Worried - post in strangers name? Are they pulling a fast one?

Wizwoo

Hi All,

Hope someone can give me some advice about what to do? Is it something to worry about and has it happened to any of you?

We have lived in our current home for 7 years and the previous owners were here for decades. A couple of weeks ago we got mail addressed to a Mr J Brown with our correct full address - since it seemed to be junk I returned to sender.

However - today I got another piece of mail for Mr J Brown from the water company?

Now in all the time we've been here we have only ever received mail for us or the (very) odd one for the previous owners? Should we be worried? Is something dodgy going on? Should we be worrying about or credit history? What should we do???

Minimods

I suggest you contact the company the letter(s) came from to try and shed some light on the matter. If it's fraud then the police need to be contacted and the company needs to be made aware so they can stop the account.

We were in a similar situation this week, my parents have lived here for 30 years and we got some post from MBNA for somebody we have never heard of (same address and we know its not somebody that lives in the road). After contacting MBNA they said it was a genuine admin error on their part and that it was not fraud. It does make you wonder how its possible to do this, and send information including account numbers and credit limits to the wrong people, but I am sure it happens more often than these companies like to admit.

Wizwoo

Thanks Minimods. I called the water company today who said that it may well be an admin error - I just think that 2 in a matter of weeks with the same name is just too much of a coincidence...or am I just being cynical?

Wizwoo

Should we wait to see if we get more? Or should I be talking to someone about it now?

joeblack066

Was it a bill from the water company?

crawley_girl

I noticed that when I got my credit file from equifax, I was linked to several addresses that I had never lived at. What was quite odd was that I was living at no 38 and each of these addresses were all no. 38 as well and each of the roads were in the close proximity of my road.

I contacted Equifax and each of these companies and was told that sometimes postcodes are entered into databases incorrectly and this can generate new mail etc. I raised my concern at them sending out application forms (especially the pre-printed and 'pre-approved' ones) and the risk of fraud and they assured me that all applications were properly vetted.

I too have had a few bits of mail for this address. I have been here 5 years and there have only been 2 people prior to me. These letters are addressed to none of us so not really sure what is going on. Perhaps it is the same scenario as I experienced. Not too sure...

:heartpuls CG :heartpuls

Wizwoo

Thanks joeblack066 and crawley_girl.

It wasn't a bill so hopefully that should be OK. I just think that if they are errors that it is odd that it hasn't happenend before now, and odd that it should then happen twice so quickly.

Our postman is ace so I might ask him if he knows of a Mr J Brown living in the same number house nearby.

postingalwaysposting

wizzwoo... 2 days ago i had a letter too from our water board in a different name, now i know when my dad was running up debt he used 3/4 names at this address, so i opened it (naughty i know) but it was only about the price increase :rolleyes: hopefully yours is just strange that you had a few in so many days but keep an eye on it

lynsayjane

asking your postman is a very good idea, it may have been a numer mix up, ie mr brown is no41 and you are no14 but the numbers got confused...

In my job we deal with folks addresses and the number of times a customer has written their postcode down very clearly but our address system has either not found the address or it's the wrong street is worrying. Personally I remove the postcode if this happens, but how many others would?

poppy_f1

i got mail and deliveries for someone else once, i even opened one of the letters and had their bank details (naughty i know)
from their bank details i traced their branch then looked up the phonebook
turned out to be someone with the same st and no as me but the postcode had been inputed incorrectly
we called the people to let them know, turns out it was a new build and their postcode didnt appaer on most of the systems and ours came up as a close match

Wizwoo

Thank you all for the replies - and putting me at my easy. I will keep an eye on things - jusy not panis about it yet.