Downturn heightens risk of financial abuse

Figures from the Australian Banking Association show that payments on 643,000 loans, worth around $200 billion, have been deferred since the lockdowns. People are eventually going to have to catch up on these deferred payments.

Children with ‘early inheritance syndrome’ may feel a sense of entitlement to their parents’ assets, and consequently seek ways for their parents to give them money. They may justify their actions by saying: “The money is going to be mine anyway.”

Financial abuse is the most common, and fastest-growing, type of abuse of older people. It involves taking or misusing an older person’s money, property or assets. It also includes persuading an older person to change their will through deception or undue influence.

Research shows that women over the age of 80 are most at risk of financial abuse, with adult sons being the most common perpetrators. A common assumption is that older women, particularly those who have not been the family’s breadwinner, are unable to manage their finances after their husband dies. Not only is this patronising but also it disempowers older women.