Refuge reports ‘staggering’ 78% annual increase in referrals for cases of technology-facilitated or economic abuse Domestic abuse charities have reported a “staggering” increase in perpetrators using technology and finances to control their victims, with a “concerning” rise in people being coerced into car finance agreements. Data from Refuge, the UK’s largest specialist domestic abuse charity, reveals a 78% rise in referrals for cases of technology-facilitated or economic abuse in the past year