Lost in transactions: Widow’s family accuses Westpac of negligence over mysterious withdrawals

In a world where trust and reliability in financial institutions are paramount, recent headlines have highlighted a troubling trend of vulnerability and exploitation.

The intersection of personal finances and institutional responsibility has come under scrutiny as stories emerge of individuals facing unexpected challenges navigating their banking affairs.

These incidents serve as poignant reminders of the importance of safeguarding vulnerable members of society and upholding the principles of ethical and transparent financial practices.


The tragic tale of an 89-year-old widow with dementia who withdrew a staggering $305,000 in cash before her death left her family reeling, not only from the loss but from what they perceive as a grave misstep by Westpac staff.

The family's grief is compounded by their belief that the bank failed to safeguard their vulnerable loved one, leading to a situation that they claim borders on elder abuse.


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An elderly widow with dementia withdrew over $300,000 from her Westpac account before passing away, without clear justification for the large cash amounts. Credits: Shutterstock


The woman, who had been a loyal client of a Westpac branch on the North Island of New Zealand, made over 70 teller-assisted cash withdrawals from September 2017 until her death in July 2020.

These transactions amounted to a considerable sum of money, which her family said largely vanished without a trace.

The daughter of the deceased, who had been appointed as her mum’s power of attorney, had informed the bank of her mother's dementia and vulnerability in February 2020.

In response, Westpac added a note to the widow's file indicating her status as a ‘vulnerable customer’, cautioning staff to ‘take care with any large or unusual transactions’.

However, despite this warning, the elderly woman was still able to withdraw $50,000 in five separate transactions in the months leading up to her death.


The daughter's shock was palpable when she discovered the extent of the withdrawals, particularly as her mum had no significant expenses that would justify such large sums of cash.

According to her, the widow had paid off her home and car, and there were no hefty utility bills or credit card payments to account for the money.

‘What the hell did they think she was spending the money on?’ the daughter questioned.

She recalled that she noticed ‘something was off’ about her mum’s behaviour in the months preceding her passing, noting her irritability and remarks about ‘people fleecing her for money’.

Family members attempted to ascertain the complete sum of cash the widow withdrew, suspecting that over $200,000 had simply ‘disappeared’.

‘I can't prove it, but the money is missing. And the $23,000 she withdrew three weeks before she died, that was gone from her house,’ the daughter lamented.


The daughter, concerned about her mother's financial activity, meticulously reviewed her bank statements. To her astonishment, she uncovered that her mother had withdrawn upwards of $200,000 in cash over the final 18 months of her life.

Among the transactions, the largest in-branch withdrawal amounted to $24,000 in May 2019.

Recalling her final visit to the bank with her mother, the daughter recounted witnessing a teller handing over an envelope containing $23,000, despite her mother not carrying a handbag.

Although unaware of the exact sum at the time, she vividly remembered the teller remarking on the substantial nature of the withdrawal.

‘They let her walk out without a handbag with a Westpac envelope stuffed with cash. It was probably like 8cm thick,’ she recalled.


The daughter confronted bank personnel regarding the string of substantial cash withdrawals, asserting that they admitted to being ‘too scared’ to inquire why the pensioner required such funds.

Allegedly, they speculated that the mum ‘maybe wanted to purchase a mobility scooter’ with the cash.

Concerned about potential elder abuse, the family reached out to the authorities, highlighting the pensioner's modest lifestyle and the absence of any noticeable personal expenditures.

Subsequently, an investigation was initiated, and a person of interest was interrogated; however, it was ultimately terminated due to the inability to establish any link between the individual and the withdrawn funds, as the cash could not be traced.

In response to the perceived negligence, the family lodged a formal complaint against the Australian-owned bank, accusing it of failing to fulfil its duty of care toward a vulnerable and elderly customer.

The complaint alleged that Westpac tellers neglected to scrutinise the cash withdrawals despite the presence of a warning flag denoting the customer's vulnerability in her file.

Additionally, the family lodged a complaint with the Banking Ombudsman.


In a correspondence dated May, Westpac described the deceased pensioner as ‘very well respected’ within the branch.

The bank asserted that its employees did not perceive the woman to have any ‘vulnerabilities’ and did not view any of the withdrawals as suspicious.

The correspondence clarified that the mother's pattern of withdrawing money was customary, as it aligned with her banking habits and financial management practices.

Furthermore, the bank stated that its staff shared the same perspective as the daughter, who indicated that her mother was not someone who warranted interrogation regarding her finances.

Westpac stated that its staff had inquired about the motive behind the woman's cash withdrawals on ‘several occasions’ and characterised the woman as ‘confident and savvy with money’.

According to Westpac’s statement, ‘She was very private about her finances, which was acknowledged by her daughter…and our staff ultimately acted on her instructions in processing the withdrawals.’


The bank stated that tellers began asking additional questions regarding cash withdrawals after February 2020, following the implementation of the ‘extra care’ code on the woman's account at the daughter's request.

In March, the elderly woman made three withdrawals totalling $25,000 and informed staff that she required the cash due to COVID-19 lockdowns.

Additionally, during her final withdrawal of $23,000, staff inquired about the large sum, and she explained that she needed it as she was uncertain when she would next visit the branch.

Staff indicated they felt ‘comfortable’ in providing the cash in an envelope as the woman was accompanied by her daughter.


As financial institutions grapple with the complexities of safeguarding their vulnerable clients, harrowing tales emerge, underscoring the pressing need for greater protection measures.

According to the ACCC's Scamwatch, in 2023, Australians aged 65 and over reported more than 72,000 scams, with victims losing almost $121 million.

This was exemplified by another heart-wrenching experience of a 95-year-old grandmother who fell victim to a devastating scam, leaving her stripped of her life savings and grappling with feelings of betrayal and humiliation.

Such narratives serve as poignant reminders of the imperative to fortify safeguards and advocate for the well-being of our elderly population in an increasingly complex financial landscape.
Key Takeaways
  • An elderly widow with dementia withdrew over $300,000 from her Westpac bank account before her death without a clear need or explanation for the large sums of cash.
  • The woman's family accused Westpac of failing in its duty of care by allowing these withdrawals to proceed despite knowing about her vulnerable condition.
  • Attempts to track down the withdrawn funds were mostly unsuccessful, with a significant portion of the money unaccounted for, raising concerns of potential elder abuse.
  • The family lodged formal complaints with Westpac and the Banking Ombudsman, arguing the bank should have taken additional steps to protect the vulnerable customer; however, no substantial evidence has surfaced to further the investigation.
Have you or someone you know faced similar challenges with a financial institution? How do you think banks should handle situations involving vulnerable seniors? We invite you to share your thoughts and experiences on this matter in the comments below.
 
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Someone in the family or a friend must have taken this money if the old lady didn’t spend it. I don’t know why the attorney didn’t control her mother’s finances and banking.
 
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Sorry, but from what I’ve read there are no exact dates when dementia was noticed/suspected or advised by a doctor, no exact date of giving of the PoA, no exact date when each transaction took place - none of this. A PoA needs to, usually, give a copy of the document to the bank, the bank needs to make specific notes on the account/file that money withdrawals must be controlled/only withdrawn by persons named or only by the PoA etc. If none of this took place then PoA and bank have questions to answer as to why such large amounts were withdrawn & by whom. My sister and I went through these steps with my mum.
With my own & my husband’s joint account we cannot withdraw more than $3000 a day (from our Australian bank) & we have been queried before one transfer just a few dollars over that amount was being made to our daughter’s account.
I feel there is a lot more to this story than the person is letting on.
Yes, there are lots of details missing. That's why I said making comment is difficult.
 
Sorry, but from what I’ve read there are no exact dates when dementia was noticed/suspected or advised by a doctor, no exact date of giving of the PoA, no exact date when each transaction took place - none of this. A PoA needs to, usually, give a copy of the document to the bank, the bank needs to make specific notes on the account/file that money withdrawals must be controlled/only withdrawn by persons named or only by the PoA etc. If none of this took place then PoA and bank have questions to answer as to why such large amounts were withdrawn & by whom. My sister and I went through these steps with my mum.
With my own & my husband’s joint account we cannot withdraw more than $3000 a day (from our Australian bank) & we have been queried before one transfer just a few dollars over that amount was being made to our daughter’s account.
I feel there is a lot more to this story than the person is letting on.
It is true that the bank is a business. One that pushes it's staff to get on with serving the next customer. I was staff, this happens.
 
The bank is a business, one that pushes it's staff to serve and not spend a lot of time chatting.
I worked in a call center for one of the big 4 banks for quite a few years and could honestly write a book around some of the calls I answered in that time some were funny some not but one particular call has always stayed in my memory. I answered a call from a customer who had recently lost her husband and she was unsure how much money was in their joint accounts as she wanted to make arrangements for her husbands funeral after chatting with her for a while she told me that her husband had always taken care of the finances for them and that she ran the household on an allowance that he gave her each week she was to use that allowance for food and any other expenses, such as gifts for family and friends as well as anything that she personally wanted, he took care of paying all the bills, she said she had always been happy with this arrangement as her husband had always been very generous with her and that she had not been denied anything that she wanted, if she needed more than her allowance all she had to do was ask and he would give her more. I did ask her what Her husband had done for work and after repeating how happy he had made her over their 70 years of marriage she just said he had been a very successful business man. While chatting with her I had been looking into their various accounts, so that I could answer her original request as to did she have enough to write a cheque to the funeral home, I honestly nearly fell off my chair while adding it all up, it was obvious that as she said her husband had been a very successful business man but while looking at all the zeros I started to feel a mixture of anger that her husband had not shared with her just how well off they were as well as sympathy for her state of ignorance also a part of me was concerned for how she was going to be able to handle all this money, were there any trusted family members or friends that would help her, did she know the details of her husbands will and could his lawyer help her at all, during this part of the conversation she mentioned that she was very wary of their daughter who had always shown more interest in their family finances than she was comfortable with I knew that this conversation had gone on way longer than it should have and attempted to end it although realising that the poor woman just wanted a friendly voice on the other end of the phone, I finally told her how much was in their joint accounts (we are talking lots of zeros and millions) and wished her well after reiterating that she needed to talk to someone she trusted, i still think about her every now and then and wonder if she was able to find someone that she could trust to help manage all that money, the thought of myself being so financially ignorant terrified me. after ending that call I logged out of the system and waited patiently for my supervisor to call me into her office as I knew I would be severely reprimanded for the length of the call as well as the content, my supervisor reminded me that we were a bank not a social help line and not to get so emotionally involved with our customers in the future, I left the call center a few months later.
 
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I worked in a call center for one of the big 4 banks for quite a few years and could honestly write a book around some of the calls I answered in that time some were funny some not but one particular call has always stayed in my memory. I answered a call from a customer who had recently lost her husband and she was unsure how much money was in their joint accounts as she wanted to make arrangements for her husbands funeral after chatting with her for a while she told me that her husband had always taken care of the finances for them and that she ran the household on an allowance that he gave her each week she was to use that allowance for food and any other expenses, such as gifts for family and friends as well as anything that she personally wanted, he took care of paying all the bills, she said she had always been happy with this arrangement as her husband had always been very generous with her and that she had not been denied anything that she wanted, if she needed more than her allowance all she had to do was ask and he would give her more. I did ask her what Her husband had done for work and after repeating how happy he had made her over their 70 years of marriage she just said he had been a very successful business man. While chatting with her I had been looking into their various accounts, so that I could answer her original request as to did she have enough to write a cheque to the funeral home, I honestly nearly fell off my chair while adding it all up, it was obvious that as she said her husband had been a very successful business man but while looking at all the zeros I started to feel a mixture of anger that her husband had not shared with her just how well off they were as well as sympathy for her state of ignorance also a part of me was concerned for how she was going to be able to handle all this money, were there any trusted family members or friends that would help her, did she know the details of her husbands will and could his lawyer help her at all, during this part of the conversation she mentioned that she was very wary of their daughter who had always shown more interest in their family finances than she was comfortable with I knew that this conversation had gone on way longer than it should have and attempted to end it although realising that the poor woman just wanted a friendly voice on the other end of the phone, I finally told her how much was in their joint accounts (we are talking lots of zeros and millions) and wished her well after reiterating that she needed to talk to someone she trusted, i still think about her every now and then and wonder if she was able to find someone that she could trust to help manage all that money, the thought of myself being so financially ignorant terrified me. after ending that call I logged out of the system and waited patiently for my supervisor to call me into her office as I knew I would be severely reprimanded for the length of the call as well as the content, my supervisor reminded me that we were a bank not a social help line and not to get so emotionally involved with our customers in the future, I left the call center a few months later.
Yes, this happens where you were, other call centres and in branches.
 
When my mum began to show signs of behaviour issues connected to her dementia, my sister and I realised she needed to be protected. Through our solicitor, we served documents to her bank, Westpac actually, that stopped her having the ability to withdraw anything from her account without either my sister and I being second and third signatories. Also, one of us had to be present at the time of withdrawal. It was imperative that this was done because it became obvious that mum was having unfounded panic attacks about her money dwindling. That wasn't the case as my sister and I covered most of her expenses out of our own pockets. We didn't want her to be worried by it all.
This all had to be managed in a delicate way, whilst still involving mum in decision making when she was in a period of clear thinking, it was very important that she was not left to her own devices. It would not have been enough to warn the bank about her condition. We knew it was important to stop easy access completely. That way, other people could not pursue her for money without our knowledge.
Dementia is a mongrel of a thing to witness whether it is someone you love, or know. Mum was a super independent, confident, hard working and gutsy shiela. To see her crumble the way she did was absolutely devastating. The least we could do for her was to protect her from herself.
 
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I worked in a call center for one of the big 4 banks for quite a few years and could honestly write a book around some of the calls I answered in that time some were funny some not but one particular call has always stayed in my memory. I answered a call from a customer who had recently lost her husband and she was unsure how much money was in their joint accounts as she wanted to make arrangements for her husbands funeral after chatting with her for a while she told me that her husband had always taken care of the finances for them and that she ran the household on an allowance that he gave her each week she was to use that allowance for food and any other expenses, such as gifts for family and friends as well as anything that she personally wanted, he took care of paying all the bills, she said she had always been happy with this arrangement as her husband had always been very generous with her and that she had not been denied anything that she wanted, if she needed more than her allowance all she had to do was ask and he would give her more. I did ask her what Her husband had done for work and after repeating how happy he had made her over their 70 years of marriage she just said he had been a very successful business man. While chatting with her I had been looking into their various accounts, so that I could answer her original request as to did she have enough to write a cheque to the funeral home, I honestly nearly fell off my chair while adding it all up, it was obvious that as she said her husband had been a very successful business man but while looking at all the zeros I started to feel a mixture of anger that her husband had not shared with her just how well off they were as well as sympathy for her state of ignorance also a part of me was concerned for how she was going to be able to handle all this money, were there any trusted family members or friends that would help her, did she know the details of her husbands will and could his lawyer help her at all, during this part of the conversation she mentioned that she was very wary of their daughter who had always shown more interest in their family finances than she was comfortable with I knew that this conversation had gone on way longer than it should have and attempted to end it although realising that the poor woman just wanted a friendly voice on the other end of the phone, I finally told her how much was in their joint accounts (we are talking lots of zeros and millions) and wished her well after reiterating that she needed to talk to someone she trusted, i still think about her every now and then and wonder if she was able to find someone that she could trust to help manage all that money, the thought of myself being so financially ignorant terrified me. after ending that call I logged out of the system and waited patiently for my supervisor to call me into her office as I knew I would be severely reprimanded for the length of the call as well as the content, my supervisor reminded me that we were a bank not a social help line and not to get so emotionally involved with our customers in the future, I left the call center a few months later.
Well good on you for showing some empathy. You superviser could have taken a leaf out of your book.
I think there are a lot of people out there just like this lady. Kept in the dark by partners who do not want to give up the reins. Sure, it's nice to have someone look after your every need, but a situation like this can be so overwhelming for someone who does not know how to manage their day to day life.
 
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Well good on you for showing some empathy. You superviser could have taken a leaf out of your book.
I think there are a lot of people out there just like this lady. Kept in the dark by partners who do not want to give up the reins. Sure, it's nice to have someone look after your every need, but a situation like this can be so overwhelming for someone who does not know how to manage their day to day life.
Without seeming like I am harping on the same subject, my own mother was exactly the same as the lady I wrote about in my previous entry. No my' mums ignorance did not extend to the same amount of money being in their joint accounts but my father was exactly the same as the first mentioned ladies husband, he took care of all of the financial side of their lives', one day after a conversation with my dad in which he asked me to pay a bill for him and that he would leave a cheque at the house for me, after going to the house and finding that he had forgotten to leave the cheque for me I told mum not to worry, I knew where dad's cheque book was and she could write one out for me so that I could pay the before mentioned bill. Imagine my shock when mum told me she had never written out a cheque before and did not know how to do it she was worried that she would do something wrong. I can't tell you how strange it was to stand there with my 70 plus age mother and show her what to do. I had to show her that the account was a joint one in both their names and so it was legal for her to sign a cheque for a withdrawal on that account of course I wrote the details on the cheque and just pointed to the area for her to put her signature, I swear her hand was shaking as she signed she was so worried she was doing something legally wrong, I also remember a rather short conversation with my dad later that day in which I told him how wrong I thought he was to keep mum in the dark about basic financial details, his answer was that they had always done it this way and that mum wanted him to take care of everything financial for them both. I was still in a state of shock so I have to admit the conversation was less than respectful on my side, luckily or not depending on how you look at it mum passed away a few years later and quite a few years before dad so she was never put in a position of having to try and manage financial affairs that she knew next to nothing about, my brother and I would have protected her so it would probably not have been a big issue, but I stayed angry at my dad for quite a while after the episode of the cheque
 
Ultimately the bank is at fault because they must have protocols insitu for this. When the daughter approached the bank she should have been advised what she needed to provide eg medical certificate or legal intervention The Commonwealth Bank refused to give me the $200 remaining in my mums account after she passed away I had the death certificate but they wouldn’t accept that they wanted the notification in the newspaper. We didn’t do that I was a signitory of my mums account so I went next door to the Post Office and removed the money,no problem 5 years later a letter came from the bank advising Mum to use or close her dormant account. I had left $2 in there
 
A power of attorney can be set up before the person develops a medical condition. Was the customer legally allowed to sign it when it was done? I makes you wonder how she had so much funds in her bank account unless she sold a house. Was she actually entitled to a pension?
 
Our bank here in WA requires pre notice of withdrawing in cash a large sum e.g more than $2000.
In SA the amount is higher than that. I have been taken aside and asked if I was being forced to withdraw a higher amount than usual, especially I have somebody with me. I appreciated their concern. She had no bag? I would have thought she would have had to show ID. and hand over the card linked to the account she was withdrawing the money from. Who was carrying the cards before they they were handed to the teller?
 
the bank really could not give a F****, they are not about protecting their customers, they are running a business and anyone and everyone is there to be a victim

Nah, not according to what was said to the Senate hearing in Adelaide by Westpac today. Seems Westpac are looking to have some amendments made to the Privacy Act so their efforts to protect customers moneys in circumstances where a POA is in place and financial abuse then happens. If the money transferred stays with the Westpac bank, they can retrieve and return the funds. But the Privacy Act prevents this if the money moves to another bank.

Here are some excerpts from the article that make for interesting reading, especially if one is considering a POA.

Article:
The committee sat in Adelaide on day three of its public hearings on Tuesday and heard first from two Westpac representatives, who said privacy legislation was too restrictive.

Westpac's Group Customer Advocate, Adrian Ahern, told the committee about a recent example of financial abuse that had been picked up through Westpac's internal alert system.

"We had a customer who appointed her son power of attorney, over the last couple of weeks he had transferred $150,000 in three or four payments from his mother's account to his account," Mr Ahern told the committee.

"We were able to speak to our customer, his mother, she said he was not entitled to the money so we revoked or suspended his access to his mother's account, we took the funds from his account and returned them to her account and then suggested she take some legal advice about revoking her power of attorney."

Mr Ahern said the bank should be able to report such instances to other financial institutions, authorities and services.


Me: This is an indication of the efforts being made by a bank to protect their customers money. The story gets more interesting when Westpac speak to the son of their customer.

Article:
"We spoke with [the son] and he said: 'oh, I was appointed power of attorney, Mum's got spare money I thought I was able to take that money and that wouldn't be a problem' so maybe there's an issue around POA education," Mr Ahern said.

The inquiry heard that if the woman's son had transferred the money to an account with a different bank, Westpac would not have been able to recover the funds.

"We actually wouldn't have been able to recover that money because under the privacy legislation we can't go and contact another institution to find those funds or recall those funds," General Manager of Customer Solutions Lisa Pogonoski told the committee.

Me: It was an eye-opener to read that they have systems that alert the bank to around 150 instances per day of possible financial abuse. With 54 specialists that deal with more concerning cases and 290 staff on it's hardship team.

Article:
"We've definitely seen an increase in the customers who have financial abuse challenges as well as financial hardship," Ms Pogonoski told the committee.

"Yesterday I was speaking to one of our frontline team members, Sandy, who received a distress call from a customer asking for a loan repayment to be reversed," Ms Pogoniski told the committee.

"She desperately needed money for food and petrol because she was escaping, with her children, from a family violence situation.

"Sandy confirmed the customer's email was secure then promptly provided vouchers for food and petrol and referrals to local support services."

Me: So it seems to me that at times banks are hamstrung by legislation that hinders their efforts to do the right thing. Changing times indeed.

Here's the link if any wish to look at.
 
By law if $10,000.00 is transferred from a person's account to another person's account the bank has to notify the Australian Tax Office. Some bank staff will ask if there is problem if you withdraw a larger sum than normal. Admittedly on one occasion I did have another person with me.
 
By law if $10,000.00 is transferred from a person's account to another person's account the bank has to notify the Australian Tax Office. Some bank staff will ask if there is problem if you withdraw a larger sum than normal. Admittedly on one occasion I did have another person with me.

Pretty sure that only applies to cash. The Cash transactions Act applies to any cash transaction to any account, including one's own $10k or greater.

But hey you could be right.
 

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