Opening Oxbury account - asking for my address to be certified by a trusted person?

yourlocalcheesemonger

First time I've ever opened an account and been asked for this. Is this normal?

"

Thank you for applying for an Oxbury savings account and uploading your driving licence. We have successfully been able to verify your identity. However, we also need to confirm your address, to do this we need some more information from you. 

 

How to confirm your address 

Please provide us with a certified copy of one of the following documents: 

 

• Bank / Building Society / credit card statement dated within last 3 months. 

• Utility bill dated within the last 3 months. 

• Annual council tax bill dated within the last year. 

• Annual mortgage statement dated within the last year. 

• HMRC self-assessment letter or tax demand dated within the current financial year (if not used as proof of identity). 

• UK state pension letter dated within the last year. 

 

Where applicable, photographs, document numbers, account numbers, issue dates and expiry dates must be clearly visible in addition to name, date of birth and address.    

 

How to certify your documents:   

Take the original and a photocopy to a person that can certify the document. They will need to then complete the following: 

• Write ‘Certified to be a true copy of the original seen by me’ on the photocopy document. 

• Sign and date it. 

• Print their name under the signature. 

• Add their occupation, address and telephone number.  

 

People that can certify your documents are: 

• Chartered Accountant 

• Councillor 

• Solicitor or Notary 

• Bank or Building Society Official 

• Post Office Official 

• Dentist 

• Doctor.
  

"

robatwork

It's a specialist bank, and I imagine they've had issues with non "agricultural" people applying. It's also likely that being so minuscule in this arena, they don't have the same systems in place to verify identities that the big boys do. 

What I find objectionable is their list of people they deem trustworthy enough to certify. Some of that list I would deem thoroughly the opposite. And why aren't "farmer", "agronomist" or "thatcher" part of the chosen few?

I have grown to hate some of our arcane and outdated ways.

Zanderman

I would have thought an uploaded driving licence image should be sufficient for the address. Indeed the bank imply so on their website. Though maybe OP hasn't got one, or has the wrong address on it.

But as robatwork says above, it's likely they don't have the systems in place that bigger banks do.

As for certified copies, that list of people is the standard list for certification - it's a list of 'professional' people i.e. people in positions of formal authority or chartered members of selected (formally recognised and qualifiable) professions.  The bank isn't going to be using farmers or thatchers as rob suggests, as they don't fall into those concepts. Whether you trust those in the list isn't the point, the bank will only accept those.  It's not necessarily outdated, it's a tried and tested system for document checking. You don't have to like it though. 

What isn't mentioned is that most (possibly all) in that list will charge a fee for certifying a document.  Which could wipe out some of the interest gained from the account. I would be saving elsewhere if asked to send a certified document on those grounds alone!

boingy

I guess there is something unusual about your address or maybe you haven't lived there for long. I, and many others, have opened Oxbury accounts without that certification process. However, if they've asked for it you either have to provide it or take your business elsewhere.

Unless you personally know one of the professionals in that list the cheapest and easiest way to certify is probably the Post Office - it costs £12.75 but is not available at all branches:
Document Certification Service | Post Office®

I recently used it for a legal document - a local solicitor wanted over £100 to certify a two page document!

PRAISETHESUN

A number of banks require one document for identity and a seperate one for address, and won't accept the same document for both, so this feels like a fairly standard thing to me where they can't verify things electronically.

Could you ask if you provide something else to verify your identity (eg. Passport) so they could use driver licence as proof of address instead? Otherwise I guess if you really want the account you just provide the documents they want.

pochisoldi

Unless I could get the document certified for free, I'd take my business elsewhere.
The only time I have paid someone to certify documents was when I had no choice as to whether dealt with the company or not, and the only other option was to present the original documents in person which would have required a 300 mile round trip...