In recognition of World Elder Abuse Awareness Day, which takes place Wednesday, The Investment Funds Institute of Canada (IFIC) on Tuesday released two checklists aimed at helping advisors prepare for the challenges of working with aging investors – one on cognitive decline and the other on financial exploitation.
The two checklists represent the first in a series of tools that are being developed by IFIC’s task force on vulnerable investors.
The checklists help advisors prepare to work with potentially vulnerable investors, flag what to watch for when advising these sorts of clients, and recommend actions to ensure the advisor and dealer are meeting their regulatory and legal obligations.
“Our new checklists on cognitive decline and financial exploitation will help advisors broach these sensitive topics with their clients before problems arise and know what actions to take if they become concerned that a client may be at risk,” says Joanne De Laurentiis, president and CEO at IFIC, in a statement announcing the checklists.
“Financial advisors are often the first to witness the signs of financial exploitation,” De Laurentiis adds. “As a result, they are in a unique position to look out for potential signs of abuse and to help their clients by reporting their concerns to their firms and the appropriate authorities. We hope IFIC’s checklists will support them in fulfilling that role.”
Jan Dymond, vice president of public affairs at IFIC and chair of its Vulnerable Investors Task Force, comments: “From an advisor perspective, the keys to supporting vulnerable investors, like seniors, lie in demonstrating good awareness of the individual’s abilities, relationships and wishes from an early stage in the advisor-client relationship, and to include discussions about the potential for cognitive decline in regular client conversations.”
To download the two checklists, click here.
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