How is it possible to take a loan in someone's else's name?

Ihateweed

Hello,


As I am planning to leave an abusive relationship, I must now take care of all aspects of my life, including loans, budgeting and protecting my identity. On various UK forums I found many people complaining about nasty ex-partner or family member having taken out loans in their names. My partner has loads of troubles with money, so I think he might try to take loans in my name out of desperation, as his credit score is too bad to borrow anything. So here are my questions:
1. How is it possible at all to take loans in any other name than yours? I guess you need to provide your identity documents to any lender, and of course sane people don't hand their passports over to somebody who could then pretend they are the passport holders! If you go to a bank with a document which is not yours, the staff will send you away. And paying to criminals to create a fake document with the person's details and your facial photo costs a lot more than the sum of any loan? Plus don't you need to sign any loan agreement? Yet still so many people end up being financially ruined, and I don't get how come....
2. If you somehow succeed with such a fraud, how about the account the money is paid in by lenders? The account holder will still be you, not a person in whose name you are taking a loan, so how would the money land in your account and not theirs?
3. Why do the people find it hard to convince the lenders that they didn't actually borrow anything? Lenders always have details of the bank account they paid into, so it should be easy like hell to get in touch with that bank and find out that you are not an account holder... but still there is often a problem even if there is no joint account with a fraudster...
4.How to protect myself from all this after I move out?

[Deleted User]

1. You do it be committing ID fraud. Most applications are done on line, not by walking into a high street branch with a handful of documents.
2. Most fraudsters will have the funds paid into their own account.
3. They generally don't, unless they were complicit, or are trying to protect the guilty party.
4. If you're worried, you could register with CIFAS for additional checks to be made by lenders.

Ihateweed

Thanks for your reply!
But even if you apply for anything online, don't you need to send a copy of your ID to the lender? And in general, what info must you supply to them? I have never taken any loans, so I don't know.

[Deleted User]

Not necessarily. Some lenders may ask you for ID, and those requirements will vary - passport, utility bill, bank statement and so on.

Others won't require confirmation if the details you've provided match up with what they or the CRAs know.

colsten

I too would recommend you consider CIFAS Protective Registration

In addition, there is good information on the CAB website front.https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/family/gender-violence/domestic-violence-and-abuse/

Wishing you all the best with your new life

Ihateweed

Thank you!

As I know, my partner has just one account, I know its sort code and number. Let's say he gets a loan in my name and money gets paid into this account.Would the lender agree to stop chasing me if I show them that it is his account only, not a joint one, and get a document from his bank stating that I am not their client and have never been one?

Plus, when my partner tried to get a second account recently, all banks refused to open even a basic one; in one case it was opened, a card sent out and later everything got closed. Could it happen due to his extremely poor credit score (5 loans and some phone contracts unpaid), or due to the fact that he is now unemployed, or does this mean that he was involved in some fraud in the past? If he was, he won't tell me about it of course, so there is no point to ask.

[Deleted User]

Ihateweed wrote: »

Let's say he gets a loan in my name and money gets paid into this account.Would the lender agree to stop chasing me if I show them that it is his account only, not a joint one, and get a document from his bank stating that I am not their client and have never been one?

No. You would dispute the debt and they would need to prove you took it. This would involve looking at the application process, how it was signed, the allocation of funds to the receiving account, etc.

Ihateweed wrote: »

Could it happen due to his extremely poor credit score (5 loans and some phone contracts unpaid), or due to the fact that he is now unemployed, or does this mean that he was involved in some fraud in the past?

It's to do with how the lender assesses his credit worthiness, which is a combination of income, credit history, affordability and so on.

Ihateweed

But... if I prove I am not an account holder, then isn't it clear that I didn't take that loan?


And what about getting a new bank account? Could banks refuse to open it just because of negative credit records? He didn't try to borrow anything, he just wanted to have one more account with some other bank... When he asked them why they refused his application, the staff simply told something like 'you did not pass the necessary checks.'

[Deleted User]

Ihateweed wrote: »

But... if I prove I am not an account holder, then isn't it clear that I didn't take that loan?

No. That would mean anyone who asked someone to use their account to have the funds paid in would never need to repay the loan.

Fraud is when someone takes out a loan under false pretences, not asking someone to receive the money for them.

Ihateweed wrote: »

And what about getting a new bank account? Could banks refuse to open it just because of negative credit records?

Yes. It will be based on the assessment of their credit worthiness.

Ihateweed

Then...how to prove that I didn't ask him to receive funds for me, but that this person simply typed in my details and used his account?

Would it help me to avoid all this if I remove myself from my current address on electoral roll, take my name off all bills and throw away any bills that have already been sent to us? Or if I register for an electoral roll as living in my friend's house (they would agree with it). My partner doesn't know friend's address, and maybe if he tries to type in my name and addresses won't match, the application will be refused?

[Deleted User]

Just register a CIFAS protective marker.

Don't commit fraud by creating a fake ER entry.