Wisconsin Statutes 224.45 – Financial exploitation of vulnerable adults
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Terms Used In Wisconsin Statutes 224.45
- Adult: means a person who has attained the age of 18 years, except that for purposes of investigating or prosecuting a person who is alleged to have violated any state or federal criminal law or any civil law or municipal ordinance, "adult" means a person who has attained the age of 17 years. See Wisconsin Statutes 990.01
- Assets: (1) The property comprising the estate of a deceased person, or (2) the property in a trust account.
- Beneficiary: A person who is entitled to receive the benefits or proceeds of a will, trust, insurance policy, retirement plan, annuity, or other contract. Source: OCC
- Following: when used by way of reference to any statute section, means the section next following that in which the reference is made. See Wisconsin Statutes 990.01
- Mortgage: The written agreement pledging property to a creditor as collateral for a loan.
- Mortgage loan: A loan made by a lender to a borrower for the financing of real property. Source: OCC
- Person: includes all partnerships, associations and bodies politic or corporate. See Wisconsin Statutes 990.01
- State: when applied to states of the United States, includes the District of Columbia, the commonwealth of Puerto Rico and the several territories organized by Congress. See Wisconsin Statutes 990.01
- Trust account: A general term that covers all types of accounts in a trust department, such as estates, guardianships, and agencies. Source: OCC
(1) Definitions. In this section:
(a) “Account” means funds or assets held by a financial service provider, including a deposit account, savings account, share account, certificate of deposit, trust account, guardianship or conservatorship account, or retirement account, and also including an account associated with a loan or other extension of credit.
(b) “Financial exploitation” has the meaning given in s. 46.90 (1) (ed).
(c) “Financial institution” means a bank, savings bank, savings and loan association, trust company, or credit union chartered under the laws of this state.
(d) “Financial service provider” means any of the following engaged in or transacting business in this state:
1. A financial institution.
2. A mortgage banker, mortgage broker, or mortgage loan originator, as defined in s. 224.71 (3), (4), or (6).
3. A money transmitter under ch. 217.
Effective date note NOTE: Subd. 3. is shown as amended eff. 1-1-25 by 2023 Wis. Act 132. Prior to 1-1-25 it reads:
Effective date text 3. A seller of checks, as defined in s. 217.02 (9).
4. A community currency exchange, as defined in s. 218.05 (1) (b).
5. A payday loan licensee under s. 138.14.
6. A title loan licensee under s. 138.16.
7. A lender licensed under s. 138.09.
8. An insurance premium finance company, as defined in s. 138.12 (1) (b).
9. A sales finance company, as defined in s. 218.0101 (34).
(e) “Vulnerable adult” means an adult at risk, as defined in s. 55.01 (1e), or an individual who is at least 65 years of age.
(2) List of authorized contacts.
224.45(2)(a) (a) A financial service provider may offer to a vulnerable adult the opportunity to submit and periodically update a list of persons that the vulnerable adult authorizes the financial service provider to contact when the financial service provider has reasonable cause to suspect that the vulnerable adult is a victim or a target of financial exploitation.
(b) A financial service provider, or an officer or employee of the financial service provider, that has reasonable cause to suspect that a vulnerable adult is the victim or target of financial exploitation may convey the suspicion to any of the following if the person is not the suspected perpetrator:
1. Any person on the list described in par. (a) if a list has been provided by the vulnerable adult.
2. Any co-owner, additional authorized signatory, or beneficiary on the account of the vulnerable adult.
3. Any person known by the financial service provider to be a family member, including a parent, spouse, adult child, or sibling.
(c) When providing information under this subsection, the financial service provider may limit the information and disclose only that the financial service provider has reasonable cause to suspect that the vulnerable adult may be a victim or target of financial exploitation without disclosing any other details or confidential personal information regarding the financial affairs of the vulnerable adult.
(d) The financial service provider may choose not to contact any person on the list provided under par. (a) if the financial service provider suspects that the person is engaged in financial exploitation.
(e) The financial service provider may rely on information provided by the customer in compiling a list of contact persons.
(f) A financial service provider, or an employee of a financial service provider, acting in good faith is immune from all criminal, civil, and administrative liability for contacting a person or electing not to contact a person under this subsection and for actions taken in furtherance of that determination if the determination was made based on reasonable suspicion.