Bank Requesting Statements

Hi All,

I am currently in arrears and have applied to the bank to go on interest only. As part of the procedure they have requested 3 months worth of bank statements which I sent to them last week with the descriptions of my transactions blurred out.
They have come back demanding statements without the blur so they can see the descriptions. They can see the amount of money in and out of my account. My question is do they have the right to demand this?

Probably. In fairness, if they see that you're spending your money on gambling online, or going out for expensive dinners, they would be within their rights to turn you down for interest only. They really just want to see that you're not wasting money and that you are genuinely in financial difficulty

They do need to see the transactions, they need to see what you spend your money on before they can decide what you can afford to pay. You may find this intrusive, and it is, but that is the way the system has to work, it would not be fair to give reduced payments of some sort or other to someone who was not managing their money as best as possible. There is such a demand for reduced payments these days that banks have to prioritise who gets the breaks depending on need.

Speaking as someone who processed these type of applications you would be surprised by what some people consider essential spending, weekly nail bar standing orders for example! Another lady I dealt with told me she would not be cutting back on her spending despite being in arrears as she 'did not do Dunnes & Penneys' and proceeded to plonk her handbag on the table which she informed me cost €1,200. It gets kinda hard to have sympathy in those situations.

So while yes it is annoying to have to let the bank see all the details it is necessary so they can establish spending patterns and if you are doing your best you have nothing to fear. It's not personal and not just nosiness, you get fairly sick of going through peoples bank statements I can tell you.

Did you have a look through that woman's ears to see if you could see right through!? That is just appalling. Some people can only learn the hard way.

Your lucky the bank claim they have even received your bank statements! Blurred documents is a new one though! They normally say they havn't received them but oddly they received everything else that was in the envelope that contained the statements. I'd be worth a small fortune, if I did not have to keep getting bank verified statements as the internet print offs don't seem to be suitable.

Boomtobust said:

Your lucky the bank claim they have even received your bank statements! Blurred documents is a new one though! They normally say they havn't received them but oddly they received everything else that was in the envelope that contained the statements. I'd be worth a small fortune, if I did not have to keep getting bank verified statements as the internet print offs don't seem to be suitable.

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OP deliberately blurred the details.

The bank are trying to help you and you hiding transactions is very suspicious.

Are your bank statements from a different bank to your mortgage bank?

My apologies, I did not read the post correctly.

I find it odd that you would have blured the transaction discription out.

Hi Guys,

Thanks for the comments. Firstly, yes the bank statements are from a different bank, im guessing if it was with the same bank they would/could just pull the records themselves?
Like i said i have nothing to hide as i genuinely cannot afford the premium and i dont consider my lifestyle lavish by any means. After all the bill deductions the majority of the statement will read pass card transactions (as i like to use cash for general day to day living) so the bank wont be able to tell what i spend the money on anyway. Its just annoying that i they say jump and im forced to say how high even though in my opinion i dont think its necessary. I blurred out the descriptions as in my opinion its none of their business where or when i buy my groceries etc

They aren't interested in where you buy your groceries unless Harrods features on your bill for groceries! It is necessary, not everyone is in trouble because of enforced unaffordability, so they have to vet. Genuinely though, no-one is as interested in you as yourself so whoever looks at your bill won't have remembered whether it was Dunnes or Superquinn by the end of the day, they will likely have looked at several in the same day, it isn't prurient curiosity, it is legitimate diligence.

Like yourself Rabhab I like to use cash. I get paid in cash, I pay my bills in cash etc. When I showed the bank my statements they weren't too happy as they thought there were not enough transactions on it. You can't win either way with these people. On another note I couldn't give two hoots what they saw written on my statements. Firstly, I shop in Lidle and secondly I don't buy many clothes. I wouldn't worry too much about what transacations are on your statement unless you go on regular shopping sprees or have regular flutters on the horses!

RabHab said:

and i dont consider my lifestyle lavish by any means.

After all the bill deductions the majority of the statement will read pass card transactions (as i like to use cash for general day to day living) so the bank wont be able to tell what i spend the money on anyway.

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You may think your lifestyle is not lavish but the bank might think otherwise. The bank will be asking you what you spend the cash on so the fact you withdraw cash everyday is going to be questioned. You are in arrears and need the banks help. So it is only right that they question what you spend your salary on. There must be a reason you went into arrears. It is in both the banks and your interest that you resolve this.