Responding to the financial abuse of older people - Loddon ...

to reduce the incidence of elder financial abuse. The project has given birth to this report:
Responding to the financial abuse of older people: understanding the challenges faced by the
banking and financial services sector.
This report does a number of things.
• It asks whether the Code of Banking Practice provides the model for imposing
higher standards of responsibility on banks to act more protectively towards their
older and more vulnerable customers.
• It looks at representative transactions and the role of the Victorian Office of the
Public Advocate in investigating these and other cases where there is abuse.
• It examines the relationship between banks and their customers and the
restraints that operate by virtue of privacy laws, banks’ contractual duty of
confidentiality and the laws of defamation that limit the ability of banks and
the financial sector to engage with third parties in response to instances of
suspected financial abuse of older people.
• It looks at the risks for banks if they move outside the parameters of the
traditional banker-customer relationship and question the customer’s mandate
in such cases.
• It canvases proposals for mitigating these risks and shows how industry practice
has changed in other international jurisdictions where the concerns of the banks
have been addressed in the interests of encouraging a more protective approach
towards the older or vulnerable customer.
• It considers the legislative reform that will be necessary to encourage
or mandate the reporting of financial abuse.
• Finally, the report makes specific recommendations for law reform and the
changes required within the industry, for improving staff training to identify
and respond to financial abuse and for promoting further research.
The Loddon Campaspe Community Centre commends the banking and financial
services sector for its growing response to community concerns that more should be
done to stem the rising tide of financial abuse of older people. It trusts that this report
will clarify the challenges and constraints facing banks and financial services in
responding to the financial abuse of their older customers and suggest constructive
responses to these issues.
Peter Noble
Principal Lawyer
Loddon Campaspe Community Legal Centre
August 2008
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