Lost my job due to Defaults on Credit Report - please advise!!!!

[znowdonia]

Hope you can help me?I have been working in my new job (Investment Banking) as a contractor for a year now and got offered a permanent role. When then did a 'thorough' credit check they asked to see my Credit Exeprian report which has 6 defaults on there (from when I lost my job a few years ago and couldnt keep up with repayments and STUPIDLY buried my head in the sand). Because of these defaults they have decided to withdraw the offer of a permanent role AND end my contract.I have been making regular repayments without fail for 2-3 years now on all these defaults.My questions are:a. if i manage to come to an agreement to settle the account will the default STILL STAY on my report until the 6 years is up?b. if im making regular repayments can they change the default 'level' (its at 8)?c. is there any way to get these defaults removed?I fear this is going to affect every job I try to get now... in my day the credit checks werent so stringent but it seems now times have changed.Really appreciate any advise you can give me

[BRIGADIER2JCS]

Hi, sorry to hear about your problem it highly

unlikely that the creditors can or will remove

or amend the credit files, the credit reference agencies are obliged to

show a true and accurate picture of how you manage yor

financial accounts, any amendment would that was not true

and accurate could see the CRA and the creditor in breach of

the Data Protection Act 1998.

What ever ''arrangement'' or payments you make will be up dated

on your files as usual and they will remain for the six year period and

then automatically drop off your files paid or not.

[znowdonia]

Thank you... If this is the case though surely some people would choose not to pay the whole debt off as it seems to make no difference if you do and the default dissappears after 6 years anyway? Or is that not the case? (I am paying mine off by the way, I am just curious)

[BRIGADIER2JCS]

That's the rule the default will be removed

after six years however as you have been

making payments it will not become statute

barred so the debt remains collectible .

[The Debt Star]

Brig, of course the creditors can remove data. But they choose not to. The whole system is flawed because it was never intended to be used by employers, landlords and their ilk.

[BRIGADIER2JCS]

The problem DS is that as set up at present the

CRA and the creditors are reporting the conduct

of accounts under regulation and legislation unde

acts of Parliament such as the DPA it must be

true and accurate,to remove a default simply

because the data subject does not like it or

it's stopping them getting credit etc. is not an

accurate picture of the data subjects management

of their financial affairs.

They are by name and function Credit Reference Agencies

and there is very little IMHO that we can do about it.

[The Debt Star]

yes but the point i'm making is that employers and private lanlords are not offering credit. the industry grew out of mail order catalogues in the 1970s and isn't adequately regulated.

[BRIGADIER2JCS]

I guess that the CRA's are now also looked upon

as references for ''general reliability'' of consumers

a landlord does not want a tenant with a record

of non payment and a financial business does not

want some one with perhaps CIFAS, GAIN or CCJ's

on their records.

As chair of a charity I'm checked regularly, it worries me not:madgrin:

[The Debt Star]

I'm sure they don't want that, but thats not the point.

 

the questionj is should they be able to utilise a credit referencing service, and which is notoriously inaccurate and difficult to get put right when errors are made.

[BRIGADIER2JCS]

I 'm not a supporter of CRA's. but I use

them professionally most days and rarely

find any that are errors directly attributable to

the CRA, and few that are made by the creditors

entering information, many of the matters I am asked

to look into are for people who have misinterpreted

the information on the report and also those who

think a default entry is wrong or unfair this is rare

in my experience..

I've lost count of the times that I have dealt with

complaints that ''my creditor score is defamatory, libelous etc.

The fact is it cannot be either as it is seen only by the data

subject as a ''general'' guide to the management of their

credit accounts and not seen by potential lenders.

I agree that they are not perfect but what is today.

[dpick]

Agree with most you say Brig but the problem starts when creditors do put incorrect defaults on your file and refuse to amend/remove the incorrect data. This has happened to me twice and the creditors would not change/amend data I had to go through FOS to get one record removed when duplicated under a different department of the same creditor and another changed to reflect the true position of my credit account after removal of charges and PPI showed that I had not been in arrears as the creditor had reported.

 

dpick

[BRIGADIER2JCS]

Good can you imagine what a state

we would all be in if there was no

''protection'' to alert us of such problems

as you quote and only prospective lenders,

banks etc., were the only ones to have access

to the data.

Better drop this now already been told off by

Citizen B for going off topic:focus:

[The Debt Star]

rarely

find any that are errors directly attributable to

the CRA, and few that are made by the creditors

entering information,.

 

Not my personal experience mate, nor of many others posting on here.

 

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?279026-HSBC-Credit-File-Entries-Cost-Me-A-Job-Advice-Needed&highlight=hsbc+job+offer

 

I suggest you read this poor bloke's experience of loss of employment caused by data abuse and the sordid cover up that took place ^ ^ ^ ^

 

The link is very much ON TOPIC.