Northern Rock unsecured loan - challenging incorrect default date?

[Defaultdate]

Hi, I’d be very grateful for some advice on behalf of a sibling.

Some years ago they got into difficulties and defaulted on their Northern Rock “Together” mortgage.
We were able to help them stave off possession and the full redemption value of the secured part of the loan was satisfied.

This left them being chased for the non-secured part of the borrowing, which was an unsecured personal loan?

I helped send some letters including a CCA request, which was provided but not ever satisfactorily, as far as I could see.

These NRAM loans mostly got sold off to a company called Landmark, who have continued to send statements, but no longer seem to be actively chasing the debt.

As we thought that 6 years had now passed, and because they need to rent somewhere to live, I assisted them in checking their credit rating using an Experian backed app.
This shows payments being made up to Feb 2018, with a default later in August that year.

The thing is, no payments have been made to the mortgage, or the remaining loan, since 2016.
I have had a look at some of the piles of paperwork and it appears that there were some charges refunded to the account, lastly in July of 2017, this could have presumably been classed as a payment? But it certainly doesn’t explain the continuous payments reported to the reference agency until early 2018.

my question is

what is the best course of action in this situation?

Should we wait and sit it out until after August 2024?

Could challenging the default date restart the statute clock?

Many thanks in advance.

[London1971]

Hi Challenging the date won't re start the Statute Barred Clock, but I don't think it's worth bothering, whatever happens it's statute barred in Aug '24.

 

I don't think there is any need to 'wait anything out either'. That default is now so old, no potential landlord or mortgage lender will even care.  A low credit score is likely totally unrelated to that.

 

You should also try and subscribe to multi agency credit file checkers, sometimes it's possible that something else is causing problems that isn't listed on Experian.  

 

Has your sibling moved house since the loan was taken out? If so it's extremely important that they write to Landmark with current address details.

 

 

[Defaultdate]

Their address is known to Landmark - as I say they send occasional statements. 
 

Their credit score isn’t looking too bad considering the default showing - I don’t think there are any other issues other than their lack of any sort of current track record of responsible borrowing with regular repayments being made. 

 

I know a year on from August is not too long in the scheme of things but it’s potentially stopping them from making plans at this time. 
 

I know it’s not an easy market for renters at the moment and as a single-let landlord myself, I know that any sort of default showing on a credit check would put me off a prospective tenant, if there was another applicant with a completely clean sheet…

 

Thank you for the input though, it’s good to get other views

[London1971]

Landmark sending statements to their current address does not correlate with them having the correct address on file.  That's why it's that important , that on Monday your sibling must write to Landmark with their current address, if it has changed since the loan was taken out. 

 

It will cost them a first class stamp but will protect against a potential whole world of credit trouble, that would make a 5 year old default seem like a walk in the park.

 

It's called a back door CCJ. All the statements and threat o grams come to your sibling, but that's just the address that Landmark found on the electoral register. The actual old address that Landmark have on file, is where the Claimform will go, completely unknown to your sibling, only to be discovered when a CCJ pops up 'by surprise', driving a 10 tonne truck through their credit for the next 6 years.

 

Now, back to the default. If it's a five year old one off, in isolation, it's really a Nothing Burger. Even if it turns out payments were not made, and by some miracle they change the default date back, it will probably take a year anyway.

 

Yes, Landmark were likely taking the mickey, and yes maybe it would be worthwhile if the default was a year old, but I think now, it's really not worth the effort.

[dx100uk]

this unsecured loan will be the 100% mortgage dodge (bridge) loan they did to make up the shortfall of the mortgage itself...ruddy mortgage  scammers like redstone etc .

 

the refunding of any charges is not a payment by them so can't be used to reset  SB date.

 

strange you say they made no payments themselves to the mortgage or loan since 2016?? so it should be well sb'd.

 

you paid off the whole of the mortgage to prevent repo when?

 

dx

 

[Defaultdate]

Yep those old work arounds, fortunately worked out in our favour though, it seems!

 

The full secured mortgage redemption value was definitely paid off by early in 2017. . 

 

@London1971I see what you’re getting at but that’s definitely not an issue. 
 

They (NRAM/landmark) have had mail sent to them from the new address on more than one occasion, in particular when the CCA request was sent. 
 

In addition I’m certain that no legal paperwork has been sent to their old address in the meantime, and if any does turn up at any point it will be forwarded to me. 

[London1971]

Excellent news, that together with the CCA makes it a lot less likely for any Claimform to be issued, in the short time remaining before it becomes Statute Barred.