Cherie
Content Warning: These stories are about violence, abuse, neglect and exploitation and may include references to suicide or self-harming behaviours. They may contain graphic descriptions and strong language and may be distressing. Some narratives may be about First Nations people who have passed away. If you need support, please see Contact & support.
‘There's no compassion. There's no humanity. There's no understanding there's a human being trying to live and survive on the other end of that money.’
Cherie is in her 40s and Deaf.
About 20 years ago she was admitted to hospital for an eating disorder and asked the public trustee to manage her finances
‘Things like rent and bills you had to go to the post office to pay them, that sort of thing, and when you're in hospital that's very difficult.’
Cherie said she was told the trustee would make her life easier so she could concentrate on her health.
‘They never told me it would be impossible to get out,’ she told the Royal Commission.
‘The way they handle your money is they do up this budget and then they give you an allowance. So for food, clothing, transport, public transport … everything like that I got $80 a week.’
Cherie said it wasn’t enough, and she relied on charity for food and clothing.
‘You have to beg them for money for stuff. Like when I was pregnant with my son, “Please can I buy this cot? It's on Marketplace. It's a good price.” And by the time you get through the whole begging them and justifying it the cot's gone to someone else.’
Cherie said the trustee stopped her allowance when she had to travel to another city to visit her dying father. Another time, they didn’t put her money into her account over Christmas.
‘They either forgot or it didn't work – the automated payments that were supposed to go to people over the Christmas period. [And] most of the charities were shut,’ Cherie told the Royal Commission.
‘I went into the office crying on the day that they opened because it had been several weeks with no money. And they didn't even apologise. I had to beg them to give me $50 in cash.’
Cherie said the trustee often didn’t pay her bills on time.
‘I lost count of the number of times over the years that I got warning notices, final notice before eviction, notice from utilities that my utilities were going to be cut off.’
Cherie, who had been on the Disability Support Pension, said in the end she had to get a job.
‘I didn't tell them. So they said like, “Oh, your Centrelink's been cut down. We can't pay these bills.” So I started paying the bills and everything.’
Cherie then applied to have the trustee removed as her financial administrator.
‘I've been told that to get out as easily as I got out [a few years ago] is rare, really rare. And it really is only because I could show that I'd been the one paying my bills.’
Cherie said she assumed the trustee had saved and invested the money it kept from her.
‘At the end of it I got back … I don't think it was more than $2000 and something. And that was absolutely mind-blowing. Like, what happened to all those savings and everything over 15 years?’
Disclaimer: This is the story of a person who shared their personal experience with the Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability through a submission or private session. The names in this story are pseudonyms. The person who shared this experience was not a witness and their account is not evidence. They did not take an oath or affirmation before providing the story. Nothing in this story constitutes a finding of the Royal Commission. Any views expressed are those of the person who shared their experience, not of the Royal Commission.