The number of cases of domestic abuse against the over 60s dealt with by social services reached a new high last year, with a 20 per cent increase over 2020.

The trend has been confirmed by an NGO working with the most vulnerable in society.

Figures published by the Foundation for Social Welfare Services show that, in 2021, its domestic violence unit dealt with 134 cases of victims aged over 60 being abused in their homes.

A breakdown of domestic abuse cases by age shows that the highest number of cases was registered among those aged 60 and over.

The majority of these cases, 101, involved women and 33 were men.

Upward trend

Data from the previous three years confirm an upward trend in cases of elder abuse committed domestically. In 2018, the unit dealt with just 55 cases. This doubled to 102 in 2019 and climbed to 108 in 2020.

The number of cases involving the elderly has been rising from year to year.

The abuse is categorised as either emotional, physical, financial or sexual.

Fifty-three per cent of the cases across all age groups involved emotional abuse while 33 per cent was physical. A further nine per cent of the cases involved financial abuse and five per cent were sexual.

The four categories of abuse referred to the Domestic Violence Unit.

The spike in elder abuse did not come as a surprise to Nora Macelli, who works with vulnerable elderly people as part of her work with the St Jeanne Antide Foundation.

Financial abuse

The NGO, which offers support to people living in poverty, has recently seen an increase in cases of elderly suffering at the hands of those closest to them, she said.

“I confirm that the situation is indeed getting worse. COVID-19 has exacerbated the issue, especially since the sense of helplessness experienced by some during the pandemic has lingered on,” Macelli said.

She said the foundation was encountering more cases of financial abuse among the elderly, especially since the digital divide grows as society continues to evolve technologically.

The abuse often comes from relatives but there are also instances when it is neighbours or others in the community who take advantage of the elderly’s frailty and helplessness, she said.

“Many find themselves in a chaotic web of situations that makes them even more vulnerable. Because of COVID, for instance, a lot of elderly people gave their credit card PIN numbers out and, as a result, they suffered, and continue to suffer, with people taking their money.

“Without money, they then end up getting eviction notices from landlords, which again opens them up to even more abuse. It is one vicious cycle that keeps getting worse,” Macelli said.

Meanwhile, the report also sheds some light on the younger victims, with over 200 domestic abuse cases registered in the 35 to 39 and 40 to 44 age groups.

As with the elderly, the majority of the victims were women. Of 222 cases in the two age groups, just 19 involved men.

The total number of cases involving men of all ages went up from 67 to 92 in 2021 while it dropped slightly from 717 to 702 for women.