Category: Key issues

Lived experience at the heart of system change on International Economic Abuse Awareness Day

“Sharing my story is not easy but I want others to know there’s hope. I want to raise awareness of the issue and encourage businesses and organisations to develop appropriate responses for their customers.” — Rina*, homeowner and survivor of economic abuse.

International Economic Abuse Awareness Day is an opportunity to call for greater recognition of the harm caused by economic abuse and the need for solutions. This year, we gathered people working in the community, private, and public sectors for an event at Parliament focused on making a difference for people experiencing economic abuse.

Economic abuse is a common form and feature of family violence. It can happen through restricting someone’s access to money or financial accounts, taking someone’s money without consent, or accumulating debt under their name. The harm caused by economic abuse can be worsened when people affected face further challenges dealing with lenders like banks and finance companies.

At Parliament we heard from leaders working to address economic abuse and the conditions that allow it to happen.

Kellie Coombes, Secretary for Women and Chief Executive of Manatū Wāhine | Ministry for Women, shed light on the prevalence of gender-based violence and economic abuse in New Zealand.

Emma Powell, Chief Executive of Te Puna Aonui, explained the deep connections between money and family violence, noting that money can be a reason people don’t leave an abusive relationship.

Jane Wrightson, Retirement Commissioner, highlighted the affect economic abuse can have on women’s ability to save for retirement, and shared a national strategy to improve financial wellbeing and resilience.

Hon. Nicola Grigg, Minister for Women, underscored the need to address gender inequities that shape family violence, noting the recent launch of the Gender Pay Gap Toolkit that supports businesses to identify and address pay gaps.

Lyn McMorran, Chief Executive of the Financial Services Federation, and Emma Saunders, Chief Executive of Good Shepherd New Zealand, introduced industry codes of practice being co-designed to help financial service providers improve their capability to understand economic abuse and support customers experiencing it.

The breadth of strategies and solutions working to prevent and address economic abuse is impressive. Good things always come when we share perspectives and strengthen our collective response. One speaker made a particular impression in the hearts and minds of attendees — Rina, who shared her experience of economic abuse and the challenges she faces as she heals and regains independence.

Rina talked about noticing changes in her husband’s behaviour after 20 years of marriage.

“Collection agencies started calling about debts I knew nothing about. They told me to stop playing games and for me to take ownership. Letter after letter, calls every day, scare tactics, lenders turning up to my house. This started to take a toll on my health.”

“Credit cards with major banks and lending I had never applied for appeared on my credit profile. These debts were obtained online without my knowledge or my consent.”

Rina helped a room full of people working in finance, regulation and government better understand what it’s like to struggle with unwieldy systems and layers of process alongside the effects of family violence.

The empowerment, strength and satisfaction Rina has gained through resetting her credit rating, accessing a home loan and becoming financially independent shows the collective impact we can make in the lives of people recovering from economic abuse.

“Today I am a homeowner. My name is on the title. Both children live with me. I know about my money. I know where it goes. I know who’s getting paid. I love who I am today.”

* name has been changed for safety

Good Shepherd and Financial Services Federation partner to help non-bank lenders address economic abuse

26/11/2024

Good Shepherd NZ is delighted to be partnering with the Financial Services Federation (FSF) to create a code of practice that can be used by member organisations who want to support survivors of family violence economic abuse.

“Economic abuse is a common form and feature of family violence. Examples include restricting someone’s access to money or financial accounts, taking someone’s money without consent, or accumulating debt under their name”, says Good Sheperd NZ CEO, Emma Saunders.

The codes of practice will create guidelines for organisations to provide effective support and fair treatment to customers experiencing economic harm due to family violence.

“Our clients tell us organisations’ frontline staff often don’t understand this form of abuse or know how to help and they often have to navigate many different policies and procedures”, says Emma.

The code is being developed in conjunction with a group of FSF member lender organisations, and FSF Executive Director, Lyn McMorran has had high interest from members wanting to be involved.

“We know organisations like those that belong to FSF are committed to supporting customers experiencing harm and vulnerabilities, so working together to develop a code of practice allows us to draw on our expertise to create a code of practice that we hope will ultimately help victims”, says Lyn.

Co-design of the code for FSF members has begun. Further codes of practice will also be developed for the energy, telecommunications, and financial advisor sectors. Work to develop the codes is expected to be complete in early 2025.

The announcement comes as Good Sheperd NZ marks International Economic Abuse Awareness Day (26 November 2024) with an event in Parliament to raise awareness of economic abuse and to announce the work on the code.

“Part of the issue with economic abuse is that it’s hard to recognise, and many people do not realise it’s a form of family violence. Even if finances are not used as a means of abuse, family violence creates economic harm. For example, money needed to move to safety or not being able to work due to fear or physical injury”, says Emma.

The theme for International Economic Abuse Awareness Day 2024 is ‘There’s no excuse for economic abuse’ and the day is part of the UN Women 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-based Violence.

Editor’s note

Help is available:

Women’s Refuge — if you’re experiencing financial or economic abuse and/or other forms of family violence call 0800 733 843
Good Shepherd’s Family Violence Economic Harm Service — if you’re recovering from family violence and want help with the money piece call 0800 466 370 option 4.

What is economic abuse?

Financial and economic abuse is recognised in the Family Violence Act 2018, as a form of psychological abuse. It takes many forms — eg restricting money, damaging property, preventing from work, manipulating how much child support is owed, forcing or fraudulently incurring debt.
Recent data shows that more than 60% of women seeking support from Women’s Refuge, who completed a risk assessment, noted they experienced financial or economic abuse. (Good Shepherd research, to be published in January 2024)
It can be hard to recognise economic abuse because, like other acts of psychological violence, it doesn’t leave visible marks.
While it often occurs alongside other types of violence, it can also be a standalone act.
Family violence economic harm can happen to anyone. We see people from all walks of life, socio-economic and demographic backgrounds, who suffer under controlling behaviours and economic abuse.

The impact can be devastating and can affect financial wellbeing long after the relationship is over. Research shows us that women’s access to employment is affected by economic harm, which limits their financial independence during and after an abusive relationship.

About Good Shepherd

Good Shepherd NZ is a charitable non-government organisation that helps women, girls and their families who are experiencing harm and hardship.
Good Shepherd provides a specialist support service to help people address and recover from family violence economic harm. Our specialists have experience in financial capability, advocacy and working with those who have experienced family violence and economic harm.
Our work in New Zealand began in 1886. We work in more than 70 countries, drawing on collective expertise, especially in the areas of economic participation and wellbeing, safety and resilience.
The Congregation of Our Lady of Charity of the Good Shepherd has Special Consultative Status with the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations for its work with women and girls, and is supported by the Good Shepherd International Foundation.

About the FSF

The FSF is the non-profit industry association for specialist lenders operating in Aotearoa New Zealand, with a collective customer base of over 1.7million consumers and businesses. FSF members provide crucial competition to traditional banks through innovation, agility, and the ability to be closer to their customers.
Members include finance, leasing and credit-related insurance providers, and include the likes of UDC Finance, MTF, Turners, several credit unions and building societies, fintech firms, and the finance arms of global motor vehicle brands including Toyota, Nissan, Honda, BMW, and Mercedes-Benz.
With 60 years of history, FSF has stringent membership criteria and enforces a Code of Conduct to maintain high standards in responsible lending. FSF members prioritise compliance, support consumer protection enforcement, and advocate for balanced regulations that ensure New Zealanders can access responsibly provided credit.

Moratorium on attachment orders

04/08/2023

Community advocates call for Government moratorium on benefit attachment orders.

We are proud to be in a group of NGOs seeking a moratorium on attachment orders against all benefits, a practice that affects 20,000 people at a total cost of $29 million a year.

On Tuesday 25th of July a collection of community advocates sent a joint letter to Government Ministers Hon Ginny Andersen, Hon Carmel Sepuloni, Hon Rino Tirikatene, Hon Jan Tinetti and Hon Kelvin Davis calling for an immediate moratorium on attachment orders against all social security benefits.

The organisations involved.

How attachment orders work

A creditor can apply to the courts for an order if an individual has not paid a debt. If granted, the debtor’s employer, or Ministry of Social Development, are required to deduct an amount from their income on a weekly basis.

The system works in a way that makes it easier to get an attachment order against a benefit than a wage. Currently, 80% of all orders are collected from beneficiaries and they bear the brunt of this punitive practice.

The use of attachment orders to collect debt from beneficiaries is a cause of significant financial harm to the affected individuals and their families, as well as to New Zealand society.

We are calling for the introduction of a judgement proof debtor policy, similar to that used in the Australian State of Victoria.

Letter: Time to Stop on Attachment Orders on Benefits Download

Press release Download

New budget: a chance to breathe

19/05/2023

Clients will have more money left in their pockets and more time on their hands thanks to earlier access to ECE, discounted transport and waived prescription fees; all of which have been announced in the 2023 Government Wellbeing budget.

“Too many people across Aotearoa are facing financial hardship because there is simply not enough money left at the end of the week, which is why it is crucial to prioritise communities that are struggling so they can find their feet again and thrive.”

Head of Microfinance, Natalie Vincent

60% of our clients on our Good Loans and DEBTsolve programmes have one or more dependents, and although they are usually great budgeters, they often do not have enough money at the end of the week to cover costs; or the time to bring in more money.

It makes it harder for them to take back control of their unmanageable debt and thrive again in our communities. We are confident that these new changes will help ease the burden and free up more money for essential costs – improving financial wellbeing across Aotearoa.

We are also pleased to see the Government is continuing to support microfinance and debt solutions. The growing enquiries into our Good Loans and DEBTsolve programmes is evidence that whānau across the country are struggling to keep up with the cost of living and the burden of unmanageable debt.

Continued investment into our microfinance services, as announced this week, will help us provide whānau across Aotearoa with better support and enable them take back control of their financial wellbeing. Natalie Vincent says:

Our priority is to ensure people facing financial challenges continue to have safe, fair and affordable choices when it comes to credit and have the support they need.

Increased income thresholds

To reduce the barriers and increase access to fair and affordable lending for the growing number of people who need support, we worked closely with our partner BNZ to change the eligibility criteria to give more people the option to access our Good Loans and DEBTsolve programmes.

As at 1 May 2023, the thresholds people may be able to apply for a no interest loan are as below. Yearly incomes before tax must be less than these amounts:

Single: $60,000
Family of two: $72,000
Family of three: $84,000
Family of four: $96,000
Family of five: $108,000
Family of six or more: $120,000

Our Good Loans programme offers no interest loans up to $7,000 to help people living on limited incomes access an essential item or service; without the risks of high-interest and unmanageable debt.

DEBTsolve supports people to take back control of their unmanageable debt through coaching, advocacy and a potential no interest Good Loan of up to $15,000. Natalie said:

More people in our communities, that have been excluded from traditional finance products, now have another choice when it comes to credit. It is one that is fair and affordable, that is without the risks of unmanageable debt and high interest and has their long-term financial wellbeing at the centre – which I am confident will result in a better Aotearoa for all.

Struggling families ‘stuck’ using buy now pay later for essentials

09/05/2023

Reported by Jean Edwards for Radio New Zealand.

Struggling families are getting caught in a poverty trap by racking up hundreds of dollars of debt using buy now pay later schemes for meat, nappies and other everyday essentials, budget advisers warn.

Financial mentors are increasingly alarmed by the number of people buying groceries through lenders Afterpay and Zip, as low-income whānau struggle to cope with the cost of living.

At a Mad Butcher store in Christchurch, every shopper spoken to by RNZ was buying meat using a buy now pay later service.

Read the full story