A Melbourne couple has expressed outrage after a criminal managed to empty their bank accounts by simply presenting a stolen driver's licence at multiple bank branches. Rachael Hudson revealed that the thief broke into her car on April 17 and stole her husband Aaron's wallet. Upon discovering the theft, Mr Hudson immediately contacted Bendigo Bank to report the stolen credit card and driver's licence.
Ten days later, he found himself locked out of his e-banking account. When he called the bank, they informed him of fraudulent activity but refused to disclose details over the phone, requesting he visit a branch in person to verify his identity. In the meantime, Ms Hudson checked their joint accounts and discovered they had been completely drained.
The thief acted swiftly, using the stolen licence within two hours to access their accounts. According to Ms Hudson, the imposter presented the stolen licence at a branch and withdrew $380 from their joint bills account. He then visited a second branch a few kilometres away, where employees reset the internet banking login details and changed the phone number on the account to his own. With access to e-banking, he transferred money from their mortgage offset and business accounts into Mr Hudson's main account before driving to a third branch—their local bank for eight years—and withdrawing $440.
Ms Hudson expressed deep disappointment with the bank's handling of the situation. She questioned why no verification questions were asked when the imposter visited the first two branches, especially since her husband had reported the stolen IDs ten days earlier. She claimed a bank employee told her husband that it was standard procedure for branches to accept a driver's licence without secondary verification, as most customers do not know their customer ID numbers.
The couple has since been reimbursed all stolen funds, but Ms Hudson described the aftercare as terrible. She said they received no apologies or updates for weeks and had to spend hours seeking answers. She is now considering changing banks. Bendigo Bank's financial crimes team is investigating, and a police complaint has been filed. A bank spokesman stated that protecting customers is their highest priority and that they continuously review security measures.
