NCJ Number
83593
Date Published
1981
Length
18 pages
Annotation
The vulnerability of the elderly to consumer fraud, types of consumer fraud likely to victimize the elderly, and ways of countering such victimization are discussed.
Abstract
The elderly are particulary vulnerable to consumer fraud because of their lack of familiarity with an increasingly complex market and because their consumer behavior in their earlier years was conditioned by more personalized and trusting market transactions, The isolation of the elderly also deprives them of information or the influence of friends and relatives that might counteract the strong pressures and appeal of persuasive sellers of fraudulent goods and services. Frauds to which the elderly are particularly vulnerable are health care quackery; general merchandising fraud, notably shoddy or unsafe products, scams in home repairs, car repairs, and installment contracts; mail-order frauds; income creation, protection, and investment frauds; social psychological frauds, e.g., expensive dance lessons and club memberships; and con games. The criminal justice system can aid the elderly in dealing with consumer fraud by educating them to prevent crime; assisting the victim of crime; and identifying, apprehending, and prosecuting those who perpetrate frauds against the elderly. A total of 28 references are listed.