Warning re verifying bank statements at banks

Hi. We had a very worrying experience at my bank yesterday. Because I have an online account, I printed six months' worth of bank statements and took them into the branch to be verified. We were told that they don't do it any more. They have had people doctoring statements etc, leading to high levels of fraud. Anyway, I asked to speak to the Manager as I knew that if we didn't get them verified, there was a strong chance my new husband would be sent back to America. Everything is centralised and they can't even request statements to be sent urgently to customers which would have solved the problem. As a last resort, we asked if they would write a covering letter explaining the situation. Eventually, the Manager decided to do a printout for us and stamped each page, but she said they don't have the resources to do this for people as it's so time consuming so we were pretty lucky she took pity on us.

I am allowed to request statements to be sent to me apparently and I could have requested these about a month in advance but as we only booked the appointment for this coming Saturday on 8 July, there was no time and I assumed it would be OK to have the printed statements verified. I just wanted to warn others. Sorry if this is a bit of a rambling post, but I'm typing it on my phone screen

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Hi. We had a very worrying experience at my bank yesterday. Because I have an online account, I printed six months' worth of bank statements and took them into the branch to be verified. We were told that they don't do it any more. They have had people doctoring statements etc, leading to high levels of fraud. Anyway, I asked to speak to the Manager as I knew that if we didn't get them verified, there was a strong chance my new husband would be sent back to America. Everything is centralised and they can't even request statements to be sent urgently to customers which would have solved the problem. As a last resort, we asked if they would write a covering letter explaining the situation. Eventually, the Manager decided to do a printout for us and stamped each page, but she said they don't have the resources to do this for people as it's so time consuming so we were pretty lucky she took pity on us.

I am allowed to request statements to be sent to me apparently and I could have requested these about a month in advance but as we only booked the appointment for this coming Saturday on 8 July, there was no time and I assumed it would be OK to have the printed statements verified. I just wanted to warn others. Sorry if this is a bit of a rambling post, but I'm typing it on my phone screen

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As you'll need a papertrail for your husband for many years to come, I highly recommend turning off electronic statements and having paper statements sent for EVERYTHING.

Yes, agreed. It's just that a stipulation of this particular account is that it's paperless. I'll have to remember to request paperwork in good time now I know I can do that. This is when good old Google Calendar will be useful!

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I still have 2 years before I go for visa #2, but I'll make sure I check into things well ahead of time to see what I need to do. From what happened to you, keeping things out of my online savings only account and in the checking account might be a better choice with 6 months to go. I just sold off some more mutual funds yesterday with the thinking that I might as well keep my account above the £33K limit all the time for the next 5 years. With my pension I should only need the £33K cash to meet requirements.

I still have 2 years before I go for visa #2, but I'll make sure I check into things well ahead of time to see what I need to do. From what happened to you, keeping things out of my online savings only account and in the checking account might be a better choice with 6 months to go. I just sold off some more mutual funds yesterday with the thinking that I might as well keep my account above the £33K limit all the time for the next 5 years. With my pension I should only need the £33K cash to meet requirements.

Yes, I'll definitely order my statements in good time in, what, 2.5 years' time if we are successful tomorrow. Wish us luck! Good idea for everyone to know what happened is a possibility for everyone. Good that you can have that money available!

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What a nightmare!  When we were collecting for visas we regularly paid for statements and changed one bank account to something where a paper statement could be sent even though we were charged for it.  Perhaps you could change accounts if you can't turn off the paperless off.  I'm so glad that part of our lives is behind us, but boy were we organised back then!

What a nightmare!  When we were collecting for visas we regularly paid for statements and changed one bank account to something where a paper statement could be sent even though we were charged for it.  Perhaps you could change accounts if you can't turn off the paperless off.  I'm so glad that part of our lives is behind us, but boy were we organised back then!

Yeah, I'll make sure we are totally organised and request statements next time. I have a current account that pays 5% interest which is brilliant and I'm loathe to change it! I didn't know I could order statements in advance, as it's a paperless account. I bet you're happy those days are behind you Larissa!

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Just to piggy back on this bank statement thread - the guidance states that it should cover the 90 immediate previous days and be dated no more than 31 days prior. Will the paper bank statements I receive be okay? Obviously the ones in the past are dated from the month they were sent, so won't be 31 days, except for the most recent. I'd much rather just use what I have than make a poor bank employee create something else.

Just to piggy back on this bank statement thread - the guidance states that it should cover the 90 immediate previous days and be dated no more than 31 days prior. Will the paper bank statements I receive be okay? Obviously the ones in the past are dated from the month they were sent, so won't be 31 days, except for the most recent. I'd much rather just use what I have than make a poor bank employee create something else.

They mean that the most recent statement must be dated no earlier than 31 days from the date you apply online (i.e. the banking period that it covers must be within the 31 days).

All the other statements will be dated for the month that they cover in the 6-12 months prior to applying (depending on which category you're applying under).

For example, you can't send the statements from December to May if you are applying in July, you have to either use January to June or February to July, depending on when your latest statement is issued.

Thanks ksand24 - I thought that would be the obvious answer, but I'd hate to turn up to the appointment and find out I was wrong!