It’s an awful thing to know that there are people out there who are constantly trying to scam people in order to take advantage of them. While we know many scammers target elderly individuals, were you aware that there are some people who specifically go after those who are bereaved? Keep reading below on typical scams that can occur on the bereaved.
Life Insurance
Many scammers will call a family after they have lost a loved one and claim that they are an insurance company provider who has a life insurance policy on the deceased. Typically, they will say the policy is valued at around $50k but the individual was behind on their payments. The family will then be asked to pay in order to reactivate the policy in order to receive the policy.
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They send fake invoices that are addressed to the deceased with invoice ranging anywhere from one hundred to one thousand dollars. If you believe that you have received a false report, run a credit check on the deceased individual. You can view all open accounts by using Experian.com or Transunion.com.
Medicare
Be advised that companies like Medicare and Medicaid will never call you and ask for information over the phone. One common scam on a bereaved family is when a scammer calls and claims that their insurance cards need to be updated. You will be asked to verify your birth date and your social security numbers. Do not provide this information over the phone if this ever happens to you.
Tax Fraud
One very sophisticated phone scam can occur regarding tax fraud. The scammers will call claiming to be IRS employees and claim that the deceased individual owes money on taxes. In some instances, they may even threaten to have you arrested if you don’t pay all or part of the owed taxes. Keep in mind that the IRS will NEVER demand payment immediately over the phone when there are taxes owed without first sending you a notification in the mail asking for credit or debit card numbers. They would also never threaten to bring in local police or law enforcement to arrest you for