How to help a parent buy life insurance without getting scammed

You can help an elderly parent buy life insurance safely by doing 3 things. Sit in on every sales conversation. Check that the agent is licensed and appointed by the insurer before any money moves. Use the paperwork the law already requires.

Your parent must sign the application. New York's insurance law, for one, bars anyone from insuring another adult without that person's written consent. A power of attorney doesn't let you sign in a capable parent's place. This guide covers the schemes that target buyers 60 and older and the steps that stop them.

The short version

People 60 and older filed 201,266 complaints with the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center in 2025 and reported $7.75 billion in losses. That's more than any other age group (FBI IC3 2025 Annual Report).
No federal tracker breaks out life insurance fraud on its own, so there's no reliable dollar figure for it. The schemes below come from state regulators and consumer alerts.
New York law requires another adult's written consent before anyone insures them, as the state's insurance regulator explains (NY Department of Financial Services). Don't accept an application your parent hasn't signed. Power of attorney doesn't move the decision away from a capable parent.
Replacing an existing policy triggers protections under NAIC Model Regulation 613 (NAIC). The agent reads a replacement notice aloud, the old insurer gets notice within 5 business days, and your parent gets a 30-day refund right. Keep the old policy in force, meaning active and paid up, until the new one is delivered and read (NAIC Life Insurance Buyer's Guide).
Report a bad agent to your state insurance department, the DOJ National Elder Fraud Hotline at 833-372-8311, or the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.

How much older adults lose to fraud, and what the numbers leave out

Fraud losses reported by people 60 and older have more than doubled in 2 years. In 2023, the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) logged 101,068 complaints from this group and $3.43 billion in losses. The average loss was $33,915 (FBI IC3 2023 Elder Fraud Report).

By 2024 that rose to 147,127 complaints and $4.8 billion (FBI IC3 2024 Annual Report). In 2025 it reached 201,266 complaints and $7.75 billion, the largest total of any age band, out of $20.877 billion in losses reported nationwide.

Source: FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center, 2023 Elder Fraud Report and 2024 and 2025 Annual Reports. Losses as reported by complainants age 60 and older.

The Federal Trade Commission's database tells a similar story from a different angle. Adults 60 and older reported about $2.4 billion in fraud losses to the FTC in 2024, up from roughly $600 million in 2020 (FTC, Protecting Older Consumers 2024–2025). The agency estimates the true 2024 cost at $10.1 billion to $81.5 billion once unreported losses are counted.

The median loss, the midpoint of all reported losses, climbs with age: $691 for people in their 60s, $1,000 in their 70s, and $1,650 for people 80 and older. Frauds that started with a phone call had the highest median losses.

One more FTC detail explains why this guide exists: about 16% of fraud reports involving someone 80 or older were filed by another person, often a family member. You may be the one who notices first.

One thing these numbers don't show: neither IC3 nor the FTC has a category for life insurance fraud. No reliable figure exists for how much older adults lose to bad life insurance sales specifically, and any source that gives you one is estimating. What we do have are the schemes state regulators describe and the rules they've written to stop them.

Who gets to decide: consent and power of attorney

Your parent decides, and your parent signs. Under New York insurance law, no one can obtain a life insurance policy on another adult without that person's written consent. The one exception is for spouses (NY Department of Financial Services). That opinion interprets one state's statute, so ask about your own state's version, but don't accept an application your parent hasn't signed.

Power of attorney doesn't change that when your parent is still capable. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau lists 4 duties for anyone acting under a power of attorney (POA) (CFPB, Managing Someone Else's Money). Act in the person's best interest, manage their money and property carefully, keep their money separate from yours, and keep good records.

The CFPB also notes that a capable principal, the person who granted the POA, still makes her own decisions. Your authority ends at her death, and third parties may not understand you've been named as an agent.

In practice your role is helper, not buyer. Consider Maria, 71, in Ohio, whose daughter Ana holds her POA. Ana can sit in on the call, read every form, and ask hard questions. Maria signs the application, and Maria's name goes on the signature line.

The schemes that target older life insurance buyers

The schemes state regulators warn about don't need a fake company. They involve a real agent selling a real policy the buyer didn't need, with the truth left out. State regulators have names for these tactics.

Twisting and churning

Twisting is using a misleading or incomplete comparison to talk someone into dropping one policy and buying another (Florida Statutes §626.9541(1)(l)). Churning is using the values in an existing policy to buy another one from the same insurer, mainly so the agent earns a new commission (Florida Statutes §626.9541(1)(aa)). The Texas Department of Insurance describes twisting the same way and adds that high-pressure tactics are illegal (Texas DOI).

The tell is a pitch that only talks about the new policy. Your parent's 20-year-old policy may have cash value, the savings portion of a permanent policy that builds over time, and a premium set when he was younger. A new policy is priced at his current age.

Replacement pressure

Under NAIC Model Regulation 613, a "replacement" is any new policy that causes an existing one to lapse, be surrendered (cashed in), or be reduced (NAIC Model 613 §2J). It also covers a policy reissued with less cash value or used to finance the new premiums. Replacements aren't illegal. They're regulated because they're where the abuse happens, and an agent who dodges the paperwork is telling you something.

Premium diversion and unlicensed sellers

Premium diversion is when an agent or broker pockets a customer's premium payments instead of sending them to the insurer (FBI). The Texas Department of Insurance lists selling insurance without a license and selling fake policies among the frauds it investigates (Texas DOI Fraud Unit). Both are caught by the same step: verifying the license and the appointment before any money moves.

Fake "unclaimed policy" letters

A July 2026 FTC alert warns about letters from made-up law firms (FTC Consumer Alert, July 9, 2026). Each letter claims that someone with the same last name died and left an unclaimed life insurance payout. It then asks for a Social Security number or bank details to release the money. There is no policy, so don't reply, and report the letter at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.

What one state requires: California's protections for buyers 60 and older

California shows how far state law can go, and it's a useful benchmark wherever you live. Free look is the window after delivery when a policy can be returned for a full refund, no reason required. Every California life insurance buyer gets 10 to 30 days, and buyers 60 and older get at least 30 days (California Department of Insurance, Life Insurance Guide).

Before an in-home sales visit for life insurance or an annuity, a California agent must give a senior 24 hours' written notice that includes the agent's license number. The senior can have other people present and can end the meeting at any time (California Department of Insurance, Senior Bill of Rights). If your parent lives there, our page on California's licensing rules covers how to look up that license number.

These rules are California's. The NAIC Buyer's Guide says free-look periods are "usually 10 days" and that the length is printed on page 1 of the policy. Don't assume your parent has 30 days or a right to advance notice; confirm the specifics with your state insurance department.

7 steps to help an elderly parent buy life insurance safely

Step 1: Sit in on every call and visit

Be on the line or in the room for every conversation with the agent. The FTC found that phone-initiated frauds carried the highest median losses, and a second set of ears changes the dynamic. Tell the agent up front that you'll be present, and take notes on what's promised.

If the agent objects to your presence, that's your answer. A legitimate agent welcomes a family member who asks questions.

Step 2: Check the license and appointments together

Before any money moves, confirm the agent holds an active license in your parent's state and is appointed by the carrier whose policy they're selling. An appointment is the insurer's authorization for a specific agent to sell its policies. State insurance departments license agents, and many offer an online lookup (NAIC). Our guide to verifying a life insurance agent walks through the lookup, and the NPN explainer covers the nationwide check by National Producer Number.

Do this with your parent watching. Seeing the record come up, or fail to, beats being told about it.

Step 3: If it's a replacement, get the notice and the illustration

If the new policy would replace or draw on an existing one, the agent owes your parent specific paperwork. NAIC Model 613 is a model rule that states adapt into their own regulations, and it sets this timeline:

When	What has to happen	Model 613 section
At the application	Agent takes a signed statement about existing coverage	§3A
Before signing, if replacing	Agent reads aloud and leaves a signed "Important Notice: Replacement" listing every policy affected	§3B–C
Within 5 business days	New insurer notifies the old insurer	§5A(2)
Within 5 business days of the request	Old insurer provides an in-force illustration, a statement of what the current policy is worth today	§6B
30 days after delivery	Your parent can return the new policy for an unconditional refund	§5A(4)

Ask for the in-force illustration and read it against the new proposal. Our guide to questions to ask a life insurance agent includes the replacement questions in plain language.

Step 4: Use the free look

Read the policy when it arrives, not the brochure. The free-look length is on page 1. Check the death benefit, the premium, and any waiting period on the full benefit against your notes from Step 1. Check the beneficiary names too, meaning who gets paid. If anything differs from what was promised, return the policy inside the window and get the refund confirmed in writing.

Step 5: Don't cancel the old policy until the new one is in hand

The NAIC Buyer's Guide puts it plainly: "Don't cancel your current policy until you get the new one." An application isn't a policy. If your parent's health history leads the new insurer to decline the application or raise the price, a cancelled old policy can't be restored. Keep paying the old premium through the free-look period on the new one.

Step 6: Decide who owns the policy, in writing

The policy owner controls it and can name and change beneficiaries at no cost, according to the NAIC Buyer's Guide. When your parent is capable, having your parent own the policy keeps the decisions where the law already puts them. If you'll pay premiums under a POA, keep that money separate from your own, with records, as the CFPB requires. Ownership can affect taxes and estates, which we don't cover here; ask a professional.

Step 7: Know where to report, before you need to

Complaints about an agent or a company go to your state's insurance department, which the NAIC's "Find Your State" tool links to (NAIC, How to File a Complaint). Suspected fraud goes to the department's fraud unit; Texas, for example, takes reports at 800-252-3439 or through the NAIC's online system at ofrs.naic.org. The Department of Justice runs a National Elder Fraud Hotline at 833-372-8311, Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Eastern (DOJ Office for Victims of Crime). Fake letters go to the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.

Your mother signs for her own policy, and no one should replace it without a notice she can hold in her hands.

3 warning signs that mean stop

The California Department of Insurance names 3 red flags in its life insurance guide, and each maps to a scheme above.

The agent suggests paying the new premiums from the old policy's cash value. This is the mechanic behind churning: the old policy's value funds a new commission. Ask for the in-force illustration before anything is signed.

The agent tells your parent not to contact the current insurer. Model 613 requires the new insurer to notify the old one anyway. An agent who wants that contact avoided is keeping you from learning what the existing policy is worth.

The agent asks your parent to sign blank or incomplete forms. Nothing gets signed until every field is filled in and your parent has read it. Ask for a copy of everything signed, on the spot.

Our agent red flags guide covers the longer list.

What success looks like

Your parent holds a policy whose page 1 matches your notes, and the old policy stayed in force until that point. You have the license lookup, the signed replacement notice if one applied, and the in-force illustration.

Sometimes success is buying nothing. Dan, 78, in Texas, had a son who insisted on the in-force illustration. It showed the existing coverage was cheaper than the proposed replacement, so Dan kept what he had.

Questions people ask

Can I buy life insurance on my mom without her knowing?

Not without her signature. New York's insurance law, as the state's Department of Financial Services explains, requires the insured adult's written consent, with only a spouse exception. An application your mom hasn't signed is one to refuse. An agent willing to skip her signature is a reason to walk away and report.

I have power of attorney. Can I sign the application for Dad?

Not if Dad is capable of deciding for himself. The CFPB is explicit that a capable principal still makes his own decisions. Your duty is to act in his best interest, not in his place. If his capacity is genuinely in question, that's a conversation with a lawyer, not with an agent.

Can my parent cancel a policy they were pressured into last week?

Probably, if the policy was delivered inside the free-look period. That window is "usually 10 days" and is printed on page 1 (NAIC Buyer's Guide). It's at least 30 days for California buyers 60 and older, and 30 days on replacements under Model 613. Send the cancellation in writing and keep proof of the date.

Why does a "no health questions" policy pay less if Mom dies in the first year or two?

Policies that skip health questions "cost more and provide less coverage," according to the NAIC Buyer's Guide. As a common industry practice, not a legal rule, many pay only a return of premiums, not the full benefit, during an initial period. The length of that period is set by the contract, not by law. Read the graded-benefit clause, the section that says how much the policy pays in its first years, on the policy itself.

What to do next

Before the next call with the agent, pull the license record with your parent sitting beside you. If you're still choosing an agent, every agent listed on Licensedproducer has had license, background, and carrier appointments checked before appearing. Your request goes to the one agent you pick. Either way, the license lookup comes first.