Online bank won't return my £!! What are my rights?

Ayr_Rage

analogueauntie said:

And full time students who need proof of age, I think. Given that it it requires an up-to-date eligibility letter from a government department, is issued by the local authority AND is recognised nationally for access to various public services (yes, including the boos).. I am missing the difference here. 

What you are missing is that is not an official government document as defined by Wise and any other bank.

Until Scotland becomes an independent nation and the then government introduce an proper national ID card (no chance if the current level of resistance UK-wide remains) the Saltire Card just remains an entitlement card, which for me is a bus pass and a Scotrail discount card.

Others may get more.

You'll need to provide the requested ID to Wise to get things moving.

analogueauntie

There's a Scots Law argument to be made but I'm not qualified to do so.

"It's arbitrary and you have no rights". Got it. 

dealyboy

Hi OP ... just to give you a little bit of moral support, but only a little bit ...

I don't know Wise and there does seem to be a special case here with regards your home help having a prepayment card which I've never needed, however I changed my telephone number a couple of months ago and had no difficulties whatsoever.

I changed my telephone number with 45 organisations either online or by telephone, 17 of these were banks, building societies or financial institutions.

There are situations however when a bank or building society will block, suspend or even close accounts, we have seen many examples on this board. Unfortunately it's not always obvious as to why this happens but they are under pressure to be cautious and investigate unusual patterns or certain behaviour. The advice is always to help the organisation as far as possible and so expedite the matter as speedily as possible. ID checks are par for the course these days. I would say be persistent and let them know how problematic the situation is for you but at the same time bite your tongue, I'm afraid it will take as long it takes.

I know it doesn't help but we always recommend having two or three bank accounts and credit cards with different organisations. Good luck.

Ayr_Rage

Pretty standard Ts and Cs copied from the Wise website.

12.2 Wise is not a bank, and your Wise Account is not a bank account. The funds held with Wise, including balances in your Wise Account, are not insured by any deposit protection scheme, including the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS). Wise holds your funds in permissible investments in accordance with applicable laws. Wise owns the interest or other earnings on these investments, if any.

19.2 Cards are for your sole personal use. You undertake not to authorise others to use your identity or user status, and you may not assign or otherwise transfer your Card to any other person or entity.

21.1 Keep your Card safe. Never let another person or third party use your Card and keep it safe. Memorise your PIN and never disclose this and other security information to anyone. Sharing these details can lead to unauthorised access to your Wise Account and you will be solely responsible for transaction(s) made in this situation. Wise will not be liable for any loss arising due to any such unauthorised transaction(s).

32.6 Governing law. This Agreement is governed by English law. Any dispute between you and us in connection with the Services and/or this Agreement shall be brought in the courts of England and Wales.

IanManc

analogueauntie said:

There's a Scots Law argument to be made but I'm not qualified to do so.

"It's arbitrary and you have no rights". Got it. 

No there isn't. 

sheramber

Eyeful said:

1. What about those persons who do not have a passport to show them?
2. Surely these institution must have alternative means of proving your id by now
3. Where did the OP say they changed their phone number immediately the account was opened?

Read the first post

penners324

It's not possible to open a Wise account by telephone and never has been.

Are you sure you weren't speaking to s scammed? Sounds like a scammed opened this account (and now you're worried about fraud!).

friolento

It’s already been mentioned that you have been in breach of the T&Cs by giving your card , and PIN I presume?, to a 3rd party. Unless you already did, you should probably not mention this to WISE, in order to avoid giving them further reasons to be difficult. 

If you want a 3rd party to legally make purchases with a card registered to an account of yours, you could consider a credit card, or if you prefer to use a debit card with a hard spending limit, the Starling Bank Connected Card https://www.starlingbank.com/features/connected-shopping-card/

Ergates

analogueauntie said:

When it works, online banking is great. I was able to set up a prepayment card with Transferwise (now just WISE) so my HomeHelp could buy things for me without needing access to my personal bank account. Unfortunately I then had to change my phone number and was offline for a while.

NOW. I am locked out of my account and they are refusing to return the balance. I rang and simply asked them to CLOSE THE ACCOUNT and issue a cheque to the name and address they hold on file but they refused. Surely this isn't unreasonable? There has to be some sort of backup mechanism if you are locked out online.

All they are interested in is to reset my online details. Unfortunately WISE want me to send a photograph of myself holding my passport which just screams "identity fraud, don't do it" to me so I've tried a national ID card instead. They don't seem to be accepting this and the person on the phone couldn't make himself understood. Am I being unnecessarily paranoid? Don't I have a right to close my account and get the money back? =8-(

If someone was able to phone up a bank/other FI and close somebodies account without proving who they were first - do you think this would be a good thing?   Would you be happy if someone did it to you?

harz99

The OP makes little sense, and doesn't ring true in many ways. 

To have an online WISE account, you firstly apply, then you have to satisfy the relevant team that your identity checks out with the person shown on your passport, that must have been done or the account wouldn't have been opened.

There is no UK phone number for WISE, all contact is via your online account so you need to be logged in, which the OP seems not to have been able to do. There is however a US phone number for use by those across the pond.

Leaving aside the breach by the OP of the account terms and conditions, we surely aren't talking about a huge sum of money if the account was just funded for a home help to get bits n pieces for the OP. If the OP isn't willing to do as WISE require, maybe it is best to just write the amount off and get on with life.