Tuesday 10 July 2012

Financial Issues when you have Unspent Criminal Convictions

When it comes to banking or obtaining criminal convictions insurance, there are a few points that you need to be aware of. Every bank in the UK has the right to decide whether or not to offer a particular customer an account, as they have a duty not only to their existing customers but to the national economy as well. Banks offering bank accounts may not offer you an account if you have been convicted of fraud which may extend to include “convictions under the Fraud Act 2006”, fraud against financial institutions, or fraudulent benefit claims.

Banks share information about fraud as a routine precaution when attempting to identify a possible risk, using organisations such as CIFAS (Credit Industry Fraud Avoidance System) to exchange fraud data and execute checks. Organisations like CIFAS hold details of applications that are deemed to be fraudulent because they did not pass certain verification checks. They also hold details about accounts or services that are discovered being used in a fraudulent way, such as fraudulent criminal insurance claims.

This information is often allowed to be shared because applications or claims forms will regularly include a clause that you must agree to in order to obtain an account or service. CIFAS is not used to decide whether you are able to obtain an account, convictions insurance, benefit or employment, as it is not a credit reference agency. It is used only to prevent further fraud from occurring. When an application or claim is flagged by CIFAS this is taken as an indication that the case may require investigation, it is not in itself enough to require that the application or claim is rejected out of hand.

Having a warning held on your CIFAS file will not mean that you are automatically blacklisted and members are not permitted to reject your application or discontinue a service purely because of it. They will need to take additional steps to verify your identity and make a decision based on this. If fraud is suspected, then applications will not usually be continued and service facilities or employments are likely to be reviewed. There can be a number of other reasons why a provider may refuse your application, so it is important to ask why they have decided to do so.

The amount of time a warning stays on CIFAS’ database will usually depend on how long the detected fraudulent activities continue. Warnings may be extended by members in order to protect individuals from fraud, providing that they have proof that the fraud is ongoing. In accordance with new legislation, from the 1st of January 2012, instances of fraud will remain on the CIFAS database for up to six years (in line with other fraud prevention and credit reference agencies).

If you have unspent criminal convictions it can be hard to find the home insurance you need at a reasonable price. With homeprotect you can obtain a competitive online quote for convictions insurance, regardless of whether your convictions are spent or not. With homeprotect you can be confident that your application for criminal convictions insurance will be assessed fairly and that you will always be treated with the respect you deserve.


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