A financial adviser has called for a reporting procedure to be introduced to protect vulnerable elderly people from being pressured into cashing in their investments.
He made the appeal after describing his sense of helplessness when, over just a few months, three of his elderly clients turned up accompanied by “strangers” who persuaded them to cash in their investments.
He was convinced that these clients, in their 70s and 80s, had fallen victim to abuse but had no idea how he could help.
“When it comes to issues like money laundering, for example, there is a clear procedure for financial institutions to follow… But this does not exist when we suspect a client is being abused. This is urgently needed,” he insisted.
The man, who preferred not to be named, was concerned about three cases he uncovered. In all the cases the clients – all men, including one with a disability – had a long-standing relationship with the financial institution where he worked.
The clients, who turned up accompanied by third parties, started making sudden requests that did not make sense financially – such as cash-outs on investments that still had to mature.
“I noticed a common trend in these cases. They involved people in their 70s and 80s in search of affection and care,” he said adding that the third parties were often strangers who took advantage of their vulnerability.
In one of the cases, he said, the elderly client asked for help when he was pulled aside to be spoken to alone. However, in the other two cases the clients insisted that they wanted to go ahead as the money was theirs.
“In such cases there is not much we can do. What we can do is try to stall by asking for more documents such as requesting specific power of attorneys rather than general ones. The idea is to put the abuser off. But, in the end of the day, if the client insists we have no choice,” he said.
I noticed a common trend. They involved people in their 70s and 80s in search of affection and care
Concerned about this pattern, the man decided something had to be done so he started asking around to figure out if there was a system in place to tackle such abuse and was directed to the social work unit within the Department of Elderly and Community Care.
“I had to discover this on my own. I believe there should be a clear procedure to be followed by financial institutions. We work a lot with compliance and we are good at following rule books,” he said.
In February social worker Maria Camilleri, who has been working with old people for two decades, said elderly abuse was on the increase and laws were urgently needed to address the situation.
Financial abuse was one of the major areas of concern. The Commissioner for Mental Health and Older Persons also raised the issue in a recent seminar.
Former parliamentary secretary for the elderly Franco Mercieca had said the government recognised the problem and planned amendments to the civil code to protect vulnerable groups. Changes to the criminal code will include harsher penalties as well as specific reference to elderly people and a law dealing with incapacity of mind will be drawn up.