The Newcastle Building Society is committed to ensuring our customers are able to identify when they are being financially abused and what they can do about it.
What does Financial Abuse looks like?
It's something no one would want to think about, but it can have a huge impact on your finances if left unresolved.
Financial Abuse is a way of controlling a person's ability to acquire, use and maintain their own money and financial resources. Otherwise known as economic abuse, it can take place in many different relationships including intimate partners, family members or carers, and in most instances the aim of the perpetrator is to use their relationship with the victim to sabotage or control that person's financial situation.
While it can affect anyone, the demographics seen to be the most vulnerable to financial abuse are the elderly, those with a mental illness, and those in an abusive relationship.
In recent years the financial services industry has recognised the need to address financial domestic abuse. Led by UK Finance, they have committed to providing further support to victims of financial abuse with the introduction of a voluntary Code of Practice, which we fully endorse.
This new Financial Abuse Code of Practice, designed to take forward the Financial Services Vulnerability Taskforce recommendations, will bring increased awareness and better understanding of what abuse looks like for firms, colleagues, victims, potential victims and their families, ensuring more consistency in the support available for those who need it.
Making someone beg for money.
Preventing someone from gaining employment, or forcing someone to give up on employment.
Taking money from someone through manipulation, coercion, or threat of violence.
Making someone take ownership of all spendings and outgoings.
Forcing someone to commit crime for money.
Spending someone else's budget without their knowledge.
Asking someone to change their Will.
Asking someone to account for everything they are spending.
For further information on Financial Abuse please see *UK Finance's 'It's your money', or if you are concerned you or someone you know is being financially abused please contact one of our branch colleagues for a private and confidential discussion.