Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. A phone that grows with your child.

Meet the Other Phone.
A phone that grows with your child.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Fraud

52 replies

User141665468 · 27/05/2017 10:57

Not really a AIBU but I need some advice and this is a busy place.

Someone I know has racked up debt in my name. I authorised them to use a card for one transaction and it's escalated and now cards are at the limits and I only found out because I was refused credit. I don't want to prosecute this person, I've put a fraud claim in with a card but just wondering if anyone knows what happens next?

OP posts:
TestingTestingWonTooFree · 30/05/2017 09:07

Why don't you explain what you did, what you knew, when and who the other person is in relation to you?

I would go to the police if someone stole £150 from me. £15k is an awful lot.

expatinscotland · 30/05/2017 09:19

You have to prosecute.

Dulcimena · 30/05/2017 09:22

So, you shared the details of one credit card with this person, and they have since used other CCs without your knowledge?

It sounds as though there's little you can do about the first card because you allowed them to use it, but you did not share the details of the other cards or allow them to be used. You should not be liable for these.

You need to get proper advice - have you spoken to the police or the CAB, or just posted on mumsnet?

PurpleMinionMummy · 30/05/2017 09:24

They must have racked it up in a short space of time if the first you knew was when you were refused credit.

Other posters are correct about it not being fraud. All t&cs on debit/credit cards are very clear about this. Sorry this has happened to you. Hope you get it sorted

KungFuEric · 30/05/2017 09:28

This debt is in your name, so you will have to repay in full.

I'm getting the vibe from your posts that this is a child of yours who took advantage of you financially? I can appreciate you not wanting to give your own child a criminal conviction, but I would say that this behaviour is highly devious and manipulative, quite an ugly ruthless trait to discover in someone. What are the consequences going to be for them? If they see you as a mug cash machine, then they'll get bored pretty quickly of paying you back.

VickyRsuperstar · 30/05/2017 09:29

If they have made transactions for physical items can you insist/force them to return these to where they bought them from in order to get some of the money back?

BewareOfDragons · 30/05/2017 09:31

Friendship/family member, irrelevant. You need to prosecute. This will hang over YOUR life for YEARS. It will prevent YOU from doing all kinds of things: getting a mortgage, getting credit, getting certain kinds of jobs...

FuckingDingDong · 30/05/2017 10:00

Someone I know has racked up debt in my name. I authorised them to use a card for one transaction
So you've committed the fraud. You cannot authorise someone else to use your card, as it is outwith the terms and conditions of the card.

FuckingDingDong · 30/05/2017 10:05

so the outcome will be I'm liable because I've authorised one transaction?
You didn't authorise anything - the terms and conditions do not allow you to do that. You will be liable because you have willingly given your card details to someone.

notapizzaeater · 30/05/2017 10:14

Like people have said even with a. Crime number you let them use the card so as far as the card people are concerned it's your debt.

FuckingDingDong · 30/05/2017 10:18

Does anyone know what is involved in the prosecution process, could I just not press charges?
I'm no expert, but I believe the way it works is you report the theft to the police. They will likely arrest the person. After the investigation the police decide whether to press charges. After looking at the evidence and public interest etc, the Crown Prosecution service decide whether to prosecute. When it goes to court, if your friend / daughter pleads guilty, then the judge goes straight to sentencing (is £15k likely to result in prison?), or if they plead not guilty, it will go to trial with a jury. Or you can just suck it up, pay the debt and learn the lesson.
So you see, OP, would have been easier not to let them have access to your card, which what the credit card companies tell people.

LakieLady · 30/05/2017 10:25

If you can't afford to repay the debt, and your total debt is less than £20k, you could get a debt relief order that will write it all off. It'll balls up your credit rating for 3 years, but after that you're home free.

The fee is around £100 and you have to do it through the CAB or similar advice agency.

Really shit thing for someone to do though. I'd report it to the police even if it was my child. They need to learn a lesson.

SandyDenny · 30/05/2017 10:27

The OP can't choose to “press charges”, that only applies in America I think.

Assuming you're not there the system here is that you report something to the police and the CPS decide whether there's enough evidence isn't it?

Happy to be corrected by any legal posters.

In the situation you describe it doesn't sound like you have much formal hope of getting your money back unfortunately

Hereward1332 · 30/05/2017 10:32

You can't have your cake and eat it.

If you aren't liable, that means the card company loses £15k. They would be the victim and would prosecute. to get their money back.

If you accept you are liable, you can choose to get your money back by legal means from the person who stole it, or not.

You can't deny the debt and stop someone else chasing it.

Birdsgottaf1y · 30/05/2017 11:08

There was a case like this on Judge Rinder. The other person admitted the fraud and that the holder of the card had only given permission for a one off use,because of that, Judge Rinder could rule in the Account Holder's favour.

He made it clear that he could only make the ruling because of the admittance of guilt and that it didn't guarantee in what time scale that the money could be paid back.

You will have to prosecute to start to sort this out.

Original poster
User141665468 · 30/05/2017 11:08

I've just spoken to CAB. Legally nothing can be done as I have given access to the card.

They have advised my only option really is to go through a small claims court for the money back.

They said its definitely not fraud (as PP have advised) and its not theft as I have allowed them access to the card. (Sorry for the drip feed, but this was my sister. She looked after the card and managed it online and made all payments, little did I know what she was actually doing)

We lived together and she said most of what she has bought is inside the house, furniture and paint etc. So I guess when it comes down to it she could dispute I have benefitted from this and still am.

Suppose I'll have to suck it up, lesson learnt from here though.

OP posts:
hiimmumma · 30/05/2017 12:08

I had a similar situation.
I let someone take a store card out in my name.
We were at Uni and she was Irish so wasn't eligible for credit in the U.K. We wanted to get outfits for a special night out.
I was so stupid and trusting. basically I said I'll get it out and she can just use it and pay if off once we get our loans through the next term.
Well she basically used it never paid it and left uni (for other reasons).
I hadn't actually realised that she never cleared it and a year later the debt caught up with me and I got a CCJ.
I was 100% liable.
Anyway I just paid it off and had to wait 5 years before I could get credit again.
I not have a mortgage and credit card and an excellent credit rating.
So it's not the end of he world but you unfortunately will be liable.
Your sister has some making up to to!

FuckingDingDong · 30/05/2017 14:42

There was a case like this on Judge Rinder. The other person admitted the fraud and that the holder of the card had only given permission for a one off use,because of that, Judge Rinder could rule in the Account Holder's favour.
Judge Rinder isn't law. Its daytime telly. Like Jeremey Kyw.

BarbaraofSeville · 30/05/2017 14:53

Is there any chance of your sister paying the debt off in full? Does she have any money/disposable income. How long did it take her to spend the £15k and was she making minimum payments at the time?

She must have been or else you would have got lots of letters and phonecalls about all the overdue account. If you were living together, how come you didn't notice she appeared to have access to a lot of extra money? Even if it took her a year to spend the £15k, that's over a grand a month.

The best solution would be for her to apply for enough low rate credit cards in her name to transfer the balance and make it legally her responsibility and then for her to pay them off in her own time. Is there any chance that she could do this? Could anything that she bought be sold to go towards the debt?

lalalalyra · 30/05/2017 15:01

Even if you did prosecute then you might struggle to get credit anyway as you'd be known for giving access to your cards to other people.

BMW6 · 30/05/2017 16:18

She must have bought a hell of a lot of furniture and paint to rack up a 15k debt!

And surely you wondered where all the furniture came from???

Original poster
User141665468 · 31/05/2017 16:31

She can't get it transferred to her name, we tried that and made her credit rating worse by applying too many times.

Am I the only person silly enough to get into this kind of position?

I'm still waiting to hear from the Fraud team, I'm in knots really waiting now. I'm not sure why, I have accepted this is my problem even if I choose to prosecute I won't get far.

So deflated by all of this.

OP posts:
Jellybean85 · 31/05/2017 17:00

I had a similar problem with my ex. Let him use my card once and he abused it. Fraud team were only prepared to reimburse if I pressed charges.
Otherwise people could team up, take the money and no one would pay!!

fruitbats · 31/05/2017 17:10

What exactly did you report to the fraud team? If you have told them that you gave the card and the PIN to your sister, you have no chance I'm afraid.

Original poster
User141665468 · 31/05/2017 17:15

jelly did you press charges?

Told them she had spent the money behind my back so they blocked access to it while they looked into it.

OP posts: