tarmac terror

iTrader: (2)

Me and the ex-common law wife parted company on poor terms seven years ago to summarise the details.

Lived together 5 years
Joint mortgage
Joint life insurance
Joint bank accounts
Joint credit card - me as first named account holder

She ***** another bloke - I show her the door

To put salt in the wounds she clears out joint savings, and runs up huge credit card debt.

Thats the background. I keep getting new cash cards, cheque books and credit cards with her name on. I have tried to close the accounts but cant without her signature. I have explained that I have no idea where she lives, and have even told the bank that I belive she may be dead (terrible I know).

The Mortgage and life insurance were easily enough sorted. Its the bank accounts which are a real nuisance.

Short of forging her signature (assuming I can sign forms without bank official present) can anyone advise how to get out of this one?

TT

The Chief

**** me have you seen a solicitor, do it ASAP for gods sake before she bloody bankrupts you!!!!

tarmac terror

iTrader: (2)

Aye - got the legal angle squared. This is now just an administrative pain in the ***. Even if I abandon the accounts they will continue to send new cards and changes of Ts&Cs with her name on. I need to close these accounts which I cant do (according to the bank) without her agreement and signature. Their systems seem unable to cope with exceptional circumstances where one party is unavailable and I have neither the time nor the inclination to try to trace her.

TT

jods

you are not married.
cards in her name only ?
Her responsibility full stop.

Tell the bankers to suck wind if they come after you for the money.

RON

CAn you not lie a little, and say that the cards have been lost, that way they'd have to give you new cards with different no's, therefore she wouldn't be able to keep using the account...??

Just a thought.... might be daft though, i can't really be that easy can it..??

tarmac terror

iTrader: (2)

maybe not explained this well enough....

The cards come to my address - so no risk of her getting her paws on them.

The accounts for which these cards are intended to be used are joint accounts for a halifax current account and a halifax visa credit card.

Its just that seven years down the line I am still getting new cards etc to my address. Have tried dealing with the bank, not known at this address etc.

Would prefer not to have to resort to deceitful or illeagal methods to resolve the problem. Hence the request for advice.

Leslie

Write a recorded delivery letter to the managing director.

Les

MJW

If you are the principle cardholder you should be able to have her name removed from your account, I did a similar thing under similar circumstances a few years ago.
With the bank account, would it not be easier just to open a seperate one in your name only ?

Brit_in_Japan

Can you ask the bank to declare it a dormant account?

Link here

If there has been no activity initiated by the account holder in over a year then I think they should be able to do this and they wouldn't need her signature. Not a perfect solution, but maybe the simplest

Edited to add:
Also take the credit card to Halifax, give it to them (it's their property) and ask them to keep hold of it to minimize the risk of fraud. You might also suggest to them that as it hasn't been used for so long that maybe they should put a stop on it.

If the agreement is in your name (primary cardholder) then can you not end the agreement even though she is a secondardy cardholder? If the agreement is in her name, you cannot end the agreement. However Halifax can themselves decide to end the agreement, though I don't know under what conditions they can decide to do that. Ask them under what conditions they can end the agreement, there should be something that they can do under the circumstances.

tarmac terror

iTrader: (2)

Brit in Japan - thanks some useful stuff in there and one or two things I didn't know and consequently have not tried.

I plan to action these today and draw a line under this problem for good (hopefully).

Thanks to all who offered suggestions / advice / comments.

TT

davegtt

If shes not paying into this joint acct. can you not open up your own acct and get your wages put into this? that way there is no income into the joint account. then cut up anything the bank sends your regarding it. After a while the acct will become dormant and will be closed down quite easily at your request. joint acct or not. Also if theres no income to these accts they wont give you a large overdraft (well they wont at Yorkshire bank. I know this for a fact) So she can get her hands on a card all she likes. unless she pays into the acct every month she cant run up a bill......

Does that make sense?

OllyK

I find putting "Return to sender, addressee unknown" on the envelopes and putting them back in the post stopped similar things.

Jay m A

iTrader: (2)

I take it you still use this account and have all your direct debits etc all set up. She does not have access to this account anymore since her new cards are sent to you. Its just a pain in the **** you getting her cards, especially if your current missus lives with you. And its a pain to change accounts.

I've kind of been through the same thing before, but luckily the split was amicable and we both had to sign to take her off the account. However in case things got ugly, I had already opened up another account (same branch), moved my wages into the new account, then put a standing order into the old joint account to cover the direct debits etc whilst the joint flat was sold. She did the same thing. Then once the flat was sold the joint DD's were cancelled, she signed the account off and I was left to move my personal DD's to my other account at my leisure.

It may be a pain, but without a signature, you may have to do something similar and then declare the account dormant, as mentioned above. A pain i know, but if you move home anytime soon, will her cards be sent to your new home, or is a signature needed by her to notify a change of address? Just a thought.

Good luck, they always haunt you

Reality

Get a female friend to call the "non-help desk" and cancel the cards.

Don't think that plod will come looking even if you get caught.

ps No warranty with this advice

Edcase

Chop her up and put her in the freezer, and then gradually feed her to the dogs?*









*Disclaimer: I take no responsibility for yours or anybody elses actions