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OP, you don't say how old your mother is. It seems that most here are assuming that she is elderly by the title of this thread. She very well might be but since her mother lives with her I'm thinking that she might be as young as her 60s and to me that's not elderly. Although your grandmother just might be 100 and living with your mom which would make your mother elderly.
I agree with many here that those who are in their 80s or older grew up in an era when one was more trusting, polite and didn't hear about scam artists as much. To them it's not polite to simply hang up on someone trying to sell them something.
I'm 61 (not elderly!) and even though we're on the "do not call" list we still get plenty of annoying calls. Most of the time I just don't answer but once in a while when I'm in one of my moods, I will answer and play games back with them. ...My fav are the Microsoft ones who want to "help" fix my computer...yeah right. I'll just waste their time back by playing along with them....G-d I can't stand the annoying calls!! In my opinon they are the ones being rude by interrupting my peace!
Cognitive decline. My father, a brilliant intellectual, was sold a worthless annuity 6 months before he died. I talked him into using the state cooling-off period to reverse the transaction, saving him (and eventually me) $20,000.
Mom is bombarded with solicitations... when I answer her phone... most hang up.
I love all the home improvement calls and when I tell them I'm in that business... most just hang up.
I also had mom added to my credit card... this way I have full authority to dispute any charge.
There is an entire industry preying on elderly... sad but true.
Once I found a contract for new windows that my father had signed......problem was, at that point, the house had already been in my name for several years.
Honestly, I was tempted to let that company install those new windows........then tell them the news......that not only was I not going to pay for the windows, I was going to sue them for putting new windows in MY house without MY permission. LOL
At that time, it was obvious my father was an easy target and the house already had new windows that were installed about 5 years earlier, so this company was deliberately trying to cheat an old man out of thousands of dollars for windows that were not needed.
When I called the company to cancel the contract, there was an audible gasp from the woman I was talking to when I told her Mr. XXXX didn't own the house, IDID.
Same thing when I found a contract with the Amish to clear cut the woods behind the house. Sent them a letter advising them that Mr. XXXX didn't own the property and that I would sue them if they touched even one tree. I then alerted the neighbors as to what happened and to call the sheriff if they saw any Amish near the property.
My father turned down dozens of offers on those trees over the years, he didn't want them cut and they still stand to this day.
There were a lot of close calls for sure......I could go on and on. Despicable people.
She`s a widow , so maybe she just needs someone to talk to instead of a relative or a nurse in her elder life ........And saying No will spoil that need to talk to someone different
Most operations rely on the natural greed and dishonesty of people. I knew a very successful roofing salesman who always make sure that people could see his work sheet when he was figuring the price. He'd always make an obvous mistake in favor of the customer. He told me that no one had ever told him of the mistake. Needless to say, he always priced his products high.
It's often been said that it's impossible to con an honest man. However, all people have larceny in their hearts.
"The desire to get something for nothing has been very costly to many people who have dealt with me and with other con men", Weil writes. "But I have found that this is the way it works. The average person, in my estimation, is ninety-nine per cent animal and one per cent human. The ninety-nine per cent that is animal causes very little trouble. But the one per cent that is human causes all our woes. When people learn—as I doubt they will—that they can't get something for nothing, crime will diminish and we shall live in greater harmony."[SIZE=2][[/SIZE]
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OP, you don't say how old your mother is. It seems that most here are assuming that she is elderly by the title of this thread. She very well might be but since her mother lives with her I'm thinking that she might be as young as her 60s and to me that's not elderly. Although your grandmother just might be 100 and living with your mom which would make your mother elderly.
I agree with many here that those who are in their 80s or older grew up in an era when one was more trusting, polite and didn't hear about scam artists as much. To them it's not polite to simply hang up on someone trying to sell them somethinge!
She is 74. Her mother is 93. I think the phone solicitators probably even collect and sell phone numbers of seniors/ retirees to target them as a group.
Unless the person had some sort of demonstrable, provable intellectual handicap, why do people constantly blame it on this? Some of the scams I see are completely foolish and no one in their right mind or who wasn't needlessly trusting would fall for it.
Mom gets a call saying her Granddaughter car broke down and she needs to wire $587 to the garage...
Mom's Granddaughter is 12 years old... so why do people give a pass on hucksters and scammers?
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