Is Borrowing Money For A Week From A Joint Accont To Personal Account Theft?

This article grew out of a reader's question. Mrs J, asked:

Since February my married man has started to receive letters from WageDay Advance, Satsuma and QuickQuid saying that he has loans with them that need repaying. He doesn't have any loans. Nosotros have sent Prove It letters to all three. Nosotros have now had letters saying that WageDay Advance and QuickQuid take passed the account to debt collectors.

In addition, he has now had a letter of the alphabet from Visa Vanquis saying that he has an unpaid credit card. He doesn't have an account with them. On speaking to them, it seems that the account number doesn't exist and that it will exist sorted out at their finish.

Along with the Show It messages (sent past recorded delivery), my husband has also phoned WageDay Advance, Satsuma and QuickQuid telling them that the debts are not his.

They accept not proved that the debts are his but they go along sending letters. The debts appear on his Experian credit record. I dread the mail service arriving every twenty-four hour period. Why is this happening? Do you accept any advice about what we should practise? It's actually starting to get u.s.a. downward.

This sounds like identity theft – someone has got concord of Mr J'south details and is using them to utilise for credit in his name.

Your experience may be different – identity theft cases can be quite private. Merely the prinicples about what you need to practice are common.

Means you lot may observe out you have been a victim
Identity theft is an increasing problem
v steps to take when yous are a victim of identity theft
- 1 Written report identity theft to Activity Fraud
- 2 Inform Experian most the identity theft
- 3 Check other credit records and statements
- 4 Complain to all the lenders
- 5 Sign up for Cifas protection
Top tip – cheque credit records 6 months before applying for a mortgage

Ways you may find out you have been a victim

There are other ways you can find out near identity theft:

a debt collector may contact you about a debt y'all don't recognise;
you may find debts yous don't recognise on your credit files;
yous may be declined for credit or a mortgage;
your banking company may suddenly close your business relationship where you accept had no problems.

Non all of those volition turn out to be identity theft. But they all need to be investigated.

Sometimes the debt you didn't know about was yours (a parking ticket or an old pecker sent to a previous address?).

Sometimes there has been a "mistrace", when someone else's debt has been wrongly linked to your proper name. Have a wait at your credit record. If there is no record at that place from the original lender, this may well exist an error by the debt collector. If there is a tape from the original lender this is more than likely to be identity theft.

Identity theft is an increasing problem

Identity theft is happening a lot more in Britain. In 2019 information technology went up eighteen% to 223,000 cases – and those were just the ones that were identified.

And it's depressingly rare that the criminals are caught even when the police force have it seriously, as this story shows: Scammers set-upwards a Very credit account in my proper name and ordered £3,000 worth of goods.

Which? has some good tips on how to avert identity theft and identity fraud.

5 steps to take when you are a victim of identity theft

Mr J has done the right things so far: sending a Bear witness It letter and phoning upward the lenders. It is disappointing that none of the lenders seems to accept actually grasped that there is a real problem hither.

Hither five things I advise Mr J should do at present. Some of them may turn out to not be needed, but after six months, I recollect going for them all is the best approach to getting this all ended as soon as possible.

1 Report identity theft to Action Fraud

Mr J should inform Activity Fraud about this identity theft because it is a crime. He can do this online and he volition get a Law-breaking Reference Number (CRN).

This is unlikely to consequence in a police investigation, but being able to tell the lenders that you have reported this, and requite them the CRN, should hopefully hateful they take it more seriously.

2 Inform Experian about the identity theft

Experian have a Victims of Fraud team that can assist you sort out problems – contact them at identityfraud@uk.experian.com or phone call them on 0344 481 8000.

3 Check other credit records and statements

So far this has mainly been a nuisance and a worry to Mr and Mrs J. Although the scammers seem to take got enough details about Mr J to fool a new lender, they haven't mentioned whatever problems with their own accounts.

Simply information technology's expert to exist very conscientious now and for at least another year.

Mr J should bank check his records with all three credit reference agencies every calendar month, come across Check your credit records for free for how to practice this. He is looking for any new debts or accounts he doesn't recognise and any new addresses or associations with other people being added.

He also needs to look at his depository financial institution statements and credit bill of fare statements every calendar month to check that there are no wrong purchases showing on at that place.

He should as well consider changing his passwords for online and mobile admission to his bank accounts and credit cards. Until something wrong shows upwards, this isn't essential, just he may make up one's mind that it's better to be condom.

4 Complain to all the lenders

I suggest he also makes a formal written complaint to each of the lenders, past email or letter. He should put COMPLAINT ABOUT IDENTITY THEFT as the championship of the email.

If a debt has been sold to a debt collector, you lot must send this letter to the the original lender, non the debt collector. Also email the debt collector and say this u.s.a. identity theft and y'all are dusting information technology with the declared lender.

These complaints need to say:

I take told you before [requite dates] that I practice not recognise this debt [give details of the debt on your credit record] and asked y'all to prove that it is mine. You lot have not done this and you take continued to ship me letters. [add together on if that the debt has been passed to a debt collector]

or if this is the commencement time yous are telling them this, say

You lot have sent me a letter/email/text about a debt that is non mine [give details and dates] or I accept constitute an entry on my credit tape from y'all most a debt that is not mine [give details and attach screenshot]?

I have never borrowed from you. I have reported this to Action Fraud, this is my Criminal offence Reference Number: 99999999.

I want you to do the following to put this right:
a) write me a letter accepting that the debt is not mine
b) agree that you lot will non sell this debt with my name on information technology to any third party [if it has already been sold alter this to "Inform xxxxxx who the debt has been sold to that this is identify theft and the debt is not mine.]
c) remove the debt from my name with all United kingdom of great britain and northern ireland credit reference agencies
d) after this, cease to send me whatever more communications nigh this alleged debt.

If this is not done within eight weeks, I volition exist sending this complaint to the Fiscal Ombudsman and asking for compensation. [add together more details if this has been going on for months already eg This has been causing me a cracking bargain of stress and yous have just been ignoring me.]"

If a lender doesn't requite in and right the problem, Mr J should transport his complaint to the Finanical Ombudsman and ask for compensation for the time and stress this has acquired. He will demand to transport a separate complaint for each of the lenders.

5 Sign upward for Cifas protection

Additionally, to terminate any more than problem debts happening, Mr J needs to sign upward for protective registration at Cifas. This costs £20 for two years but I remember it's worth it.

After this has been washed, when the thief tries to open a new business relationship using Mr J'south details, the lender will see the Cifas flag and will accept to contact him to ask if has applied for this credit – he tin can then say No.

This won't damage Mr J'southward credit score and it won't finish Mr J himself taking out whatsoever further credit. It just ways that his real applications volition take a few extra days to process.

Elevation tip – check credit records 6 months earlier applying for a mortgage

Yous can endeavor your best to keep your information private and exist alert for phone, etc and electronic mail scams. But you tin never dominion it out totally.

Here is the pitiful story of someone who merely establish out nigh identity theft when her mortgage application was declined: 'Having my identity stolen cost me £x,000'.

So even though you can't stop information technology totally, it is good to cheque your credit records half-dozen months earlier you apply for a mortgage. Do this with all three credit reference agencies, see How to check your credit records for complimentary. If you lot find a problem, you still have to sort out it out, but you avert the costs and heartache of a house purchase falling through.

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