Victim of Identity Fraud
Discussion
Hi all,
I'm hoping that you peeps on here can offer some advice on the above topic...
I still pay my credit cards via the mail (as I was concerned with my banks record of internet banking security !!). Today in the post, I received a letter from my credit card company, along with half of the cheque and payment slip that I had sent to them last month.
Someone has intercepted the mail and torn off the bottom right portion of the cheque, and also part of the paying slip of the credit card company, so they now have the following info :
my signature
who I bank with
current account no.
sort code
personal address
my bank address
my credit card company
my credit card number, etc.
My question is what are they able to do with all this info, and what are my liabilities for any lost monies ? It is obviously a professional person doing it, as they have actually intercepted the post - I guess this is most likely to have been done at the sorting office, or by the postie himself ?
My bank has been totally useless so far, and have not even let me report it, or even to look and see if there are any strange transactions or anomalies on my account. I've spoken to the credit card co. and so far there has been no unauthorised transactions on my credit card at least.
I've also reported it to the police who have created a crime file, but I don't think there is much they can do...
Any advice would be greatly received !
Andy.
I'm hoping that you peeps on here can offer some advice on the above topic...
I still pay my credit cards via the mail (as I was concerned with my banks record of internet banking security !!). Today in the post, I received a letter from my credit card company, along with half of the cheque and payment slip that I had sent to them last month.
Someone has intercepted the mail and torn off the bottom right portion of the cheque, and also part of the paying slip of the credit card company, so they now have the following info :
my signature
who I bank with
current account no.
sort code
personal address
my bank address
my credit card company
my credit card number, etc.
My question is what are they able to do with all this info, and what are my liabilities for any lost monies ? It is obviously a professional person doing it, as they have actually intercepted the post - I guess this is most likely to have been done at the sorting office, or by the postie himself ?
My bank has been totally useless so far, and have not even let me report it, or even to look and see if there are any strange transactions or anomalies on my account. I've spoken to the credit card co. and so far there has been no unauthorised transactions on my credit card at least.
I've also reported it to the police who have created a crime file, but I don't think there is much they can do...
Any advice would be greatly received !
Andy.
Close down the accounts affected and open new ones. A pain, but it's the only option, otherwise you are liable for any fraud committed because you are aware that someone else may use your details fraudulently.
It's not the first time I've heard that a bank or cc company don't respond intelligently, so you have to tell them what to do, rather than ask their advice! Sounds daft I know.
Sort it quickly - mate of my brother's didn't and well, I won't scare you with the details!
It's not the first time I've heard that a bank or cc company don't respond intelligently, so you have to tell them what to do, rather than ask their advice! Sounds daft I know.
Sort it quickly - mate of my brother's didn't and well, I won't scare you with the details!
Close your account immediately.
Like be on their doorstep tomorrow morning.
Take a letter addressed to the manager explaining that you will hold them (the bank) personally liable for any fraudulent transactions on your account since the time of you call to them today.
If you have no luck sorting it out with them face to face notify all who you have DD's to and take your business elsewhere.
Report to the police and Royal Mail - tampering with the mail is a serious criminal offence in itself - not a lot of people know how seriously it can be taken.
Amend as appropriate for 'phone/internet bank.
edit to clarify something that could a sounded really stoopid
>> Edited by rude-boy on Thursday 17th March 20:35
wedge girl said:
You need to keep an eye on your credit file, as they will use the information to obtain credit cards etc... in your name.Everytime they try and apply for credit, the credit score should be logged.
Equifax is one, due to too much vino, I can't remember the other one.
Experian? (sp?)
rude-boy said:
You need to keep an eye on your credit file, as they will use the information to obtain credit cards etc... in your name.Everytime they try and apply for credit, the credit score should be logged.
Equifax is one, due to too much vino, I can't remember the other one.
Experian? (sp?)
esselte said:
I don't want to downplay this at all but surely anyone who you wrote a cheque to would have items 1,2,3,4 and 6?
This is true clever clogs !!
However, I only use my cheque book now for my credit cards, and occasional payments to my GF or family members.
I cannot think of any reason other than fraud why someone would go to the bother of intercepting my mail and stealing this info, unless they are up to no good.
By posting on here, I want to find out what they would be able to do with this info. I assume they could make up fake id with my info and their pics, and basically do anything, including opening credit cards, making expensive purchases, clearing monies from my a/c and basically make a right nuisance of themselves...
dobbo makes a good point,
it is possible considering that the person or machine that opens the post has cut the cheque and slip in half and they have lost part of it in the system.
and dont want to admit that?
Most people who are going to steal from the post will steal the credit card before it gets to you rather than take half a cheque and then send the rest on... that would also mean they would have had to re-seal the envelope not likely
it is possible considering that the person or machine that opens the post has cut the cheque and slip in half and they have lost part of it in the system.
and dont want to admit that?
Most people who are going to steal from the post will steal the credit card before it gets to you rather than take half a cheque and then send the rest on... that would also mean they would have had to re-seal the envelope not likely
I have been wondering why it was sent on as well, as they have drawn attention to the fact that the post has been tampered with. If they had just stolen the whole envelope, I would have assumed it had been lost in the post, and not been too worried about it.
Saying that though, the way that the cheque has been torn is very specific and does not look like an accident. They have actually torn around my signature, then along the bottom where they have torn around all of the important numbers. They have done the same on the paying-in slip. Also this part of the cheque would have been at the bottom of the envelope once inside, and the envelope was opened at the top in the usual way, so it didn't happen when the envelope was opened...
Made me laugh when I noticed that they've charged me a late payment penalty !!! That's what they think !!
>> Edited by Andy_CTR on Thursday 17th March 22:29
Saying that though, the way that the cheque has been torn is very specific and does not look like an accident. They have actually torn around my signature, then along the bottom where they have torn around all of the important numbers. They have done the same on the paying-in slip. Also this part of the cheque would have been at the bottom of the envelope once inside, and the envelope was opened at the top in the usual way, so it didn't happen when the envelope was opened...
Made me laugh when I noticed that they've charged me a late payment penalty !!! That's what they think !!
>> Edited by Andy_CTR on Thursday 17th March 22:29
Similar thing happened to me about 18 months ago - someone got my name and an old address and then got a forged Portuguese passport in my name, different date of birth, job details with a made up company and fake utility bills. Maybe they found an address label in the rubbish or merely looked in the phone book.
Long and painful story involving a serious cock-up by HSBC, threats of bailiffs, court summons, police complaints and in the end only sorted by me taking the time to walk into HSBC HQ in Canary Wharf and demanding (nicely) to talk to their Head of Customer Services - oh no sir, you can't do that. Strangely when I mentioned I worked for the Financial Times (they thought I was a journalist, I was in fact a researcher), within two minutes their Global Head of Customer Services was in reception apologising profusely and sorting it out.
Anyway I digress. Get in touch with CIFAS the anti-fraud agency (www.cifas.org.uk) and tell them what has happened - they should put your details on a national database which whenever your details are used to open accounts, credit cards, mortgages etc., they will confirm with you personally that you made the application. Being on this does not affect your credit rating. Also worth getting in touch with both Experian and Equifax and filling in a Registration of Fraud (or something similar I think it's called) form.
Look at the identity fraud section of the FSAs website for some further tips.
You are lucky that the police gave you a crime number - neither Thames Valley (where I now live) or the Met (the address being used fraudulently) would give me one, their excuse being that any fraud that did take place (the bu*gers ran up nearly £20k on 2 HSBC credit cards and a cheque account card) was against the bank and not me, so to get a crime # the bank had to report it - I only got a reference number which I was told differed from a proper crime number.
Keep all correspondence in writing and keep a copy. You have to be so bloody minded, a pain the rear and scrupulous to get this sorted.
As to what they did - they approached I think fifteen different credit card companies and banks applying for credit cards and accounts. All but one flagged it up as dodgy (some even before I knew this had happened) and got in touch with me to say yay or nay to the application. One, HSBC (who weren't my bank and never had been or will be)
merrily gave the sod a load of credit cards and he went 'wild in the aisles' Supermarket Sweep style. Shows how sh*te their vetting procedures are . I found out from the debt recovery firm working for HSBC that the guy only had my name and an old address - the rest of the details were fake (he had a Portuguese passport and my surname is distinctly Irish-sounding 
, so when England played Portugal at Euro 2004 I didn't know who to support! 
). In my case he reckoned it had the hallmarks of a West African gang fraud - they smuggle in mainly Albanians into the country and set them up with a fake ID and EU passport. The kickback is that they then take out as much credit/buy stuff as possible in a short amount of time (before the card firm works out what is happening) and send it back through dodgy Western Union etc. transfers. Cards and ID is ditched and they move onto the next hapless victim 
Hope you get it sorted
>> Edited by sj78 on Friday 18th March 09:48
Long and painful story involving a serious cock-up by HSBC, threats of bailiffs, court summons, police complaints and in the end only sorted by me taking the time to walk into HSBC HQ in Canary Wharf and demanding (nicely) to talk to their Head of Customer Services - oh no sir, you can't do that. Strangely when I mentioned I worked for the Financial Times (they thought I was a journalist, I was in fact a researcher), within two minutes their Global Head of Customer Services was in reception apologising profusely and sorting it out.
Anyway I digress. Get in touch with CIFAS the anti-fraud agency (www.cifas.org.uk) and tell them what has happened - they should put your details on a national database which whenever your details are used to open accounts, credit cards, mortgages etc., they will confirm with you personally that you made the application. Being on this does not affect your credit rating. Also worth getting in touch with both Experian and Equifax and filling in a Registration of Fraud (or something similar I think it's called) form.
Look at the identity fraud section of the FSAs website for some further tips.
You are lucky that the police gave you a crime number - neither Thames Valley (where I now live) or the Met (the address being used fraudulently) would give me one, their excuse being that any fraud that did take place (the bu*gers ran up nearly £20k on 2 HSBC credit cards and a cheque account card) was against the bank and not me, so to get a crime # the bank had to report it - I only got a reference number which I was told differed from a proper crime number.
Keep all correspondence in writing and keep a copy. You have to be so bloody minded, a pain the rear and scrupulous to get this sorted.
As to what they did - they approached I think fifteen different credit card companies and banks applying for credit cards and accounts. All but one flagged it up as dodgy (some even before I knew this had happened) and got in touch with me to say yay or nay to the application. One, HSBC (who weren't my bank and never had been or will be)
merrily gave the sod a load of credit cards and he went 'wild in the aisles' Supermarket Sweep style. Shows how sh*te their vetting procedures are . I found out from the debt recovery firm working for HSBC that the guy only had my name and an old address - the rest of the details were fake (he had a Portuguese passport and my surname is distinctly Irish-sounding , so when England played Portugal at Euro 2004 I didn't know who to support! ). In my case he reckoned it had the hallmarks of a West African gang fraud - they smuggle in mainly Albanians into the country and set them up with a fake ID and EU passport. The kickback is that they then take out as much credit/buy stuff as possible in a short amount of time (before the card firm works out what is happening) and send it back through dodgy Western Union etc. transfers. Cards and ID is ditched and they move onto the next hapless victim Hope you get it sorted
>> Edited by sj78 on Friday 18th March 09:48
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