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Recovering from Elder Financial Exploitation: A framework for policy and research

Elder financial exploitation (EFE) robs millions of older adults of their money and property. Despite the frequency and magnitude of the monetary losses in elder financial exploitation, little is known about how, and when older adults recover the money they have lost.  This report provides the first comprehensive description of the experience of how older adults recover from elder financial exploitation. The report presents a framework for financial recovery derived from insights from CFPB’s one-on-one interviews with older adults, caregivers, and professionals as well as existing literature across a range of disciplines that the CFPB examined to better understand recovery from EFE.

The EFE financial recovery framework consists of a series of hypotheses about the key factors that can make recovery more or less likely at four stages: (1) identification that EFE has occurred, (2) reporting of suspected EFE to authorities, (3) investigation of suspected EFE, and (4) return of funds to the victim. These stages represent a logical sequence of steps that are often necessary, if not individually sufficient, for achieving financial recovery.

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