did i break the law?

ben11_2

back in october 2008 i attended a show at the nec in birmingham,where i was approached by a representative from the bank of ireland. i was offered to apply for a boi credit card. having been refused credit on a number of occasions i politely told the rep that i would be wasting his time if i applied for the card. his reply was " try it anyway,you never know". i filled in the form but i didnt have any form of identification. the rep replied " dont worry about it, if anyone asks tell them you showed me a passport or something". later that month the credit card turned up at my house but after losing my job i started to spend the money. i now owe £3000 and am paying it off at a high rate of interest. im still unemployed and im struggling to pay the ballance. im worried that if i contact the credit card company and try to come to an arrangement to reduce or freeze the interest that they will prosecute me for fraud. what are my rights now and does anyone have any advice?

moreno5uk

ben11 wrote: »

back in october 2008 i attended a show at the nec in birmingham,where i was approached by a representative from the bank of ireland. i was offered to apply for a boi credit card. having been refused credit on a number of occasions i politely told the rep that i would be wasting his time if i applied for the card. his reply was " try it anyway,you never know". i filled in the form but i didnt have any form of identification. the rep replied " dont worry about it, if anyone asks tell them you showed me a passport or something". later that month the credit card turned up at my house but after losing my job i started to spend the money. i now owe £3000 and am paying it off at a high rate of interest. im still unemployed and im struggling to pay the ballance. im worried that if i contact the credit card company and try to come to an arrangement to reduce or freeze the interest that they will prosecute me for fraud. what are my rights now and does anyone have any advice?

They committed the fraud not you. They would have done the relevant credit checks before giving you the credit card, so they have no come back on it. If not, then this is just another show of how banks lent money to people just anyone. You have not lied, they prompted you to go ahead without giving them your passport. You should ring them and discuss refinancing with them as I am sure their would be no problem.

scullster

Why do you think you could get done for fraud? I can't imagine you could get prosecuted for not having the relevant i.d. on you when you completed the paperwork unless other lies were told.

Prior to accepting you as a customer, the credit card company would have performed a credit check on your account to confirm details such as your address (voters register), banking details, current and past credit history (what cards and loans you have or have had, level of credit / debt and the repayment history) etc....

I think the only thing they cant check is your employment history?

Anyway, the person most likely to be in trouble me thinks is the credit card rep who submitted your application for not performing the necessary checks re: i.d.

I'm no expert in these matters, some others may offer additional advice but my starter for 10 is to destroy the card, stop the spending and seek debt advice through the CAB. If the only lie told was that of the credit card rep, you have nothing to worry about.

Other views are welcome.

alwaysonthego_2

I would advise you to stop making the minimum payment and offer them a token payment of a £1 per month. The cab have template letters you can use. You need to send an income expenditure sheet and proof that you are on benefits. They may turn you down and the cab can make them the offer on their headed paper, but the cab like you to do negotiate with your creditors first before they get involved.

alwaysonthego_2

moreno5uk wrote: »

You should ring them and discuss refinancing with them as I am sure their would be no problem.

I would not recommend that course of action, just like Scullster suggested cut up the card and do not be tempted to get out more credit to pay off your debt, this is how it snowballs out of control.

bookworm1363

No, you have not committed fraud.

You don't actually need the CAB, you can do it yourself, send a letter with your income and expenditure, ask them to freeze the interest and make them an offer of what you can comfortably afford, so if it's only a fiver, then that's what you offer, do not offer an amount that you wouldn't then be able to keep up with.

Oh yes, and do get rid of the card ASAP.

phlogeston

moreno5uk wrote: »

They committed the fraud not you.

If the OP applied for the card, signed an application and went along with the fraud, he is equally guilty.

The fact the OP is asking the question, demonstrates he believes that his actions were dishonest - and as a result of that dishonesty he has obtained credit, which he has used.

However, in this case he hasn't lied about who he is, just how it was proved at the time.

If he lied about anything else on the card eg. income, existing debts, time in emploment then it is not an excuse to say that the banker told me to!

wannabe_sybil

There are some extremely knowledgeable people about credit card debt on the Debt Free Wannabe board, who may be able to help with all the legalities. Also the Credit Card board may know some angles.

Hope this helps.

foolishboy

As has been said already the passport ID didn't get you the credit card, they'll have done the usual CRA checks in the background before issuing the card.

If you're struggling go down the usual path, offer reduced payment etc..
HTH
Foolish