halifax blocking my account

timmaaay

I have recently got married and as gifts from parents and friends received cheques which I paid into our joint halifax account. Totalling less than £8k with the largest cheque of £4k. Halifax fraud dept have now blocked my accounts in case I'm laundering money. They are being extremely unhelpful in helping me resolve this and free up my money by Friday when I go on honeymoon and need to pay the wedding bill by. Thay are insisting on me going into branch with not only my own id but letters or copies of peoples bank statements who gave me the cheques (some of which I can't obtain as they are away).

They have told me this is the ONLY way to free up the money and the onus is on me to prove where the money came from (even though some came from halifax accounts).

Does anyone know if this occurs regularly, if so what are my rights? If I have to take a loan out until I get back from holiday will halifax be liable for any costs incurred by me?

opinions4u

Are they being unhelpful?

They've given you a way to resolve it.

Thay are insisting on me going into branch with not only my own id but letters or copies of peoples bank statements who gave me the cheques

If the turn a blind eye to potential money laundering they can be closed down.

Get in to a branch with what documentation you've got, stress the urgency and take it from there.

Does anyone know if this occurs regularly, if so what are my rights? If I have to take a loan out until I get back from holiday will halifax be liable for any costs incurred by me?

Not if you have refused to visit the branch as requested.

LJDavis

I agree with Opinions4u... It is a pain but if it helps cut down on laundering then is worth it IMO.

Try getting the £4k bank statement first - they might free up bits at a time?

omen666

opinions4u wrote: »

Are they being unhelpful?

They've given you a way to resolve it.



If the turn a blind eye to potential money laundering they can be closed down.

Get in to a branch with what documentation you've got, stress the urgency and take it from there.

Not if you have refused to visit the branch as requested.

You are having a laugh aren't you? How can the OP be expected to bring in other peoples bank statement s as proof.

I would bring in the marriage cert and go and see the bank manager in your local branch, get the local papers involved f necessary and congrats

Lokolo

omen666 wrote: »

You are having a laugh aren't you? How can the OP be expected to bring in other peoples bank statement s as proof.

I would bring in the marriage cert and go and see the bank manager in your local branch, get the local papers involved f necessary and congrats

Why not? Surely if its legit and they say its from parents and friends it won't be a problem getting the statements?

Tbh your statement of getting the papers involved etc. is pathetic and stupid.

welshmoneylover

Perhaps other people don't want their bank statements being shown to complete strangers.

Congrats on the wedding x

timmaaay

I've been in with the marriage cert, but common sense is not working with these guys. I have been into branch, as has my father (the one who gave us the 4K from his halifax acc) and both of us have phoned up, so far, however, this is not enough. They want us both there at the same time or me to have a letter from him on me (him leaving a letter at his branch would not suffice). We live in different areas and both work.

The reason for the block is it is unusual activity an my account, which says to me if I were rich and moving large sums in and out all the time (like a highly paid retired cheif exec of a government funded bank might do for example!) This wouldn't be a problem.

I can appreciate why they put the block on, but would have thought the jobsworth investigating it might have used common sense re:wedding cert having been shown

Lokolo

welshmoneylover wrote: »

Perhaps other people don't want their bank statements being shown to complete strangers.

Congrats on the wedding x

Random people yes, but close friends and family? For the sake of them getting there money I am pretty sure people would let them have a page or 2 lol.

Yeh I can see why they blocked it though, a cheque for £4k and more cheques then adding up to another £4k does scream fraud. Um.

Could you not get a few letters then post them at the same time (in the same envelope of course) with a covering letter explaining? And whilst you do that photocopy marraige certificate and put that in there as well.

And if that doesn't work, write a written complaint that they aren't giving enough options.

simax

I wouldn't care who it was and what it was for, I would NOT give anyone a copy of my bank statement.

johnmoney05

I WOULDN'T EITHER.....stupid....but in fact, all my accounts are paperless....I certainly will not pay the bank to get a statement or even it is free...just wasted time.

jennifernil

It does sound a bit unreasonable to me.....all for £8k. If some of the money was from Halifax account holders, even more unreasonable.

Halifax never batted an eyelid when we paid my husband's pension lump sum into our account, and promptly transferred it out again, and that was way more than £8k.

I would have expected them possibly to enquire where the money was from when the OP paid in the cheques, then to congratulate her on her marriage. If it was me, I would be very annoyed!