Halifax account fraud

Chelski

Hi all

just wanting some advice...

I got paid on 16th December and on 17th (fri) when I was out shopping my card wouldnt work in any atm or chip and pin machine (very embarassing)

I went into the nearest branch to check what was wrong and they advised that there had been suspicious activity on my account and it was frozen - nice to tell me that.

there had been four payments of 400 go into the account and then four payments of 450 go out so I was 200 pounds down...they cancelled my debit card there and then and said they would send me a new one. they called the fraud team explained to them and fraud spoke to me and said they would get back to me by xmas eve.

I wasnt allowed to withdraw the rest of my money as the account was frozen and I was advised nothing would be allowed in or out of the account until it was sorted.

I called all the companies I have direct debits with and told them what had happened as naturally none of my direct debits had gone out or would go out on 20th (day they all go out)

I got extensions on all payments and left it for a few days until xmas eve when I still hadnt heard from fraud or had a new card I called fraud up only to be told they hadnt resolved the issue so couldnt unfreeze my account.

so then I left it the bank holidays and called back on 30th and was told they knew it was definitely fraud and had resent the 4 payments of 400 back to the accounts they came from - this now meaning that I'm down the 200 from before plus 1600. this has taken the 800 cash I had in my account plus the 500 overdraft facility and more.

I went into my branch on tuesday this week and refused to leave until they or the fraud team told me something useful or gave me access to my money. they advised me that they had discovered that my sort code and account number had been discovered and used so they had closed my account, wiped my overdraft and cancelled all of my direct debits.............

they said they could not do anything for me other than wait for the fraud team to send their report to the police. so here I am with missed payments, no money and no bank account.

I went straight to barclays to try and open a new account (I have my savings and mortgage with them) and was told they could not open me a new account as there is a 'delinquency' against mine or my partners name. I'm quite sure its not against him as he's not got bad credit but I'm sure it now has to be me.

I dont know what to do as work are now having to send me my wage next week as a cheque which I will have to cash into my savings account and then withdraw put into my partners account and have him pay the bills that are in my name

I cant obtain my credit report as I need a debit card to verify me but obviously I dont have one anymore!

can someone please advise my legal position on this...as its obviously fraud how do I go about reclaiming my money and putting my credit score back as now I have missed payments on several credit accounts plus with the sending of a cheque its likely this months payments will be several days late!!

as I was overdrawn with halifax by 1100 in the end (after everything had been withdrawn and all the charges and interest) halifax say they will not return to me the 800 that remained of my monthly wage (thank god I had paid the mortgage!) due to the overdraft, I cant get my credit report so I cant open a new account and nobody seems able to help

what do I do????

jambosans

There's more to this story, it's convoluted, and could do with clarification in parts. A few questions that could do with answering:-

• Did you make the 4 x £400? (If not, Halifax are entirely within their rights to remove these credits)
• What type of credits and debits were the 4 x £400-in and 4 x £450 (e.g. debit card, cash, BACS, Faster Payment, etc.)?
• Did Halifax reverse the 4 x £400 credits to originators in addition to the 4 x £450?

It's unusual for the account to have been closed and no replacement opened unless Halifax suspect your involvement in this suspicious activity (be it fraud or money laundering).

Chelski wrote: »

I went straight to barclays to try and open a new account (I have my savings and mortgage with them) and was told they could not open me a new account as there is a 'delinquency' against mine or my partners name. I'm quite sure its not against him as he's not got bad credit but I'm sure it now has to be me.

Perhaps this has something to do with it:-

Chelski wrote: »

switched from HBOS ensuing in that account goin into default overdraft ended up roughly £1500 in total and thats £500 of charges and interest -

Chelski wrote: »

what do I do????

If your hands are clean, I suggest following Halifax's formal complaints procedure (linked below). A well worded letter, sent recorded delivery, with a coherent and concise timeline of events is your best option IMO - it may take time to draft, but from experience it's worth the effort, plus makes escalation to the FOS a lot simpler. Also, remember to clearly set out what you expect as an outcome from the complaint, and don't hesitate to state things like "compensation for time and inconvenience in dealing with this matter". All of this will be considered if they agree with the grounds for your complaint, but be warned, it is unlikely that a complaint handler will overturn the decision of fraud - although they may provide you with a little more clarity into the decision and get fraud to reconsider their position. Link to complaints procedure:-
http://www.halifax.co.uk/contactus/howtocomplain.asp

YorkshireBoy

Chelski wrote: »

I cant obtain my credit report as I need a debit card to verify me but obviously I dont have one anymore!

You can order by post, sending a postal order...

http://www.experian.co.uk/downloads/consumer/cfa.pdf

I'm sure Equifax and CallCredit will have a similar option.

pqrdef

Looks like somebody has paid stolen cheques into your account and been able to get the money out. Paying in is easy enough, your sort code and account number are no secret, they appear on any cheque you write. Getting the money is harder, and the bank doesn't know how the 4 x £450 were done without your cooperation or at least negligence. For all they know, you've got that money, so obviously they aren't giving you any more.

This is serious. Since the stolen cheques are clear evidence of a crime, the banks have quite draconian powers to confiscate your money, blacken your name and generally make your life hell. Forget your credit rating and get used to living without a bank account.

brokeinyorkshire

If the money was fraudulently put into your account then surely they would have taken the money back out leaving your money intact.

Also. if your account was closed due to fraud that was no fault of your own you would have been offered a new account.

There is more to this than meets the eye!!

J

Chelski

hope you arent all suggesting that I'm involved.......

the 4 payments were paid in from 4 different bank accounts either via bacs or chaps they didnt say so halifax reversed these payments but after the other payments had been taken out so like 4 payments in 8 payments out

its not stolen cheques as I dont have a cheque book for this account

nobody from fraud has contacted me to ask me anything im the one thats been chasing them and I'm the one who is insisting it goes through the appropriate channels and I want the scumbag responsible put in jail (wishful thinking I know)

and the woman I spoke to at halifax didnt offer me a new account or anything of the sort - she shrugged when I asked what I needed to do...that annoyed me the most

pqrdef

Not stolen cheques then, but a variation on the same idea. The bad guy has online access to some bank accounts. Probably he's been phishing or keylogging. Now, he's in a position to make BACS transfers out of those accounts.

Obviously, he can't just transfer money to his own account. He needs to transfer money to somewhere where he can then get his hands on it without creating a trail. Why does he pick your account? How does he make those 4 x 450 withdrawals without giving anything away?


Meanwhile, if the bank pursues an investigation, the likeliest end result is that they end up standing the loss. As it is, they've made good their loss at your expense. Notice how they waited until your wages went in. Don't expect them to have an attack of conscience. They're bankers.