Identification for opening ISA

Renfro

I just tried to open an ISA with Coventry and was told that I couldn't apply because I don't have a passport or driving licence.

I asked what other forms of ID that they would take, but they were not interested and said that they would only accept a passport, driving licence, ID card or DWP pensions letter.

I explained that I am self-employed and have official HMRC documents and statements, VAT, National Insurance documents etc. but they were having none of it.

Is there some kind of new more stingent ID requirement for ISAs this year, or are Coventry just being jobsworths?

I've opened new ISAs every year since 2008 with no problem before, and so it's annoying that Coventry don't make provision for people who don't drive or leave the country. There is no legal requirement to own a passport or driving licence, so surely they should expect instances where people don't have them.

Stompa

FWIW this is what they specify on their website:

http://www.coventrybuildingsociety.co.uk/savings-and-investments/identification.aspx

xylophone

This does seem unreasonable - if you are applying for a driving licence you do not have to have a passport!
https://www.gov.uk/id-for-driving-licence

Have you thought of writing to your MP about this matter?

This seems to discriminate against those who neither travel abroad nor drive.

kalsha

I applied online yesterday (Coventry Poppy a/c) for my daughter. The forms arrived this morning. I have to send 2 ID items for her. From group A, everything has to be a certified copy (passport, birth certificate, licence etc). So I will have to find a professional person to sign them for me. Any ideas if they will charge?
From Group B, I have to send original items ie bank statement or NHS medical card. Will they return it?

xylophone

http://www.coventrybuildingsociety.co.uk/savings-and-investments/identification.aspx
Who can certify documents?Copies of original documents can only be certified by one of the following: solicitor, teacher, engineer, accountant, surveyor, police officer (serving or retired), bank or building society manager, minister of religion, Justice of the Peace, independent financial advisor, post office official (postmaster/sub-postmaster), doctor, fire service official, officer of the armed services (serving or retired), nurse, dentist, chemist, optician, civil servant.

A solicitor or IFA might well charge but I can't imagine that a teacher or civil servant would?

I'm sure that they would return the originals but "the Society cannot be held responsible if originals are lost in the post."

harib0uk

kalsha wrote: »

I applied online yesterday (Coventry Poppy a/c) for my daughter. The forms arrived this morning. I have to send 2 ID items for her. From group A, everything has to be a certified copy (passport, birth certificate, licence etc). So I will have to find a professional person to sign them for me. Any ideas if they will charge?
From Group B, I have to send original items ie bank statement or NHS medical card. Will they return it?

Send originals in via special delivery, they will then return to you via special delivery.

Noble_Savage

Renfro wrote: »

I just tried to open an ISA with Coventry and was told that I couldn't apply because I don't have a passport or driving licence.

I asked what other forms of ID that they would take, but they were not interested and said that they would only accept a passport, driving licence, ID card or DWP pensions letter.

I explained that I am self-employed and have official HMRC documents and statements, VAT, National Insurance documents etc. but they were having none of it.

Is there some kind of new more stingent ID requirement for ISAs this year, or are Coventry just being jobsworths?

I've opened new ISAs every year since 2008 with no problem before, and so it's annoying that Coventry don't make provision for people who don't drive or leave the country. There is no legal requirement to own a passport or driving licence, so surely they should expect instances where people don't have them.

Call them, explain your situation. They will have a supplementary list of acceptable ID exactly for situations like yours. Ask to speak to a manager if you get no joy from the first person you speak to.

evenasus

kalsha wrote: »

I applied online yesterday (Coventry Poppy a/c) for my daughter. The forms arrived this morning. I have to send 2 ID items for her. From group A, everything has to be a certified copy (passport, birth certificate, licence etc). So I will have to find a professional person to sign them for me. Any ideas if they will charge?
From Group B, I have to send original items ie bank statement or NHS medical card. Will they return it?

You can download the Identity Check form from the Post Office website. http://www.postoffice.co.uk/document-certification-service

They charge £7.15 for up to three documents. http://www.postoffice.co.uk/sites/default/files/P6582.pdf

Renfro

Noble_Savage wrote: »

Call them, explain your situation. They will have a supplementary list of acceptable ID exactly for situations like yours. Ask to speak to a manager if you get no joy from the first person you speak to.

As I already said in my first post, I did explain my situation to them, but they were having none of it.

The person I spoke to on the phone just kept giving me the company line and saying that it was their "policy". However, she then said that if I was prepared to wait a few minutes she would find her Manager and ask him what could be done in my situation. A few minutes later she came back and said that her Manager said they will only accept the ID that's listed on their web site and nothing else. No other forms of ID would be accepted under any circumstances.

So I asked her what I was supposed to do now, and she said she didn't know, but that Coventry were unable to help me any further.

penny_pincha

Renfro wrote: »

I just tried to open an ISA with Coventry and was told that I couldn't apply because I don't have a passport or driving licence.

I've opened new ISAs every year since 2008 with no problem before, and so it's annoying that Coventry don't make provision for people who don't drive or leave the country.

Take your money elsewhere if that is their attitude to your business.

Renfro

After my dealings with Coventry, I was hoping that this situation was not going to be the same for all other ISA providers (which, thankfully, it was not).

Fortunately I found another provider who accepted my application with no problem (although their interest rate is lower). However, because interest rates are all so crap at the moment (and because it's just the current year's ISA that I'm dealing with, not transfers of previous years), the interest that I'm losing out on only amounts to £20 over a year, so it's not that big a deal. At least I can get this year's allowance into a wrapper.

Mind you, I do still feel as if I have been financially punished for not driving or taking holidays abroad.

I would have thought that such a position would be considered quite environmentally friendly these days, and therefore something that is quite likely be encountered from time to time (although in my particular situation that wasn't my reason for not doing those things).

I ended up going with Aldermore (who I'd never heard of previously) and I was delighted with their straight-forward and efficient service. Not only did they accept official HMRC tax documents as ID, but they only requested ID if they could not first verify your identity for themselves by other means. I ended up not needing to supply any identification documents at all.

Even better was that Aldermore's online application was genuinely an online application (and not just an on-screen version of a paper application like Coventry's).

There was no need for me to print out pages of forms, post them in and then wait for the outcome. There was also no need to post cheques (unless you want to fund your ISA that way). Once your Aldermore online application is completed, that's all there is to it. You can then just fund your ISA electronically directly from your bank or savings account.

I completed the Aldermore online application, had my application approved, was emailed my account details, and then funded my ISA, all in less than 10 minutes.

So I'm all done now till next year.

I just hope that Coventry's attitude and ID requirements do not become the norm with other providers over time, otherwise people like me will become frozen out of ISAs altogether.