Financial abuse isn’t something widely reported by the UK’s mainstream media. But that doesn’t mean it isn’t happening.

It could be happening to you, a family member, or a friend right now. Perhaps worst of all, you might not even realise it’s happening.

What does financial abuse look like in the UK?

According to the London-based charity, the Centre for Policy on Ageing, financial abuse is the second most common form of all elder abuse in the UK, second only to neglect.

As you can see from our infographic, beneath this statistic are some truly shocking numbers that outline the extent of the UK’s financial abuse problem:

• 50% of elder financial abuse in the UK is committed by the victim’s adult children
• Another 20% is committed by other family members
• £13 million was reported as stolen, defrauded, or coerced from older victims in 2020 – and that’s just what we know about!

When was the last time you heard or read about any of this in the news? What are our politicians doing to support the amazing work done by the charities and organisations that conduct the research to find this data?

At AgeGroup, we’re building a digital universe to connect seniors so they can understand if they’re falling victim to financial exploitation and know the resources available to assist them.