Bank Staff - Account opened without permission

LegacyUser

Hi guys, sorry for the long post but hoping for some advice here after something that happened in work today.

I work for one of the bigger Irish banks in a small branch. In other branches I've worked in previously there's always been what's known as a 'Tea account' - essentially an impersonal account where each staff member puts €10 a month in to cover the cost of tea/coffee/biscuits/etc in the staff kitchen. I moved to my current branch a few months ago and it doesn't have one of these, staff were putting cash in jar in the kitchen press instead and this was fine.

This week we were told that our branch was being given a cash reward from the bank for reaching a target and that it was to be used for a dinner/night out for the staff. The bank requested the IBAN for our 'Tea account' so they could lodge the money to that. As we don't have one the manager told us to open one today so that we could receive this reward but also to use for our tea account going forward so staff member can use a debit card for it when they run to the shop.

Another staff member was in my managers office opening the account with her and they shouted out to me and said they were going to put my name on the account along with another staff members. I was outside dealing with a customer while this was going on and couldn't remove myself from the situation but I stuck my head in the door and said to my manager that she should be on it as she is in charge of the branch, and also that it shouldn't be me on it because I'm not a permanent staff member (23 month contract). I tried to object to my name being used.

30 seconds later I get an automated text on my phone from the bank saying thanks for opening a new current account. I check my online banking and I see a new joint account with another member of staff has been opened in my name as a personal account. My stomach sank when I saw this.

To give some background, I have 3 personal bank accounts, all of which serve a purpose and all of which I'm very careful with. I get my salary into one, a rental income into another and one more I'm using to save for a house deposit. These 3 accounts are all good performing with relatively high balances. I'm not sure everyone will understand why I absolutely do not want my own personal bank accounts to include my job's 'tea account' where various different staff members will be throwing a fiver into it with different people using the debit card sporadically in the local Spar. This is a bank account that has been opened in my name but is not actually my account. It's an account in my name that other people have control of.

I went on my lunch and I really wasn't happy with what had just happened. When I got back I told my manager that I was not comfortable having this workplace account opened in my name and grouped together with my personal accounts. She said that was fine and apologised but would have to wait until tomorrow to close the account as an account cannot be opened and closed on the same day apparently.

Now, my issue is that the account will be closed but it will still be linked to my customer profile with the bank. When I'm looking at a customers profile I can click a button to see all the accounts they have closed previously. I want the bank to delete all history of this account being opened in my name. I'm expecting them to tell me that it can't be and that being closed is good enough - but it isn't. I know I can make a GDPR request to ask the bank to provide me with all the information they have that relates to me personally - if I did then this account that was opened without my permission would be on it. Does anyone know if it there is any law or rule in place that would apply to this situation and compel them to remove my name from ever being linked to this account number as I didn't agree to it in the first place?

Thanks, and sorry for the long post.