I applied for a Lloyds Bank credit card, which duly arrived with my name on it. When I attempted to register it online, I discovered that my name did not exist in the system.
Bank staff could only locate a profile associated with my twin sister, who has never had a Lloyds account. She has since been emailed about my card.
This data breach has prevented me using the card I urgently need and could affect my sister’s credit record.
JRT, London
Lloyds blithely tells me that this is an “isolated incident”.
Your sister has a dormant account with Halifax, part of Lloyds Banking Group, and, since she shares your address and initials, the computer system flagged her profile as a duplicate of yours and merged them.
The bank assures me the credit check that was carried out was in your name. Its “monitoring” reports to credit reference agencies did not affect your sister.
It has now paid you £350 and your sister £100 for the “inconvenience”.
We welcome letters but cannot answer individually. Email us at [email protected] or write to Consumer Champions, Money, the Guardian, 90 York Way, London N1 9GU. Please include a daytime phone number. Submission and publication of all letters is subject to our terms and conditions.