Protecting those with dementia from financial abuse

The paper, Preventing Financial Abuse of People With Dementia, released yesterday by Alzheimer’s Australia NSW, has called for the introduction of a Public Advocate to receive and investigate reports of financial abuse.

It has also called for a public education campaign by the NSW government about financial abuse and for the government to raise awareness of the ‘planning ahead’ tools already in place to help protect individual’s wishes.

The paper also recommends the NSW Police establish Vulnerable Communities Officer positions in each local area command to help support victims of financial abuse and for lawyers and staff in banking and financial institutions to receive mandatory training in the field.

The majority of cases of financial abuse of people with dementia are carried out by people known to the victim.

The Hon. John Watkins, Alzheimer’s Australia NSW chief executive, said the discussion paper found that while it was difficult to quantify the prevalence of financial abuse of people with dementia, any estimates were likely to be underestimates as much of it remains unreported.

“Disturbingly, the research also found that much of the financial abuse is perpetrated within families, or by people who were known to the person with dementia, further complicating the issue,” Mr Watkins said.

“This is another reason why we believe it is underreported as people were too ashamed to report the abuse or did not want their family member or ‘friend’ to be charged. They were also worried about repercussions to their care or family conflict,” he said.

According to Mr Watkins, some of the stories told were appalling, including people being stripped of hundreds of thousands of dollars or, in some cases, their homes. In a considerable proportion of the cases, the abuse was carried out by the person who had been granted the Power of Attorney who was clearly not acting in the interests of the person with dementia.

Mr Watkins added there was clearly a need for something to be done. “Agencies need to work together to ensure better reporting and investigation of these matters when they happen.

“As well, people need to be aware of the tools already in place to help try to prevent these instances from occurring. We encourage people to have Powers of Attorney in place but to really choose wisely and make sure they are trustworthy and are someone who will act in their best interest.”

He claimed there also needed to be better education of people appointed as Powers of Attorney so they know “very clearly” just what their responsibilities are.

Read the full Preventing Financial Abuse of People With Dementia report findings and recommendations.