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Financial abuse affected victim-survivors' have lower savings, higher debt and miss more payments. These are the findings of a major new study involving PhD student Karen Perrirer, Money Advice Plus-Innovation Manager for Debt and Economic Abuse, from our Sociology department.
It is one of the first large-scale studies to use administrative banking data, rather than surveys or interviews, to document the lived experience of financial abuse.
The study, led by Lloyds Banking Group in collaboration with London Metropolitan University, the University of Nottingham and Durham University, is published in Nature.
Depleting savings, rising debt, declining credit scores
The study analysed 373 financial and account-management indicators drawn from the banking records of 5,428 women who had disclosed experiences of domestic or financial abuse. These were compared with 15,602 matched customers with no known disclosures.
The two groups were matched on demographic and socioeconomic characteristics as they stood seven years before disclosure, allowing the researchers to track how their financial lives were impacted over time.
The research showed victim-survivors were more likely to incur overdraft charges and credit card interest, miss Direct Debit payments and withdraw cash. They were also more likely to change their address, reset passwords, reorder PINs and report lost or stolen cards.
By showing how financial pressure can build over time, the findings offer a new evidence base to consider how support could be more responsive and better tailored to individual needs.
Reduced self-care, higher transport and legal costs
Victim-survivors were more likely to incur credit card interest, loan repayments and overdraft charges, withdraw cash and miss Direct Debit payments.
They were also more likely to move onto Universal Credit and disability benefits, and less likely to receive NHS payroll income.
The research identified lower spending on dental care, opticians, sport and household goods, and higher spending on petrol, taxis and legal costs. The study does not establish the reason for individual transactions.
Victim-survivors had more frequent contact with the bank, while remedial payments for fraud and complaints were also higher.
Karen, who is part of our Global Centre for Contextual Safeguarding, provided expert analysis and interpretation of the data, which found changes in day-to-day spending.
The researchers also tested the findings against two alternative comparison groups, customers matched on similar levels of financial distress, and a smaller group matched on the date relationships ended rather than the date of disclosure. In both cases they found broadly consistent patterns.
These findings highlight the power of data to uncover the impact of economic abuse. Financial institutions hold valuable insights which could be used to shape more effective responses, providing a pathway to financial recovery and greater financial security for victim-survivors of economic abuse.
