An adult son moves in with his mother in order to care for her. The mother adds her son's name to her checking account so that he can help her pay the household bills. The son uses the money from the joint account to buy drugs, leaving the mother without money to pay the mortgage and utilities. An insurance agent persuades an elderly client to invest in the agent's business. However, instead of using the money for that purpose, the agent loses the money while gambling.
Financial abuse is one of several activities defined in law as elder abuse.
Other forms are physical abuse, sexual abuse, neglect, self-neglect and emotional abuse. An abuser often commits several forms of abuse. For instance, financial abuse is sometimes accompanied by physical abuse. These victims are often worried about physical safety and this needs to be considered. There are numerous indicators of financial abuse.