Bank Account Setup Proof of Address

gotosteveg

Hello All,

I've just moved to the UK and I'm having BIG troubles with the UK bank's proof of address requirements.

I'm currently renting a room in someone's apartment. It's not an official tenant agreement and I do not have an utility bills in my name as my landlord pays all of them.

There are agencies who seem to specialize in helping non-nationals with these sorts of things. However, they want an upfront fee and do not guarentee anything.

Does anyone have some legal suggestions which would help me setup a Bank Account in the UK. A basic 'no credit' account would be fine, just somewhere to stick my salary.

I understand the need for the banks to be tough on new customers, but there needs to some kind of alternatives for new comers. If I did attempt to get a utility bill in my name, I'm sure they would want a bank account or something similar to verify my address.

What a conudrum??

Thanks,
Steve

Kazza242

gotosteveg wrote:

If I did attempt to get a utility bill in my name, I'm sure they would want a bank account or something similar to verify my address.

What a conudrum??

Thanks,
Steve

Not necessarily. It is often quite easy to get one of the utility companies to register it under your name. Just make sure the person whose name it is currently registered to makes the call. It does sometimes take a month for this to go through, but by and large it isn't very difficult to do.

Do be aware though, that having the bill in your name will mean you will be responsible for paying any outstanding balance left on it, should the person you live with default on the payments, for whatever reason.

rushnowt

Hi Steve

Sorry i cant be of any help with the legal requirement stuff.

However the Yorkshire Building Society offer basic bank accounts for income etc you get a cash card and can have DD's taken to but no credit. If nothing else it will at least give you somewhere for wages to go into. I'm sure there will be other banks that offer this "basic" service but cant say which.

HTH

Justin_Credit

On other threads, where people have had similar problems, they have been advised to contact the Inland Revenue and ask for a tax coding verification or the like to be sent to them. This is quick and easy and should get things sorted.

HTH

JC

gotosteveg

thanks for your swift responses gyus..

Justin_Credit:
I haven't yet received my first salary cheque, will I be registered with the inland revenue?

Thanks again.

Justin_Credit

gotosteveg

Your employer will probably have registered you by now.

Try phoning the local IR office, or go in if there is one close to you and explain to them that you need to open a bank account and you would like a letter from them, say a 'notice of coding' so that you can produce it to the bank for proof of address.

Regards

JC

Savvy_Sue

It's possible - not sure if this is what's being suggested - to have more than one unrelated name on a utility bill. but as pointed out that would make you liable for the bill.

It is worth asking the bank for a complete list of what they will accept as proof of identity. You may find a letter from your employer confirming the address that they have you living at would be acceptable as one piece of evidence, for example. An official letter from any government department may also be OK.

I find places tend to have a fixed list in their mind of what most people will have, and they get fazed if you don't. As an example, I wanted some foreign currency in a travel agency, and was told if I wanted to pay by cheque or credit card that I'd have to show my passport. Since I didn't have my passport on me, I dashed off to the bank to get cash, came back and waited half an hour while staff dealt with other queries, and staring me in the face throughout that time was a notice saying I'd have to show a passport or driving licence if I wanted to pay for currency by cheque or credit card. And of course, my driving licence was in my handbag! I was not best pleased and pointed out what I'd had to do, to be met with a shrug.

grumbler

Justin_Credit wrote:

On other threads, where people have had similar problems...

The most recent thread was 'trying to open an account!'

You can also try Barclays: Bank accounts for the homeless (do not have any further information, just found in the internet)

Paul_Varjak

Do you have a national insurance number? I presume that you do, so I would get a letter from the DSS.

Do you pay UK Income Tax? If so, I would ask the Inland Revenue for some offical notification (eg Notice of Coding).

Will the landlord write a letter confirming you live there, or does he not know you are living there?

To satisfy the money-laundering requirements I don't think it matters whether you are opening a Basic Bank account or a full cheque account, as the money laundering regulations apply to either. However, for the Bank's requirement it may be easier to open a basic bank account.

What about a TV licence, do you have one of those? What about a birth certificate? What about a passport? What about a marriage certificate?

Justin_Credit

Paul_Varjak wrote:

What about a birth certificate? What about a passport? What about a marriage certificate?

I understand that you need two types of ID when opening an account, proof if ID and proof of address. I assume that the OP is using a passport as proof if ID. The problem he has is proving his address, unfortunately birth certificates, marriage certificates and, in many cases such as this, passports do not prove this.

JC

Iona_Penny

Have helped a foreign student open a basic bank account here. It was with HSBC; the guy was lodging with us and his father wanted to be able to pay money in and for him to withdraw it. Took him to the branch where I bank and then they wanted details of account in his own country to write and get statements. I suppose the difference was that I was able to say he was lodging with me and had a letter of introduction from the language school he was attending. Took a while but got a basic account.
Don't know if any of this is help to you ..letter from employer, support from name on utility bills? Good Luck.