Practice Areas
- Nursing Home Abuse
- Personal Injury and Automobile Accidents
- Medical Malpractice
- DUI, Traffic and Criminal Law Defense
- Business Litigation
- Divorce
Blog 
Nursing Home Abuse
- Is the multistate nursing compact putting our Virginia elders at risk?
- Virginia nursing home supervisor refuses to take blame for abuse
- Beware sweet-talking financial abusers targeting elders in Virginia
- Eye Opening Facts about Virginia Elder Abuse & Neglect
- Questions for suspected cases of Virginia elder abuse / neglect
Firm News
Record $677 Million Nursing Home Abuse Verdict
Posted on 8/29/2010
Virginia Nursing Home Administrator embroiled in abuse complaints
Posted on 7/31/2010
More elder abuse scams target vulnerable Virginia citizens
Posted on 7/31/2010
This Memorial Day, Focus on Abuse of Veterans in Nursing Homes
Posted on 5/31/2010
Virginia Beach nursing home with violations will retain govn’t funding
Posted on 4/29/2010
Virginia Beach nursing home may lose Medicare and Medicaid funding
Posted on 3/31/2010
Jury awards senior $7.75 million in nursing home abuse lawsuit
Posted on 2/27/2010
Kickbacks lead to nursing home residents being prescribed drugs
Posted on 1/29/2010
Virginia Beach nurse implicated in nursing home identity theft
Posted on 1/29/2010
Cases of nursing home abuse and neglect may go up over the holiday season
Posted on 11/30/2009
Firm Library
Nursing Home Abuse
- How to File a Nursing Home Abuse Complaint in Virginia
- Suspect financial elder abuse? Your local Virginia bank teller could be an unexpected ally
- Nursing home abuse and neglect in Virginia – a bigger problem than anyone realizes
- Virginia Elder Abuse: It Can Happen Anywhere
- Fighting for the Rights of Nursing Home Residents: the Healthcare Bill Targets Elder Abuse
Suspect financial elder abuse? Your local Virginia bank teller could be an unexpected ally
Financial abuse of the elderly is a topic that does not get enough attention in Virginia. However, it is a growing problem and as more and more baby boomers age and enter assisted living or nursing home facilities in Virginia the problem will only get worse.
If you are concerned about an elder in your life, it may help to know that you could have an ally in the fight to spot elder financial abuse in Virginia: your local bank teller. Many large banking, insurance and investment companies have found that training low-level bank employees – for example bank tellers, who see customers regularly as a part of their – can protect the elderly from financial abuse.
Elder financial abuse can be perpetrated by somebody the elder knows or by a total stranger. Sadly, it is often a family member of friend who takes financial advantage of an elderly person. It is tough to spot elder financial abuse when it is done by a friend, caregiver, or family member, which is why special training is helpful.
Bank tellers can be trained to spot unusual behavior in a regular client, note changes in usage patterns in their accounts, or see that a new person is becoming more and more involved in the elder’s finances.
What are some of the ‘red flags’ for financial abuse that bank tellers are trained to spot?
- Abrupt increases in credit or debit card activity
- Repeat withdrawals over a short period of time
- Repeat withdrawals at odd hours
- Large withdrawals from mostly inactive accounts
- New authorized signers on an elder’s account
- Statements being sent to a different address than the elder’s
There is a training program available for banks interested in training their employees in this ground-level approach to spotting and preventing elder financial abuse. Check with your elder’s bank to see if they have such a program or would be interested in implementing one.
The small cost of such a program is worth it – research into the program shows that tellers are accurate about 70 percent of the time in spotting cases of financial exploitation when properly trained. Given the large number of vulnerable elders in our communities across Virginia, banks can’t afford to not take this small step to prevent abuse.
Please do not hesitate to get help if you suspect that a loved one is suffering from nursing home or assisted living abuse or neglect in Virginia. You can call us for a no-cost, completely confidential discussion of your situation at any time.
Weisberg & Zaleski, P.C.
112 College Place
Norfolk, VA 23510
Toll Free: (800) 690-0235
Phone: (757) 622-7740
Fax: (757) 533-9223
Ask an Attorney
Free Consultation
Michael S. Weisberg, P.C.
112 College Place
Norfolk, VA 23510
Phone: (757) 622-7740
Fax: (757) 533-9223
Toll Free: (800) 690-0235
Get Directions
