Closed Accounts Query

[Mr_Matt]

Hi All

 

Can someone tell me how long a credit card company or bank is legally obliged to hold your records after the accounts have been closed?

 

I had an Abbey National account which I closed around 2001/2002. When I phoned them today to try and get the account number they said they had no record of it! The lady said they don't hold closed account details for more than 1 year.

 

I said I was sure that they were obliged to hold it for longer than that but she was adamant.

 

Any help appreciated!

 

Matt

[lookinforinfo]

They would have to keep it for tax purposes for 6 years if for no other reason.

If you are sure you have the right bank and account number, try again-you may

have to speak to someone higher up who knows how to access closed accounts.

[thecornflake]

They should definitley hold 6 years worth of all information including closed accounts - for tax reasons alone. If they haven't got the information you can get them in serious trouble with the Inland Revenue and maybe some other governing bodies.

 

The issue is probably that the person you spoke doesn't know how to access closed account information or doesn't know it is kept - a lot of companies ship off this stuff to other countries or sealed storage elsewhere. However, they still have to abide by the DPA limit of 40 days and that starts from the date you paid the DPA charge (Max £10 - If required - they don't have to charge it but most do). If you send them the template letter found in the library on this site with a £10 cheque (recorded delivery of course) then they have 40 days from say two days after the date of posting.

If you give them your address at the time you held the account, date of birth, full name then it should be up to them to trace the account.

[Mr_Matt]

Thanks guys. I thought it sounded a bit odd that they didn't have this info. I will pursue it further and post how I get on.

 

Thanks again.

[Mr_Matt]

One further query. I found from my Experian report that the account was opened in 1997 and settled in March 2001. Is the six year period from the opening of the account or the closing date? It may not be worth pursuing!

 

Thanks once again.

 

Matt

[bram stoker]

Count six years back from today and start there. I'm claiming for £45 of charges. It's all worth it in my view. Good luck.

[Mr_Matt]

Hi again

 

I have now spoken with six different departments at Abbey and none of them have any record of my account with them. I will send a DPA request to them and see what they come back with. What are the repercussions if they cannot supply the data requested?

 

Thanks in advance

 

Matt

[thecornflake]

If they can't provide (or indeed find!) the information I believe the correct course of action is to lodge a complaint with the Information Comissioner.

 

Someone else here should be able to give you a bit more help, but in the meantime if you Google for Data Protection Act then you should find out what the correct procedure is.

 

If they really can't find it then it's a serious issue and will not be taken lightly. Keeping records like this for 6 years is a basic legal requirement for any business, even self-employed and sole traders. I do the odd bit of web design in my spare time and I run it all legitimately (even though I can't spell it!) and I know how much grief I would get for not being able to provide records on demand. I suspect it would at the very least trigger a big fine and a full audit of the bank in question.

 

Keep us posted on what happens!

[Mr_Matt]

Finally a response from Abbey:

 

"Blah, blah....after making a search for this data based on the information you provided, I regret that we have been unable to locate any information regarding the actual account and as such we can find no transactional information. Blah, blah returning your £10 etc.

 

Historical information can only be retained if there is a legitimate reason for processing the personal data in accordance with the rights of the individual. It is possible that due to the time that has elapsed since the account has been redeemed or closed, the original files may have been destroyed in line with our retention policies."

 

Is there any financial point in pursuing this any further? Abbey obviously can't find my old account so there won't be any chance of me making a claim. What are the possible outcomes if I report them to the Information Commisioner?

 

Just wondering if this one is worth pursuing.

 

Thanks in advance.

 

Matt

[blueskies]

The only person who can decide whether it is worth pursuing is you. Do you think that you had many charges in the year between july 2000 and the closing of the account? If you don't think there will be many then don't bother but if the account was in difficulty at the time you might have some money to claim.

[Mr_Matt]

This topic was closed on 09 March 2019.

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