Unfortunately, financial abuse against the elderly and vulnerable is becoming increasingly common. Our team of specialists are here to guide you through the claims process with compassion and care to help you get justice.
Financial abuse is very often committed by someone in a position of trust, such as an Attorney under a Lasting or Enduring Power of Attorney, a carer or a Court Appointed Deputy. It is not uncommon for the “abuser” to be a friend or family member of the victim and someone who has been trusted with access to the person’s finances and assets.
Examples of some of the most common forms of financial abuse include:
- Misappropriation or theft of money and assets
- Making substantial gifts of cash or other assets from the victim’s accounts and belongings
- Using the victim’s money for personal gain
- Taking out loans in the victim’s name
- Failing to keep records of all income and expenses
- Depleting the assets of the victim before their death so as to reduce the size of their estate and thereby reducing the amount of available inheritance for the beneficiaries
It is important to act quickly when financial abuse is suspected, whether in the lifetime of the victim or after death, so that appropriate action can be taken swiftly to trace the assets and prevent the abuser from disposing of them. It may be necessary in these cases to apply for freezing injunctions to freeze the assets of the abuser whilst the claim is investigated fully.
It is also important to keep in mind that not all financial abusers know that they are doing something improper. We often come across cases where an Attorney has made large gifts in the belief that the person “would have wanted to do this” if they had capacity. This will very often be an abuse of the person’s power and be liable to be set aside.
