Victim of Barclays debit card fraud .

Elisexxx

Hi, ive lurked on this site for a while and have decided to just sign up, i just wish that my first post wasnt a bad one.

Im really carefull with my barclays bank account and i check my online banking daily, well this morning when i checked i noticed that my overdraft was £25 over the limit and that £220 has been taken out of my account that wasnt accounted for.

After ringing my bank, it turns out that someone in London has used my bank details to obtain car insurance.

After talking to my bank, they have told me that they will send me a new card and that because the transaction is still pending, there is nothing they can do untill its cleared.

Well, i said to them, what am i suppose to do? I have no money etc, there answer was, theres nothing we can do about that

Now i have a special needs son, whos dla gets paid into my bank which has now been swallowed up and i have no money to live off until this is sorted out and im also worried about being charged for being overdrawn because of this happening!

Nothing like this has ever happened to me before and i dont know what to do next or what happens next!

Has anybody been in this situation who could shed some light?

Sorry to go on but in need of some advise and after using all my mobile phone credit on ringing them today i feel im non the wiser on if i will get my money back!

Thanks for listening.

SJ1

Hi

I had a similar situation a year ago when i noticed that an amount had come off our account which I didn't spend - it was for some goods bought in Singapore so it clearly wasn't me as I have never been there in my life. I notified the bank immediately and they did the same thing - cancelled the cards, which was lucky as the same b*** tried again a few days later. Now luckily I had money in the bank but that said I rang them and asked them to repay me the cash in the interim while they investigated which they did. They then wrote to me and told me that it had been fraudulent and that no further action on my part was required.

I would call them tomorrow and ask them if they will reinstate the funds in the interim while they investigate. If they won't or if it will be a few days before they can do this then ask them for a temporary overdraft - this will cost very little money for the time they investigate and will stop your worries about cash. Also ask them if you can come along with your passport and get a little bit of money out while you are waiting for your new card as that is the other issue - having no money till you get the card!

Hope it helps

SJ

silverbullit

Hi, sorry to hear about your bad luck. I had over £1,000 taken by a fraudster from my Alliance & Leicester current account last Christmas. I don't know how Barclays will deal with your situation, but in my case, after I had informed A&L of the discrepancy in my account, they 'recalled' the transaction meaning they stopped it and, further, they reimbursed my account with the full amount that had been taken. They did this very quickly - within a 3/4 days.

Having read other posts on similar situations, it appears that the standard practice of banks in these circumstances is to fully reimburse the victim so long as, of course, there is no evidence of dodgy practice and so long as you make it clear to Barclays that you are always careful with your bank details and do not disclose them to anyone else. I think it is also advisable to inform your bank that you always take care to use a firewall and anti-virus software when banking online. The banks want to be sure that the fraud was not due to any negligence on your part.

I hope they sort the situation out for you soon.

Elisexxx

Thanks for the replie SJ1, I asked if they could extend my overdraft to cover me but they said they couldnt extend it, even though my overdraft is only £100 limit and i have never paid my loan or credit card late and ive never been over drawn before.

I think i will go into my bank in the morning and see if i can actually speak to a real person, as im sick of talking to people on the phone and getting no were.

Thanks for your help.

Extant

Elisexxx wrote: »

Thanks for the replie SJ1, I asked if they could extend my overdraft to cover me but they said they couldnt extend it, even though my overdraft is only £100 limit and i have never paid my loan or credit card late and ive never been over drawn before.

Where did you call? If you called and were put through to Debit Card Services, then no, they unfortunately cannot extend an overdraft - their job relates simply to debit cards, the issuing there of, related fraud, etc. So, sorry, but they can't help you directly.

I think i will go into my bank in the morning and see if i can actually speak to a real person, as im sick of talking to people on the phone and getting no were.

The branch should be able to help you with the overdraft. If they decline you - and bear in mind the current economic state - ask to appeal the decision. The initial answer will be a "computer says no" one, but if you appeal it, it goes to a place called Generalist Credit (Retail) and a person will look at it.

The branch won't, however, be able to help you with the debit card issues - all they can do is get on the phone, too.

In the next few days you should receive some forms which ask you to detail the transactions, where you keep your PIN, etc. and then sign it and return it. You can do that by post, or visit the branch and ask them to fax the forms - then you can get the originals back, and get a fax transmission receipt, so you know it's gone.

As for spending all your money on phone credit, ask if you can get it back. That is at the discretion of the branch, though.

Elisexxx

Thankyou for your replie BarclaysManager, i wasnt even told about any forms being sent when i rang yesterday, i assume that the refund process will take place once i have recieved sent these forms, i just hope it all dosnt take to long.

Thanks.

dogsbody321

BarclaysManager wrote: »

Where did you call? If you called and were put through to Debit Card Services, then no, they unfortunately cannot extend an overdraft - their job relates simply to debit cards, the issuing there of, related fraud, etc. So, sorry, but they can't help you directly.

The branch should be able to help you with the overdraft. If they decline you - and bear in mind the current economic state - ask to appeal the decision. The initial answer will be a "computer says no" one, but if you appeal it, it goes to a place called Generalist Credit (Retail) and a person will look at it.

The branch won't, however, be able to help you with the debit card issues - all they can do is get on the phone, too.

In the next few days you should receive some forms which ask you to detail the transactions, where you keep your PIN, etc. and then sign it and return it. You can do that by post, or visit the branch and ask them to fax the forms - then you can get the originals back, and get a fax transmission receipt, so you know it's gone.

As for spending all your money on phone credit, ask if you can get it back. That is at the discretion of the branch, though.

Wow! Is that how Barclays operates these days?

I'm sure glad I got out of there when I did!

What service?

leviathan

Elisexxx wrote: »

After ringing my bank, it turns out that someone in London has used my bank details to obtain car insurance.

Of all the things to use a stolen credit card on, something which isn't actually worth anything of value, easily cancelled and no real loss, relatively easy to trace the source of the transaction.

Bit of a dumb purchase. :rotfl:

Elisexxx

leviathan wrote: »

Of all the things to use a stolen credit card on, something which isn't actually worth anything of value, easily cancelled and no real loss, relatively easy to trace the source of the transaction.

Bit of a dumb purchase. :rotfl:

I know! seemed so strange that they would use it for that

The thing is though i wouldnt mind so much if it was my credit card, but it wasnt, it was my debit card details, still cant figure out how they got them?

Elisexxx

ok, just to update, i just recieved a phone call from the insurance companys fraud department and asked after giving my the persons name if i knew them etc, which i dont, then they said that the insurance was done online via the internet, and that they dont ask for the 3 didgit security code on the back of the card, so that it could possibly be that someone got there numbers mixed up when typing in there card details and it just happened to be my account number. Is this even possible

The women said that she would contact said person by writing and that they have to give them 7 days to replie and that she will be intouch in 7 days time and if my bank still hasnt refunded me by then, then she will arrange a refund.

But the thing is, i am now over my overdraft, so if i end up with charges will it be up to barclays to refund these or the insurance company?

pasti

Not a good situation to be in. TBH I cannot believe the insurance company were so lax with their online process and not asking for the CCV number for card transactions and the other thing they're meant to check is that the address on the card matches to the address of the person applying for the policy.
If the insurance company have been in contact then really they should be refunding the money back to your bank account, plus any charges you incur immediately.

A suggestion to avoid future online issues is to sign up for Verified by Visa. This comes up and asks you for certain security information and a password before the transaction is authorised.