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Family complain after elderly widow with dementia allowed to withdraw over $300K

An 89-year-old widow, despite suffering from dementia, withdrew more than $300,000 from her bank account with the assistance of bank tellers at Westpac Masterton over a period of 34 months before her death.

According to a report in legacy media, these large withdrawals, including one instance where $23,000 was handed over in an envelope, raise questions about the oversight and protocols followed by Westpac, especially given the woman’s mental health condition and the absence of any significant expenditures that could justify such sums. The family discovered the transactions posthumously and told of their shock and concern, noting that the withdrawn money mostly remains unaccounted for, suggesting potential financial exploitation.

The situation is complicated by the bank’s defense of its actions, citing the widow’s apparent ‘confidence and savvy with financial matters’, despite clear signs of vulnerability. This included a specific alert added to her account by her daughter, indicating she was a vulnerable customer.

Nonetheless, large cash withdrawals continued, totaling $50,000 even after the alert. The family, suspecting financial elder abuse, has lodged a complaint with Westpac and the Banking Ombudsman.

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3 COMMENTS

  1. Don’t keep money in banks, day will come ,banks will steal all of it. John Keys bail in laws. You have been warned

    • money and currency ;
      Gold and silver are money. The rest is currency.
      So buy gold or silver coins or jewelry if you can.
      It will keep it worth and won t devaluate.
      Inflation = devaluation of currency = gold & silver price up ( keep its worth)

      And leave as little as possible on your bank account

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