Southern Electric messing up my credit rating!

[not_tonight_josephine]

Hi all, I'm new here and really hoping for some advice - I have just found out that Southern Electric have marked my credit file with a default in relation to an unpaid bill which they passed to a debt collection agency. The history behind this is as follows:

Jan 07 - I registered on the Southern Electric website to be able to make payments online. During the sign-up I apparently registered to receive paperless bills for my gas (I accept I may have done this but I don't remember ticking the box and if I did it was accidental - I didn't do it for the electricity; if I'd really wanted paperless billing I'd have done it for both!). Shortly after this I received a bill for the electricity which was paid - apparently I was sent a notification by e-mail for the gas but probably due to spam filters never saw it so didn't pay (having just paid a bill with them it didn't really occur to me that I should have been expecting another one)!

April 07- I moved house, and contacted Southern Electric with meter readings for both gas and electricity, providing my new address which is also supplied by them. Shortly after I received a "final bill" (which I now realise was just for the electric but I didn't really look at it!) from them which I paid, assuming that everything was now sorted.

January 08 - out of the blue I get a letter from a debt collection agency for over £100 for outstanding gas bills for my old property - the bill from January and the final bill. I phoned Southern Electric and figured out what had happened and paid the bill within a week.

My question is, can they really mark me with a default for this and do I have any recourse to get it removed? Although I have no dispute over whether I owed the money, during the apparently 12 months when the bill was outstanding I did not receive a single letter from Southern Electric even though I had given them my new address for the old account and am supplied by them on my new account. Any e-mails which they presumably sent must have been spam filtered as I never received anything. If they'd just written to me I'd have paid instantly! When I spoke to them the first person said they had sent me a reminder at my old address at some point (not much use when they admit I'd given them me new one!), the second person wouldn't say anything except that they have no obligation to write to me before referring to a debt company. Is this true?! I am desperate to get this removed from my credit report as I want to apply for a mortgage in a couple of years.

Can anyone advise me? I'm happy to pay a solicitor if it would help?! Sorry this is a bit long winded but I'm just sick with worry thinking this is going to screw up my house buying plans for the next 6 years until the default disappears!

Thank you!

[tiglet]

Did they send you a default notice? this is a legal requirement before they can place a default on your file.

[not_tonight_josephine]

Thanks for the reply. No, I've never had anything in writing from them (they admitted this when I first called although not sure if they'd try to deny it later!), just the e-mails they say they've been sending. Can a default notice be sent my e-mail?!

If not, how do I go about getting them to remove the default - just write to them (do you know which department I should address my letter to?)?

[mnrbig]

It is my understanding, that Default notices only apply to agreements regulated by the CCA. The provision of utilities is not regulated by the CCA. There seems to be 2 different types of default. One for utilities to use and one related to CCA. I am unfortunately not sure on the legality of the former type. I may be wrong.

[stanroyal]

I could do with some clarification on that point. I am trying to get 2 BGas defaults removed. I get the impression that a 'budget' account where you pay by Direct Debit is considered by some people to come under the CCA. Although the utilities info isn't put on equifax as far as I can see - only on Experian.

The best thing to do would have been not to pay the bill unless they agreed to take you default off - because if they don't take it off - you may as well not pay it as far as you credit rating goes.

At the moment - I have written to BGas registered letter - and got no response within 10 days - so I have made an energywatch complaint. I'll let you know if it works.

[Tygermoth]

SSE do not actually put defaults on your credit file, they just say they MAY.

Not sure about outside agents however.

Have you checked experian? (its free to register)

[stanroyal]

British Gas have very definitely put TWO separate defaults onto my experian credit file. They didn't tell me they were going to - I only found out when I was refused credit and had to order a copy to see why.

Equifax don't seem to have them though - so I think Experian register defaults from utility companies whereas equifax don't. Or perhaps British Gas don't register them with Equifax or something. It seems that most banks use experian anyway though - so up a gum tree if experians is bad even if equifax is ok.