Refused a bank account due to no proof of address

callum9999

Bradfield wrote: »

Your altruism may be commendable but be alert to possible complications. A friend of mine put his own brother up for a few weeks, who used the address for his own correspondence. A few weeks after he left friend received demand from council for payment of full council tax, as they had reason to believe that the address was no longer eligible for single person's rebate.

No-one's putting anyone up here... Being registered on a utility account doesn't mean you necessarily live there - my utilities are in my landlords name, the council have never decided he lives here.

eskbanker wrote: »

I didn't say anything about a 'huge burden' and obviously none of us knows OP or their friend to be able to judge whether it would be 'abandoning them', I was just questioning whether OP should be put in the position of seemingly having to feel responsible for the actions (or lack thereof) of a friend who is, after all, in paid employment and living elsewhere. I will just have to live with not being friends with you (but am happy to debate things on here with anyone!)

The OP didn't say they do "feel responsible" for the friend, they said they want to help them... Which any decent friend would do.

If you don't view it as a huge burden then why would you think they should be left to fend for there self? I actually find it quite sickening that you'd treat friends in that manner - and are shocked you have any if you'd genuinely treat them this way (assuming they know this about you anyway).

callum9999

Steve_xx wrote: »

I take your point. My Aunt lives alone and gets the single person discount. However, her granddaughter is registered as living there for correspondence purposes, but doesn't actually live there. I guess that could cause a problem.

It could theoretically, but I was registered as living at my parents house (and in fact was still on the electoral roll there) for around 5 years after moving away for university (permanently - not just during term time) and the council never even questioned whether my mum should be claiming the single discount. Either way she wouldn't have had to pay due to me being a student, but her local council wouldn't know I was a student.

I'm not sure who the burden of proof lies with, but I don't really think a council could feasibly withdraw the discount just because someone else is registered at the address on Experian. That argument certainly wouldn't hold up in court.

System

Local council deadbeats tend to presume guilty until proven innocent.

Steve_xx wrote: »

I take your point. My Aunt lives alone and gets the single person discount. However, her granddaughter is registered as living there for correspondence purposes, but doesn't actually live there. I guess that could cause a problem.

You'd think but some councils have basically being doing just that.
In the real world, If your that incompetent then you'd get the boot not with councils.

callum9999 wrote: »

I'm not sure who the burden of proof lies with, but I don't really think a council could feasibly withdraw the discount just because someone else is registered at the address on Experian. That argument certainly wouldn't hold up in court.

mgdavid

callum9999 wrote: »

It could theoretically, but I was registered as living at my parents house ............

so already multi-occupancy

callum9999

mgdavid wrote: »

so already multi-occupancy

As I just said, it was single occupancy...

System

Occupancy or not may be vital in establishing entitlement to council tax discount.
But there is surely no comparable rule saying you have to "occupy" a house in order to pay utility bills? Electricity companies don't send out snoopers to check whether it is really your toothbrush clocking up the bill.

callum9999

Heng_Leng wrote: »

You'd think but some councils have basically being doing just that.
In the real world, If your that incompetent then you'd get the boot not with councils.

I'd suspect the councils using that were using it as a basis for challenging the single occupancy claim, or do you have specific examples where they've deemed Experian to be evidence enough and refused to investigate further?

Not that I'd call it incompetence - more like overzealousness. Budgets are at breaking point, councils will be doing all they can to crackdown on benefit fraud.

eskbanker

callum9999 wrote: »

abandoning them

callum9999 wrote: »

sickening

callum9999 wrote: »

shocked

This all seems to be getting unnecessarily emotive for no apparent reason! My opinion is that OP's friend ought to have thought through what he was doing and may actually benefit from having to stand on his own two feet rather than having others do his legwork for him (he could presumably post on here himself for example), but it's just a point of view (without all of the facts), I won't be mortally offended if OP sees things differently if/when they return!

callum9999

eskbanker wrote: »

This all seems to be getting unnecessarily emotive for no apparent reason! My opinion is that OP's friend ought to have thought through what he was doing and may actually benefit from having to stand on his own two feet rather than having others do his legwork for him (he could presumably post on here himself for example), but it's just a point of view (without all of the facts), I won't be mortally offended if OP sees things differently if/when they return!

They aren't "having others do the legwork for them". They asked the OP for a favour and then the OP decided to come on here and do some research to see if they could help in another way.

It's what friends do - you wouldn't understand.