Passport needed for additional card

tenchy

Moggles wrote: »

What advantage is there for your wife, anyway?

She would be better off applying for a credit card in her own name, surely? If not, why not?

Yes, you're right. It's just that I already have a Nationwide card and I thought it would be very straightforward to just ring them up and ask for a card for my wife, no form filling and the like. Of course I didn't bargain for how financial services companies now operate. At the insistence of the government they now assume you are a fraudster unless it can be proved otherwise.

Anyway, if the form comes and there's a requirement for ID proof, it will go back unfilled with a letter stating that I don't trust them with a copy of my wife's passport, and my wife doesn't trust them either .

In the mean time, my wife is going to apply for her own Nationwide (or Post Office) credit card. We have other cards, some joint, some individual, but the Nationwide is for use abroad. I think it's the PO card that also offers commission free use abroad?

TFD_2

God forbit you give a bank proof of identity. You show them who's boss by not getting that additional card...

tenchy

TFD wrote: »

God forbit you give a bank proof of identity. You show them who's boss by not getting that additional card...

Yep, that's right. I'm half inclined to kick NW into touch anyway. That'll show em.

As for GIVING my bank proof of identity - They don't need it (I think I said that earlier). They only need to SEE it. There is no reason for them to have a COPY of it, other than because for perverse reasons the government tells them that they must.

You should recall that an HSBC call centre in India was recently responsible for losing or otherwise disclosing the details, including passport data, of thousands of UK customers.

Now call me stupid if you like, but if the banks didn't have passport and other key identification data in the first place they wouldn't be able to lose it - would they?:rolleyes:

TFD_2

tenchy wrote: »

There is no reason for them to have a COPY of it, other than because for perverse reasons the government tells them that they must.

Ok so they need it for legal reasons.

I don't get the point of the post - your bank have made a request that 99% of people would have found reasonable. You don't want to do it. So don't!

tenchy

TFD wrote: »

Ok so they need it for legal reasons.

I don't get the point of the post - your bank have made a request that 99% of people would have found reasonable. You don't want to do it. So don't!

If you don't get the point of my post I suggest you read it more carefully. If you still don't get it maybe I can explain it here in a simpler fashion:

I'm concerned that organisations don't have access to my personal data that they could lose or abuse. I was therefore surprised that a credit card company asked for this when previously they haven't. My original post asked for further information.

As for your 99% figure, I think what you mean is 99% (estimate on your part) of people accept it because they've no alternative if they want to open a bank account. As to whether they find it reasonable, I suspect most don't.

Try researching something about controlled document copying and identity theft.

normanmark

You're beating a dead horse. If you want the additional card then go through there process, which includes using a passport or drivers license as a form of proving who the person is. Do it in branch if you're paranoid.

However if you're not happy with a bank asking for proof of who the additional card is going to (which lets face it, hardly any bank would do these days). Then you'll either have to move banks or not apply for the second card.

Simple as that.

Geenie

Like above, I have no idea why the OP thinks Nationwide's behaviour is unreasonable!! If he is worried about sending through the post, then take the passport into a local branch for verification of who his wife is.

I think it is a very reasonable request by Nationwide that they have verification of who the 2nd card holder is going to be. After all, that person will be able to run up money on the account. There are enough posts on here about fraudulant activity to make this type of thread seem daft. We all have to sometimes show our passport for identification, so what is the fuss about!

Kavanne

Geenie wrote: »

Like above, I have no idea why the OP thinks Nationwide's behaviour is unreasonable!! If he is worried about sending through the post, then take the passport into a local branch for verification of who his wife is.

I think my story also demonstrates why taking it into the branch isn't foolproof either...

tenchy

Oh dear. I'm getting bored with all you posters who don't understand what I'm getting at and clearly haven't read my original post.

Just to wrap this one up; I've applied for dozens of credit cards over the years and have never been asked for a copy of passport or anything else. Now I apply for an additional card on one of my cards (additional mark you, not opening a whole new account), and blow me, they want a passport copy - which going by recent events, has every chance of ending up in a skip in the backstreet outside their head office.

So, if you can't address the points and questions I originally raised, and you think it's "reasonable" that an organisation like Nationwide should have a copy of a primary identification document (a copy, mind you, not just having had a look at it) then please don't respond further.

Thanks to the posters who do understand what I'm saying.

withnell

They're required by law to confirm identifty - if they can't do it via electoral role records, then they need a copy *on file* of the id they take. I agree that banks take copies of these documents far to often, but it's what the government require them to do!