Victims of domestic abuse can now bypass banks’ money laundering regulations under new measures to help them gain financial independence from their abusers.

The Home Office and the British Bankers Association said last week that victims would be allowed to open accounts with only a letter from a refuge manager to prove their identity. Victims can also give a post office box number as their address.

Jane Wilson, chairwoman of family law group Resolution’s domestic abuse committee and a senior partner at Crewe firm Hall Smith Whittingham, welcomed the move. ‘The banks are still subject to money laundering regulations, but the onus is now on the refuge – rather than the victim – to satisfy them. This is a great help to someone having to start from scratch again.’