‘I can only imagine that her motive was to find dirt on me after I had the audacity to park outside my own house,’ said the victim. ‘It’s just madness’
04:14, 17 May 2026
Former NatWest employee Emma Edwards from Llanelli
A bank worker lost her job after using her role to snoop on her next-door neighbour’s accounts. After becoming embroiled in a row over street parking NatWest employee Emma Edwards made comments that aroused suspicion over how she knew details of her neighbour Rebecca Davies’ finances.
Rebecca told WalesOnline she knew something was wrong when Ms Edwards allegedly referred to her as a “benefits scrounger” during encounters on their street in Llanelli. The family do receive benefits because of the support needed by Rebecca’s five-year-old daughter – who is autistic and non-verbal – but it was not initially clear how Ms Edwards knew this.
The victim’s initial queries to NatWest were dismissed without investigation, she said, but then she made a formal complaint – and the bank admitted its employee had indeed been spying on her.
Rebecca, 35, also reported the matter to Dyfed-Powys Police leading to Ms Edwards admitting a criminal offence of harassment. However because it was the 49-year-old’s first offence police did not proceed with a prosecution and instead issued an adult community resolution (ACR) meaning she would have to take a behavioural course.
“I feel really let down by the police as I feel no real justice has been served,” said Rebecca. “It’s not about punishment – it’s about protecting my family. This is a slap on the wrist.
“I also feel like it’s in the public interest for people to know NatWest are not forthcoming in letting people know their account has been inappropriately accessed. In my case nothing was done until several complaints had been logged. If other people have been victim to the same behaviour they’ll be none the wiser.”
Rebecca has been living in her home for around three years whereas Ms Edwards and her partner moved into the neighbouring property many years earlier.
“When we first moved in Emma wanted to knock down two of our walls so she could put in a shed,” Rebecca claimed. “We said yes to everything. The moment the wall was back up she changed completely. She went cold and there were no more pleasantries. But that was fine.”
Rebecca does not have a driveway and so would park on the street outside her own house where there were no parking restrictions. She told us she was baffled when Ms Edwards – who does have a driveway – asked her to park elsewhere.
“When I would park outside my house Emma would get really passive-aggressive and block my car in,” she claimed. “I went over to speak to her and I said: ‘I don’t know what I’ve done to upset you.’
“It turned out she didn’t want me to park outside my own house. She said they’d lived here 20 years and had always been able to park their cars alongside both houses. The person who lived in my house before was an elderly lady who didn’t drive.
“Emma has a large drive that fits two or three vehicles but she says they don’t want to use it as it’s been done with resin. They’ve got family members who visit but the ridiculous thing is the cars would fit on their drive, which is usually empty. They just want to park outside mine. It’s a mental story.
“I explained I wasn’t parking there to be a pain but I don’t have a driveway and it’s the safest way for me to transport my disabled daughter to and from the car.
“Emma told me she didn’t care. She made comments that I’m a ‘scrounging c***’ because I claim disability living allowance for my daughter.”
Rebecca wondered how her neighbour could have obtained her private information. She was a NatWest customer but she had never had any interaction with Ms Edwards at the bank.
“I asked if they could check that my information hadn’t been accessed unlawfully because there was no reason for her to have my data,” said Rebecca.
“I was reassured by the bank on two occasions that this hadn’t happened. The third time, after I’d received another comment, I requested a formal investigation.”
The bank then wrote to Rebecca confirming one of its staff had “regrettably” viewed her information without any “appropriate justification”. It offered her £500 in compensation and informed her the employee had been relieved of her position.
Rebecca said: “I can only imagine that her motive was to find dirt on me after I had the audacity to park outside my own house. It’s just madness.”
After she reported the matter as a crime police informed her Ms Edwards had not only viewed her personal account but also that of her business, a children’s play area.
Rebecca was the treasurer for a campaign to save her daughter’s special school, Ysgol Heol Goffa, and was informed her neighbour had spied on the campaign account too.
“Police told me she’d been into my accounts around 100 times,” said Rebecca. “NatWest wouldn’t confirm the exact number due to data protection ironically.”
Carmarthenshire council has since accepted Rebecca’s request for a disabled parking bay directly outside her house. It rejected four objections – all from the same unnamed household.
Despite Natwest’s attempt to put things right Rebecca felt trust had been broken so she switched banks. “It was really upsetting,” she said. “If I wasn’t so persistent the bank wouldn’t have acted and I would never have known.”
A Dyfed-Powys Police spokesman said: “A 49-year-old woman was arrested on October 10, 2025, on suspicion of harassment. The matter was finalised by way of an adult community resolution with a condition for the offender to be referred to the diversionary scheme.
“The ACR was issued following consultation with the victim on the basis that [it was] the suspect’s first offence, she accepted responsibility for her actions, and agreed to meet the conditions of her resolution order within the agreed timeframe.
“The aim of a community resolution is to reduce reoffending by encouraging the individual to recognise the impact of their offence and commit to changing their behaviour by engaging in a restorative or educational programme.”
A NatWest spokesman said customers’ privacy is “paramount”, adding: “Following concerns raised by our customer an investigation was carried by our litigation and investigations team and, based on their findings, swift and appropriate action was taken.”
When we called Ms Edwards for comment she said: “Well, just go with whatever information as to why I did it because there’s always two sides to a story.” When we pressed for more answers she hung up.
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