How can we ensure that the person making an investment really understands what he is signing, that it corresponds to his wishes and interests?

The thorny issue of “informed consent” becomes even more thorny when the client is older. And that he is therefore more capable of doing it than others “current unrest in the demonstration” of this Declaration of consent… without benefiting from it yet Legal protection (nursing office, guardianship, etc.).

It is here “gray area”described by the sociologist Clara Deville in a Study with the title “ Business practices and aging populations », published in February by Sciences Po and the University of Paris-Dauphine-PSL. The testimonies collected are remarkable, such as that of this club manager who says he saw “regularly”in its stability, “Older people who prefer to say yes to their financial advisor so as not to get annoyed with them.”

“Lastlyhe continues, A lady explained to me that her father had done it take out life insurance. She found the papers on the dresser in the living room, she asked her father what they were, he said he didn’t know. He had signed papers at the bank and, According to his daughter, just to please his advisor. This gentleman is very alone, his children live far away, his friends are almost all dead and buried (…)Once there is a bond with someone, they will do anything to maintain it. »

These concerns are not new. In April 2021, the Financial Markets Authority (AMF) and the Prudential Control and Resolution Authority (ACPR) called on financial institutions to get to work and increase their vigilance towards vulnerable elderly customers. With a double slogan: limit inappropriate marketing without discriminating against older people. A balancing act.

No age to be old

Two and a half years later, the results are mixed. “The majority of the companies affected have dealt with the issue (…) but with variable intensity », note the AMF and the ACPR in a summary of bilateral interviews with fourteen bankers and insurers conducted at the end of 2022, to be published on November 7th. In short: progress, but things can get better.

“Some companies have made good progress, others have made significantly less.”summarizes Claire Castanet, director of saver relations at the AMF. “Our arrest was challenging. But it is a long-term task. It requires time, reflection and integrating new practices into the processes. The issue is understood, the companies now have everything in their hands to act.”She continues.

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