Closed bank accounts and data retention - what are the facts?

savagej

It is really the data protection officer you need to speak with and probably in writing.

Branch staff these days are very much sales oriented / taught and are unlikely to know these rules as day to day it wont be an issue. However, they should have refered you to the DPA officer, there is usually a leaflet about it they have to give out.

The law surrounding data and banking is pretty complex with some lawyers spending years to learn it.

Glad you feel more settled about it :-)

jfh7gwa

stclair wrote: »

Contact them and ask the question?

Thank you, but another (later) call to the bank number got me through to the DP team I'd given up on, the lady I spoke to said she'd chase someone and give me a yes/no to my question at some point.

I'll contact the ICO folks if she doesn't get back to me. Rather than just being a point of principal/practical issues, I'm genuinely interested to know the answer (whatever it is)

MoneySaverLog

They must hold it for a minimum of 6 years from when you finish any banking relationship with them. Though they may keep it longer, but this is the minimum I believe by law

LittleVoice

I don't know why the OP didn't ask the question they really wanted answering instead of one which wasn't what they really, really wanted to know and which has proved not to be one that was easy to answer.

If they had asked, "Please can you tell me how to opt out of any future marketing?" they would presumably have got the answer they needed rather more quickly than an answer to a question which still doesn't of itself get the result they wanted (no marketing material).

stclair

jfh7gwa wrote: »

Thank you, but another (later) call to the bank number got me through to the DP team I'd given up on, the lady I spoke to said she'd chase someone and give me a yes/no to my question at some point.

I'll contact the ICO folks if she doesn't get back to me. Rather than just being a point of principal/practical issues, I'm genuinely interested to know the answer (whatever it is)

Which bank are you talking about anyway?

Old_Wrinkly

stclair wrote: »

Which bank are you talking about anyway?

Natwest - see post #14

I see by your signature that you work there.
Not in the OP's (former) branch, surely?

jfh7gwa

LittleVoice wrote: »

I don't know why the OP didn't ask the question they really wanted answering instead of one which wasn't what they really, really wanted to know and which has proved not to be one that was easy to answer.

If they had asked, "Please can you tell me how to opt out of any future marketing?" they would presumably have got the answer they needed rather more quickly than an answer to a question which still doesn't of itself get the result they wanted (no marketing material).

Respectfully, LittleVoice, that's not the outcome I wanted. It forms a component of my query, but it isn't the entirety of it. If I only wanted to ensure I don't get future marketing, I'd have asked to opt out of future marketing.

But it isn't; so I didn't.

To say I'm a bit disappointed with the attitude I saw at every level is an understatement, and simply reinforced my opinion that if I ever move to an area with a decent branch network in the area for NatWest again, I won't be using them again.

(Yes - to confirm - it was NatWest.)

jfh7gwa

Old_Wrinkly wrote: »

I see by your signature that you work there.
Not in the OP's (former) branch, surely?

So she does! I hadn't spotted that

stclair, the lady dealing with my query is called Margaret, she has said she'll get back to me with some info in a few days.

jonesMUFCforever

Can I ask what you hope to achieve by your request?
You say you not have OCD tendencies but you are trying to make a massive mountain out of a small molehill.

To do what you want to do with everybody in everyday life would take you 24 hours per day - are you some kind of spy trying not to be found out or just like me an ordinary person who has a life and gets on with it not giving a toss what XYZ holds on me as long as it does not harm me?

jfh7gwa

jonesMUFCforever wrote: »

Can I ask what you hope to achieve by your request?

To get them to remove data about me that they aren't legally obliged to keep, if there is any, and to not market to me or sell it on. None of which they can or cannot confirm that they do or don't do, remember.

This is a simple yes/no query - it's not exactly a grand crusade

jonesMUFCforever wrote: »

You say you not have OCD tendencies but you are trying to make a massive mountain out of a small molehill.

Clearly, I disagree with you. I queried this after the account was closed, had no idea no one would be able to answer the query, and am concerned that I've seen a) told that no one has any idea, and b) worse, been met with the attitude that my query was essentially a trivial one. Similar to some of the posts on here.

I've clearly over estimated how much general awareness there is about good data handling, both in the general population and in institutions I choose to bank with.

I maintain that data handling is not trivial, and that not really caring who has what data (if any! they haven't even said what they do or don't retain - it could be nothing above legal requirements for all I know) is not a good attitude.

jonesMUFCforever wrote: »

To do what you want to do with everybody in everyday life would take you 24 hours per day - are you some kind of spy trying not to be found out or just like me an ordinary person who has a life and gets on with it not giving a toss what XYZ holds on me as long as it does not harm me?

What is it that you think I do? Good data handling isn't a tough job. It's basic common sense. Shred paperwork when they could be used by fraudsters, don't hand out information unless there's a good reason, tidy up and ask for information removal when a relationship with an organisation is no longer needed. And so on. Not a lot of work, easy to do, job done.

Weren't you ever told this? Don't you think it's good practice? Why would you NOT do it? I'm genuinely stumped - there isn't any reason NOT to approach data handling in the exact same way as I do. Other than laziness, I guess..?

Good god, if some of the attitudes on here are a representation of how laymen handle their data, it's no wonder identity fraud and the like is so prevalent. Why would you want to make marketeers/frausters lives easier - because that's all you're doing if you honestly don't care about your personal data getting passed around. And if you honestly don't care, that's completely cool - but I won't pretend i understand your position, i'm afraid.