Wouldnât it be that their records have been deleted after six (or maybe seven) years rather than them just getting lucky? Thinking that âneverâ really just means âhavent in the last six yearsâ as they should be deleting your records after that time has elapsed.
Or just get lucky.
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Still waiting to receive my bonus from the last Santander switch!
Youâve another month or so to go. They check that you meet the conditions 60 days after the switch and pay in the 30 days following that.
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Paid at day 58 following switch completion last time I did it.
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What makes you think a bank should delete your data after six years?
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Thanks. I think Iâm on day 35 since my switch completed so few weeks to go still.
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If you are wanting to do Santanderâs offer Iâd say be quick they seem to pull it rather quickly after itâs begun
GDPR and financial regulations. From the GDPR perspective itâs not that they should delete it but that they must do so after it is no longer required i.e. six years after the last transaction or the account is closed.
I think 6 years is subjective however I can see certain risk reasons why theyâll keep some data longer than that, both for yours and their benefit.
If you were a customer with them and defaulted on a loan say some banks will black list you and not deal with you again and keep some data on that.
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Itâs the âis no longer requiredâ that applies here. So loan default might extend the period. However, as most sell on defaulted loans, they couldnât use that as a reason to keep the information forever.
The fact is FD keeps your data for far longer than six years, so that it knows youâve previously been a customer (and, therefore, youâre not entitled to another joining bonus). Thereâs no requirement for âsix yearsâ as you put it.
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A further set time isnât forever. One of the principles of GDPR is that data can only be held as long as necessary.
That said, I could see fraud being for quite a long time.
The six years is because financial records generally need to be held for that long.
If FD has taken it upon itself to hold data forever, you could report them to the ICO. Or you could insist that they delete your data six years after the last transaction (assuming that youâve a zero balance obviously).
Maybe thatâs why their clause is akin to no bonus if youâve had an account in the last x years, because the retention policy will pick you up.
Having said that, people have been successful getting multiple switch bonuses from the same banks over the years.
Removed the other post, too inaccurate.
In cases of fraud, the period may be much longer than most other retention policies, to mitigate risk, financial loss and damages to bank and consumer.
âA bank holds personal data about its customers. This includes details of each customerâs address, date of birth and motherâs maiden name. The bank uses this information as part of its security procedures. It is appropriate for the bank to retain this data for as long as the customer has an account with the bank. Even after the account has been closed, the bank may need to continue holding some of this information for legal or operational reasons for a further set time.â
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Is it still the case you need to visit a branch to switch if youâre an existing Santander account holder?
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No, you only need to call if youâre switching into an existing account. If you open a new one it can be done online without a branch visit. Turns out that I was an existing customer courtesy of an account Iâd forgotten about and didnât need a branch visit.
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When I went into the branch in late 2022 for this condition, the staff looked bemused and told me to call. Even the person on the end of the phone didnât know why I needed to visit in person.
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This is mainly for tax and accounting purposes.
A bank can keep records on you for much longer if they have a legitimate reason for doing so (including if you previously received an incentive)
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