Lloyds adviser plugged the bonus gap with fraud
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A Lloyds TSB mortgage adviser has been jailed for six months for defrauding customers when she did not get expected bonuses.
Hannah Liddington, 38, who worked at the Patchway branch in Bristol, admitted defrauding customers out of more than £32,000 when she appeared before Bristol Crown Court on February 8.
The court heard that Liddington, who had worked for the bank for 21 years, had transferred money from customers’ mortgage accounts into
Fraud prosecutor John Dyer said that between April 2008 and March 2009, Liddington carried out 65 transactions defrauding 15 customers out of amounts ranging from £1,000 to £9,000.
Dyer told the court: “Sometimes she would plug a gap with other customers’ money but all the people were those she had mortgage dealings with.”
It was said that Liddington, who was earning £30,000 a year with a pension pot of £58,000, had got into financial difficulties when she did not get bonuses she was expecting.
In a statement to bank investigators, Liddington said: “I used the money to repay money to my family I borrowed over the last few years. I always expected to rectify the transactions but found myself in more problems.”
Passing sentence, Judge Jamie Tabor said: “A lot of families find themselves in debt and they don’t do what you did. This is a very serious breach of trust, not only to the bank but also to the customers who were entitled to expect the highest standards of honesty from you.
“In cases of banks, where there is a very high degree of trust placed on people, sentences have to be passed that make it clear to other staff that they simply can’t do this.”
Defrauded customers have been reimbursed. Lloyds Banking Group declined to comment on the case.
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Readers' comments (21)
Phil Castle | 19 Feb 2010 8:56 am
Is the pension pot you are referring to the money purchase sum or the potenitla final salary pension. If the former, then her pension is probably safe, if the latter and it is final salary, then correct me if I am wring, but this could be deemed gross misconduct and bye, bye pension (which is why civil servants often take early retirment or resign before disciplinaries are completed)
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Thomas | 19 Feb 2010 9:19 am
If employed for 21 years I'd think it would be Final Salary.
Having said that it is a strange thing to have openly quoted and would be unusual to be quoted in Pension Pot terms unless Money Purchase.
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Donut | 19 Feb 2010 9:20 am
21 years and a pot of £58,000 would male me think that it is a group personal pension.
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tony | 19 Feb 2010 10:09 am
Who cares what her pension pot is, shes been caught got 6 months and won't ever work in the industry again, end of !
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Anonymous | 19 Feb 2010 10:15 am
Donut and Phil. Please carry out a spelling check before you post your reply. It,s a bit of an embarrassment when qualified professionals cannot spell. Have a nice weekend.
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Steven Balmer | 19 Feb 2010 10:25 am
I think far too many people have become de-sensitized to fraud. I am really sick of people getting off too lightly. 6 months for ripping off £32,000. She will probably serve less than 3 months, how is this a deterrent?? We as a Nation would benefit greatly if serious penalties started to be handed down - with tougher prisons run cheaply to boot. Sod her pension, she should be heavily fined at least £32,000 from any resources too.
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M J Winfield | 19 Feb 2010 10:26 am
The silent FSA should investigate the failed security systems at LLoyd and challenge whether or not the Bank is a proper place to conduct regulated financial services.
If Lloyds were an IFA firm, their approval would have already gone and large fines would be imposed.
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Barry Ellis | 19 Feb 2010 10:30 am
its bad enough the FSA thinks of us as crooks as it is Good Riddance to this Person the industry is well rid off
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Anonymous | 19 Feb 2010 10:37 am
If she worked for an IFA or a mortgage broker, the FSA would have sanctioned her employer for not controlling her properly. I would like to know if there is any consequences for Lloyds but I suspect not...
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Anonymous | 19 Feb 2010 10:45 am
People do strange things when they have money problems. Obviously I do not condone what she has done, but I do not know her circumstances. Our MP's have robbed us of far greater sums and will escape justice in most cases.
This woman who I assume is a first offender will suffer badly, she has lost her entegrity, she will spend time in jail, never work in the industry or in a postion of trust again. I believe taking her pension would be a step too far.
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