Avant request details. Section 53 (3)(c)

il gatto

I have an Avant card I haven't used in years. I keep paying the €30 levy every year but tbh, the card is god knows where in a drawer.
Anyhoo, a couple of months ago, I received a letter asking for I.d. etc under the above mentioned Section 53. I promptly forgot about it.
Today I received a reminder. Do I have to comply? I was thinking of cancelling the thing anyway. I heard scare stories about cancelling cards and the company stating that they cancelled it and therefore affecting your credit rating. Is that a thing?
I have a BOI account and a credit and debit card from them so I'm not bothered about Avant. Should I comply, ignore or cancel the card?

il gatto

Bump. Got another reminder today. Anyone came across this before?

brettmirl

What are they looking for?

Is it your personal details under the money laundering act?

1874

yes, I got one too, so far I had not replied, couldnt be arsed, not sure if them thats meant to comply or me, they make it sound like it me.
I didnt get rid of the Avant card from years back, but I use it for certain purchases, online as I find they are easy to deal with, contact and sort out problems if billed and nothing arrives, and they have useful offers for transfer. I applied for a different card as a back up and was declined, so Im glad I hung onto it.

Not sure how much I have to respond to this either, they dont mind me using the card or repaying the debt.

Spocker

it's probably this: http://www.citizensinformation.ie/en/money_and_tax/personal_finance/financial_institutions/financial_institutions_and_identification.html

Financial institutions are obliged to keep their customer information up to date, and that means reaching out to customers to get the updated information

1874

Are customers obliged to resupply the information?

Spocker

1874 wrote: »

Are customers obliged to resupply the information?

I can't seem to find that actually - the financial institutions are obliged to get the info, but if you don't supply it, I *think* they can restrict your account/transactions

il gatto

Thanks all. I was beginning to wonder if I was alone in this. I’ve never heard anyone mention this before. Maybe it’s because the account has been inactive but the €30 payed each year to keep it alive. Might be a sign of something been held for a nefarious purpose. No idea what that might be though.

1874

I can't understand why its required to reconfirm the details, they already know who I am! if anyone was up to no good they also would have the relevant details and could easily and willingly resubmit them again, what difference would it make?

Jim2007

1874 wrote: »

I can't understand why its required to reconfirm the details, they already know who I am! if anyone was up to no good they also would have the relevant details and could easily and willingly resubmit them again, what difference would it make?

The reason for reconfirmation is because people's information does change and some forget to inform their banks, so it acts as a reminder. In other cases the banks are already suspicious of the information provided and are indirectly giving you an opportunity correct it.

The bottom line is that failure to comply will eventually lead to your accounts being frozen and possibly your name being reported to the Garda and the Revenue, depending on the level of non compliance. The best advice it is to either comply with the request or close the account down, as being on the blacklists is much worse that a bad credit report.