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Date: April 29, 2024 Mon
Time: 8:41 pm
Time: 8:41 pm
Results for financial abuse
6 results foundAuthor: Clare, Mike Title: Examination of the Extent of Elder Abuse in Western Australia. A Qualitative and Quantitative Investigation of Existing Agency Policy, Service Responses and Recorded Data Summary: Elder abuse is a significant issue for the Western Australian community, as the population is ageing and the percentage of people over age 65 is increasing exponentially. This research examines the extent of elder abuse in Western Australia, synthesizing qualitative and quantitative information from organisations working with elder abuse in order to provide a coherent, consistent estimate of the scope of elder abuse in Western Australia and the capacity of agencies to address this issue. Funding for this research was received through a grant application made by Advocare Inc. to LotteryWest, and researchers from the Crime Research Centre at the University of Western Australia were employed to conduct the research. Fourteen interviews were conducted with professionals from 10 organisations that respond to elder abuse in Western Australia. These included a total of 26 people, as some wished to be interviewed jointly. Eight of the organisations form part of the Alliance for the Prevention of Elder Abuse: WA (APEA: WA); the other two organisations were the Older Person‟s Rights Service and the State Administration Tribunal, which also deal with elder abuse cases. Where possible, organisations also provided de-identified quantitative data in order to give insight into the volume and variety of elder abuse that each agency encounters. Two focus groups were also conducted with representatives from a variety of non-APEA: WA agencies that may come across elder abuse in their work; one comprised of three participants, the other of seven. Data analysis uncovered the following themes and issues: - There are problems with the definition of elder abuse that require further exploration. Different definitions are used nationally, internationally, and between the different APEA: WA organisations. Some include paid carers and people providing services, e.g. financial advisers. Others are narrowly focused, depending on an agency's service mandate and funding arrangements. The definition of "elder" is also contested, with different definitions based on different age limits. There are also questions raised about how elder abuse should be perceived and contextualised - should it be seen as a crime? As a private family issue? Also, where does domestic violence end and elder abuse begin? - Financial abuse was by far the most frequently mentioned type of abuse during the interviews and focus groups and it is also the most common type of abuse recorded in the agencies' quantitative data. Misuse of Enduring Powers of Attorney was the most frequently mentioned financial abuse issue, followed by the perceived responsibilities of Banks to increase protection of vulnerable older people's accounts. - Qualitative data showed indications of an overall trend for increased volume of cases involving older members of the Western Australian community. However, there was also a consistent degree of uncertainty about the relevance and quality of data provided. There is no uniformity in the way that statistics are gathered; therefore, it is not easy to collate information to gain a picture of what is occurring in relation to elder abuse in Western Australia. - There does not seem to be a cohesive approach to elder abuse across government and non-government organisations. A strong government department is required to take leadership of this issue and to develop a broad and articulate multi-level elder abuse strategy. There is also a need to develop a better first-level response to elder abuse, perhaps involving a multi-agency team approach. Other options to pressing charges against perpetrators or doing nothing need to be made available to people experiencing elder abuse, e.g. family counselling and mediation. - Elder abuse lags far behind child abuse and domestic violence in terms of public recognition and social responses. A public education campaign is required to promote the importance of this issue and alert people about older people's rights and assistance available. A number of recommendations were made to address the issues raised above, and these are listed in the following section. It has been noted that elder abuse research, policy and practice is about thirty years behind research, policy and practice in child abuse and domestic violence. Due to this fact, it tends to lack conceptual clarity and be poorly defined and measured. While a problematic concept, elder abuse is an issue of deepening concern in our ageing society and the challenge for government and welfare agencies is to ensure that there are adequate resources available to respond to it effectively. It is hoped that the results of this research will inform elder abuse prevention practices for a number of local agencies and allow key agencies working with elder abuse to improve their responses and address perceived gaps in current processes. Details: Crawley: Crime Research Centre, University of Western Australia, 2011. 123p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed May 3, 2014 at: http://www.law.uwa.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0008/2129606/2011-Examination-of-the-Extent-of-Elder-Abuse-in-Western-Australia.pdf Year: 2011 Country: Australia URL: http://www.law.uwa.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0008/2129606/2011-Examination-of-the-Extent-of-Elder-Abuse-in-Western-Australia.pdf Shelf Number: 132223 Keywords: Elder Abuse (Australia)Elderly VictimsFinancial Abuse |
Author: Howard, Marilyn Title: Unequal, Trapped and Controlled: Women's experience of financial abuse and potential implications for Universal Credit Summary: inancial abuse is often misunderstood but can have a devastating impact. This coercive and controlling behaviour can leave women with no money for basic essentials such as food and clothing. It can leave them without access to their own bank accounts, with no access to any independent income and with debts that have been built up by abusive partners set against their names. Underreported and poorly recognised, financial abuse affects women across the income distribution and in a range of different ways. Even those who may have a full-time salary or who share joint accounts with their partners are not safe from financial abuse. It is also important to understand that it seldom happens in isolation: in most cases perpetrators use other abusive behaviours to threaten and reinforce the financial abuse they are conducting. It is therefore vital that action is taken to improve understanding of the nature and impact of financial abuse among staff in all frontline services that may come into contact with domestic violence survivors. There is also a particular need for organisations such as banks to pay specific attention to customers who may be experiencing abuse and to support them to access money that is rightfully theirs and find safety. Universal Credit poses a particular challenge. A benefit that is set to be paid on a household basis sits uneasily with the realities of financial abuse, where men in some households use money to abuse their partners. Under current plans they will be able to do so more easily once Universal Credit is rolled out. But there is a range of ways the system could be improved to ensure that it does not collude with or exacerbate financial abuse. These include automatically paying Universal Credit to the main carer and making the payments more frequent than monthly. These changes, alongside ensuring that women fleeing violence are fast tracked to new claims and that joint claim processes include opportunities for confidential reporting, could help ensure that women experiencing abuse can be supported. Details: London: Trade Union Congress, 2015. 68p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed May 9, 2015 at: https://www.tuc.org.uk/sites/default/files/UnequalTrappedControlled.pdf Year: 2015 Country: United Kingdom URL: https://www.tuc.org.uk/sites/default/files/UnequalTrappedControlled.pdf Shelf Number: 135547 Keywords: Credit Card FraudFinancial AbuseFinancial CrimesIntimate Partner ViolenceVictims of CrimesViolence Against Women |
Author: Smallwood, Emma Title: Stepping Stones: Legal barriers to economic equality after family violence Summary: Women's Legal Service Victoria has observed that there are legal and economic problems arising from family violence which result in serious financial hardship for women and, at present, there are no accessible legal remedies to these problems. We have researched the problems in the Stepping Stones project. This report contains the findings of the project and recommendations for solutions. In interviews with women, we explored the consequences of family violence on women's financial circumstances. We specifically directed our attention to systemic barriers women faced in their economic recovery. Common themes emerged from the interviews including: - A lack of police understanding of the financial consequences arising from family violence, and a lack of police action in stopping economic abuse. - The conditions included in intervention orders of the Magistrates' Court are largely unhelpful in preventing economic abuse. - Women who are victims of family violence often have to flee their home; this has serious financial implications and there is a major shortage of available housing for women. - Service providers such as energy retailers, telecommunication services and banks have low awareness of the difficulties faced by women experiencing family violence and are unhelpful when interacting with these customers. - The energy, telecommunications and banking industries insist on their right to enforce joint debts, even in circumstances of family violence. This places women and their financial recovery at risk. - Women have little knowledge of their legal and financial rights following violence and separation. This lack of knowledge can result in women staying in unsafe relationships. - Women who are involved in family law proceedings to resolve financial issues experience a lengthy and stressful process, and achieve outcomes that are often inequitable. Many women choose not to pursue financial settlements after relationship breakdown because of the particular barriers created by family violence. This causes further financial disadvantage for women. Perpetrators use joint debt to continue to perpetrate violence against women and there is no legal recourse to sever the joint liability. Although there are legal mechanisms available to address some of the problems women encounter, women's access to these mechanisms is hindered. There is potential to make better use of intervention orders in dealing with some of the debt and small property issues that arise. There are also existing mechanisms in the family law jurisdiction that could better assist women. Improving the accessibility of available legal remedies for family violence victims is key to economic equality. During our research it became clear that reform to: family law, the family violence legal system and the regulation of energy, telecommunications and credit is needed. This law and regulation reform needs to be coupled with the adoption of better policies by industry and government departments which: - recognise family violence - formally recognise intervention orders or family law orders that seek to address abusive behaviour, and - provide training to staff on the nature and impacts of family violence, including economic abuse. Implementing these system-wide changes will remove the financial and legal barriers to women achieving economic independence after family violence. Details: Melbourne: Women’s Legal Service Victoria, 2015. 81p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed September 24, 2015 at: http://www.womenslegal.org.au/files/file/Stepping%20Stones%20Report(1).pdf Year: 2015 Country: Australia URL: http://www.womenslegal.org.au/files/file/Stepping%20Stones%20Report(1).pdf Shelf Number: 136858 Keywords: Family ViolenceFinancial AbuseIntimate Partner ViolenceViolence Against Women |
Author: Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Title: Report and Recommendations: Fighting Elder Financial Exploitation through Community Networks Summary: Elder financial exploitation destroys the financial security of millions of older Americans annually. In response to this crisis, hundreds of communities across the United States have created collaborative networks to protect their older residents. To increase our understanding of how elder financial protection networks can grow and endure, the CFPB conducted research nationwide. This report highlights what elder financial exploitation prevention and response networks do, how they work, how they can work better, and how they can be established. The report presents CFPB's recommendations to existing networks and key stakeholders to develop and enhance their community's collaborative efforts to fight financial exploitation. Accompanying this report is a Resource Guide with promising practices, sample documents, and resource materials. Details: Washington, DC: CFPB, 2016. 49p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed August 30, 2016 at: http://www.consumerfinance.gov/data-research/research-reports/report-and-recommendations-fighting-elder-financial-exploitation-through-community-networks/ Year: 2016 Country: United States URL: http://www.consumerfinance.gov/data-research/research-reports/report-and-recommendations-fighting-elder-financial-exploitation-through-community-networks/ Shelf Number: 140079 Keywords: Consumer FraudConsumer ProtectionElder AbuseFinancial AbuseFinancial Exploitation |
Author: Jorna, Penny Title: The relationship between age and consumer fraud victimisation Summary: he Australian Bureau of Statistics estimates consumer fraud costs Australians $1.4b per year. Advances in technology allow fraudsters to reach an increasing number of potential victims. Age has long been considered a potential factor in the risk of victimisation; however, it remains unclear which age groups are most vulnerable. This paper examines the relationship between age and the risk of consumer fraud, using the results of online surveys conducted by the AIC on behalf of the Australasian Consumer Fraud Taskforce in 2011 and 2012. The surveys found statistically significant relationships between age and how invitations were received; age and frauds resulting in victimisation; and age and those who sent money in response to invitations. Targeted, age-specific awareness-raising campaigns may be an effective means of reducing the risk of consumer fraud. Initiatives that address the risks associated with lifestyle factors such as social networking, online dating and the use of both new and existing technologies may be of particular benefit. Details: Canberra: Australian Institute of Criminology, 2016. 16p. Source: Internet Resource: Trends & issues in crime and criminal justice, no. 519: Accessed December 6, 2016 at: http://aic.gov.au/media_library/publications/tandi_pdf/tandi519.pdf Year: 2016 Country: Australia URL: http://aic.gov.au/media_library/publications/tandi_pdf/tandi519.pdf Shelf Number: 147923 Keywords: Consumer FraudConsumer ProtectionFinancial Abuse Financial Exploitation |
Author: Milne, Sandra Title: Economic Abuse in New Zealand: Towards an Understanding and Response Summary: The Good Shepherd network aims to create an emotionally, physically and economically safe world, especially for women and girls. As such, we are interested in, and work with women to build, their security and wellbeing as an essential foundation for a woman's full participation in life. Violence against women is an issue that every country is trying to address, and ultimately eliminate. Reportedly, one in three New Zealand women experiences physical and/or sexual violence from a partner, known as intimate partner violence (IPV), in their lifetime (Aviva). Approximately half of all homicides in New Zealand are family violence-related, and, per capita, this family violence homicide rate is more than twice that of Australia, Canada, or the United Kingdom. Economic insecurity is one of the key reasons many people do not feel they are able to leave violent relationships, and why some may return to violent partners. Economic insecurity is not only a consequence of family violence, but is itself a form of family violence (as economic or financial abuse)(Corrie, 2016). Economic abuse is a specific type of family violence that is "causing or attempting to cause an individual to become financially dependent on another person, by obstructing their access to or control over resources and/or independent economic activity (UN Women, 2012)." Economic abuse is often, but not always, part of a pattern of abusive control that incorporates other forms of intimate partner violence (IPV), including physical, sexual and psychological. However, awareness of economic abuse in New Zealand is quite low, and it has only recently been added to the legislative definition of family violence. This study considers economic abuse, specifically as a form of IPV where men perpetrate violence against women, within the New Zealand context. The purpose of this report is to contribute to a common understanding of economic abuse and grow the knowledge in this area to support effective, evidence-based policy and practice responses. Details: Abbotsford, VIC: Good Shepherd Australia New Zealand, 2018. 90p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed October 3, 2018 at: http://goodshepherd.org.nz/newsmedia/good-shepherd-nz-research-economic-abuse-in-new-zealand/ Year: 2018 Country: New Zealand URL: http://goodshepherd.org.nz/media/1975/economic-abuse-in-new-zealand-gsnz-2018.pdf Shelf Number: 151643 Keywords: Abusive MenEconomic AbuseFinancial Abuse |