Am I being lied to?

GabriellaG I think they thought they had sanctioned my account by sending out the Christmas cards as it was a small transaction. What I found frustrating was that I was unable to speak to a manager or anyone in the fraud department and they seemed incapable of stopping the account when I first called them. They are clearly very inefficient as it took 5 phone calls, 3 emails and finally a letter before anything was done and in the meantime they lost £500 worth of goods.
If my M&S credit card or HSBC credit card even have an inkling of fraud I get a text message and they block my card.
It is certainly not a company I would have any dealings with.

Dragonfly46
Well, well, well. I am waiting for a delivery today from that same company.
It took them 6 days to verify my details before they would sanction an account and they apparently bill you after the goods are received. I tried to pay instantly but they usually supply wholesale and that is why they postpone bill. Things might have changed since your experience. I can see that they made a soft search on my credit file.

Studio.co.uk
Now that would make a very interesting Thread.

I had a similar situation but with my son. He had been living away from home for some time and had decided to move to the USA to marry his partner who he had met on line. I started getting phone calls and letters from debt collection agencies looking for him - he was already in the USA by this time. I discovered he had given my details as guarantor for several small loans he had taken out before leaving the UK and my landline number was included in these as he had said he was living with me. I told each agency in turn that he had not lived at my address for many years (16 to be exact) and that, if they did an electoral roll check , they could see that he was not listed with me at any time over those years. I also gave them his address in the USA but they told me they were unable to pursue any action there. In the end I had to create a disassociation on my credit file so his bad record would not impact my credit score. I did tackle him about it and he denied he owed any money, saying he had cleared everything before he left. I also asked him why he had given my address as his residence and he did admit he had a bad credit reference on file at his own address so he didn't want to give that as they would have refused him. My now DIL has taken control of his finances and has sorted him out - bless her - but it did annoy me that he had been able to give my details without anyone checking with me.

I accidentally opened a letter which was addressed to this house, but it was for a strange name never heard of. It was threatening bailiffs for a large debt, I phoned and said it was the wrong address and was told it would be dealt with. Sent the letter back few weeks later received another, phoned again they did not believe I was the OP. I used the power of facebook and in five minutes found the person (lived in same road, so phoned back and told them to do their job as it hadn't taing me long to trace the person. Hopefull end of matter have not heard since.

go to the bank and ask them why iy was so easy to use your mothers address. explain the situation to the manager. this is not right.

Valerie and others
I did say it might have changed it was a number of years ago when I was advised my address had been affected by a lodger so hopefully it’s all different now

Dew You will soon find out when post begins to arrive.

I discovered last year just before Christmas that someone had set up an account with Studio.co.uk when I received a cheap pack of Christmas cards. I immediately rang them and told them I had not ordered them. They assured me that they would escalate this with their fraud department. I then received another invoice from them saying I owed them £40. I rang again and again was told there was a hold on my account. The next letter I received was to say I owed £500 - the maximum amount that was available. I rang again and sent a very snotty email. It took 5 months for them to admit they had made a mistake and my credit rating would not be affected. I could not believe they let someone get away with this and where were the goods they were buying being sent to I wondered. It is so easy these days for people to use your identity it would seem and your address.

I'm glad to hear that her address won't be affected as I can't be sure at this time that it was only this one account that was opened.

Madmum38 I am sorry to hear of your problems with the bank. This summer I was executor of my dad's will and had no problem with the banks. When I registered the death I bought extra copies of the death certificate as they offered me that opportunity. All the establishments I sent it to returned it to me after taking copies.

I know from experience that the address is not taken into account any more but having said that it is very unpleasant to receive phone calls and letters from the credit companies as they sound quite threatening and it took a year to convince them that he no longer lived with my daughter as there were so many of them. I do not believe they ever caught up with my DD's boyfriend.

valeriej43 is correct in saying that the address isn't taken into account any more.
Its the credit history of the applicant that matters. www.experian.co.uk/consumer/guides/what-affects-score.html

my son opened his bank account without proof online he had to go into the bank to sign and show photographic id thst was all .

I wouldn't trust that girl as far as I could throw her. Your mother needs to go to the bank (go with her yourself) to settle this disturbing matter as soon as possible.

Any mail with my address gets opened. How on earth are you going to be aware of what is going on with regards use of your address if you don't do this.
A bit of light reading for you
www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2000/26/part/V/crossheading/offences-of-interfering-with-the-mail
I don't think even the judges could decipher that.
I have never heard of anyone being prosecuted for opening mail inside your address that has been posted to your address.

I find it frightening how many people on here contribute their tuppence worth of advice without real knowledge on the subject. Certainly say what you believe but make it clear it is simply an opinion.
OP please go with the advice given by those who work/worked in the banking industry. Do NOT allow this person to use your mother's address. Contact the bank immediately.

It may not be so easy to have the bank do anything. We had a joint account then when I lost my DH I contacted the bank to tell them and ask for the account to be just me know. I was told to send the death certificate off to them,had to send it to a couple but the one that is online returned it saying it was only the copy and they had to have original, I contacted the the registry and was told they keep the original and what I had been sending is what should have been accepted,he will have been gone a year on Boxing Day but his name is still on my bank.
I also found a lot of places that he had accounts with wouldn’t even talk to me because he hadn’t given me permission.
Best of luck,does sound dodgy

Buffybee There can be repercussions from someone using your address. I had a problem with a neighbour who was on income support and used my address to register cars that he was selling on the side. He would then drive them with complete disregard for road traffic law which resulted in summonses, notices and eventually bailiff's notices coming to my address.
I opened them so that I could inform the various bodies that they were nothing to do with me and most were understanding. I also informed the police and handed a pile of the post to them. They weren't concerned that I had opened this post (there was no other way to find the registration numbers concerned and to contact DVLC about it) and said that he was known to them but that they would have to catch him driving the car to do anything about it.
The only organisation that made a comment about me opening his post was TFL (Transport for London) which was the only one that was snotty and unhelpful. They promised to call off the bailiff and then sent more warning notices.
There is no way of knowing what other purposes this girl has used that address for. The fact that she would do that shows that she is not honest. A bad credit record can attach to an address. Bailiffs can turn up to your address which is unpleasant and they are hard to get rid of. It is also an infringement and bad manners.
According to Money Saving Expert 'It is perfectly legal to open any and all mail delivered to your house, no matter to whom it is addressed.'
That is not the same as stealing someone's post. People need to know why there address is being used an it can cause all kinds of problems.

valeriej43
You don't have to have a 'perfect' credit rating in order to be granted a credit card.
A 'fair' rating can often be accepted by the majority of well known lenders at the normal rates of interest. It's the ability to make regular payments and, if you fall behind, to address the default.

Thank you Nannanbut I am far from naive!
It was my understanding that it was the person responsible for the debt who would get a bad credit rating.
No need to be rude!

I thought the address didnt count anymore, it used to, but im sure it changed so only the actual person who is in debt was affected
I have had debt letters come to my address for a son, who uses my address as a postal address,
Although the debt wasnt taken out here,and my credit rating is perfect,as i recently applied for a credit card and was accepted,

Your credit rating will not be affected if you disassociate yourself from the debt by any one of a number of means.

My daughter's credit rating was not affected by her boyfriend's activity.

I have emailed the bank and advised them that she doesn't live there. Thanks everyone for your advice.

Next plc (Directory) do not complete due diligence on accounts opened online. Anyone, knowing your name and DOB, can open an account, order goods, lodge a credit card that is not ascribed to your address and have goods delivered to a completely different country.
Their Ts & Cs plainly state that they may do this or that in order to verify your card or other details. The fact is that they do not.
The first thing you know about it is when the fraudster defaults and you start getting letters from debt collection agencies. Beware. All they need is a name and DOB.

Oh goodness youre naive Buffybee And yes the credit rating can be affected by address.