2025-so-far-2104605 the older a person is the greater the financial loss, for all types of financial elder abuse, not just romance scams. Here are the stats:
• Older Americans ages 60-69 reported 60,379 incidents of fraud. Resulting in an estimated loss of 355 million dollars
• Older Americans ages 70 – 79 reported fewer incidences, but lost a larger amount of money per incident. 45,000 reported incidences totaling $299 million
• Older Americans aged 80+ reported 12,500 incidents of scams and lost $91 million.
If you suspect you may be a victim
of some form of financial elder abuse, know this… Erie County has an Adult Protective Services unit with Adult Protective Investigators, 419-626-6781. All calls are anonymous and protected from the press.
Theft from an elderly person is a felony. Cases of financial elder abuse should also be reported to your local police department.
If you are an Erie County resident and would like the moral support of an advocate to help you call APS or your local police, Serving Our Seniors can help you, 419-624-1856. By calling Serving Our Seniors a Senior Advocate or a Senior Advocate Assistant will be with you by phone or in person, to talk with you and help you make your reports.
Sue Daugherty Director,
Serving Our Seniors 310 E. Boalt Street #A Sandusky, OH 44870
