Default on a credit card 5 years ago - can it be re-registered?

SammyP · 8 June 2011 at 1:37PM

Hi there

I am new to this site but would really welcome any advice that anyone might have.

In 2006, I lost my job and had a credit card with Egg. The amount outstanding was approx £4k with a minium payment of £100. After taking some advice I contacted Egg to explain my situation and to ask if I could make an arrangement with them to pay a lower monthly amount. They agreed that I could pay £20 per month and that they would not apply any further interest. A standing order was set up and I have continued to pay the monthly payment to Egg for the last 5 years with no problem. I should also mention that this does not seem to have prevented me getting further credit (0% credit card deals) and have had many in the last 5 years with fairly high credit limits.

Egg registered this on my Equifax credit file as a default while my Experian and Call Credit reports do not not mention it. I recently applied for a mortgage and the first lender turned us down because of the default, the second lender has also discovered the default but when I looked at my credit files, neither lender has searched the Equifax report. I've since been told that Barclays have bought Egg credit cards and it seems that Barclaycard have registered the default on my other 2 credit files from the 20th May (hence why the lenders have seen it). It now looks as though I have only recently defaulted which is untrue. If I'd have applied for the mortgage a month earlier it would not have come up.:(

Is there any way that I can get this rectified? Surely this doesn't mean that the 6 years start over again from the 20th May does it?

My credit files otherwise are completely clean and I've not missed/been late with any other payments.

Any advice would be welcomed.

abby1234519 · 8 June 2011 at 2:10PM

Unfortunately if a default is registered on a certain date, that is when it is registered from.

Maybe someone here can advise if you can have the date moved I am not sure! Or if you are still paying have you actually defaulted? i don't know that I just know the 6 years starts from date of default

Tixy · 8 June 2011 at 2:21PM

You need to check that the default on your experian and callcredit reports is correctly shown as x years ago and not dated 2011. Assuming its correctly registered then it will still go from your files 6years from the original default date.

If the default date has been incorrectly entered as sometime in 2011 then you'll need to make a complaint - you'll be able to prove when the default occured and the default notice sent out and be able to show your equifax report with the true default on. You'll be able to get it corrected but it probably is likely to take some time and effort to do so.

I'd expect its been correctly dated but until you check your report and see it on there you won't know for sure - even a 5year old default could well mean a mortgage application is refused.

SammyP · 8 June 2011 at 2:40PM

Thank you for the advice. At the moment the default isn't appearing on my Experian or Call Credit file. I accessed it again today but it still hasn't appeared, I can only go by what the lender has told my Financial Adviser. He says that apparently when you access your credit file it doesn't have the most up to date information, which I think is a bit silly.

I just hope I'm not going to have a real battle on my hands in trying to get it corrected if it is an incorrect date.

boogiemaster · 8 June 2011 at 4:38PM

I'm sure the credit agency only updates your report once a month.

Ring them up and ask them if a default has been placed on your file recently?

If it has then dispute the date with them and also get them to update your file at the same time.

himitsunomogura · 8 June 2011 at 8:11PM

If you have evidence that the default date recorded is incorrect, it would be best to send a copy of that to Barclays, asking them to update the CRAs records. You could send it to Equifax and ask them to contact Barclays for you but that would take longer.

As for lenders not seeing up to the minute information - thats not actually down to the CRAs, its down to the lenders. They only update CRAs every month or so (sometimes a bit longer). You can see on your Experian credit report, next to the Barclays account, the most recent update that they sent Experian, and it will give the date.

If you wanted them to send another update because you have been turned down for a mortgage and need to see why, they can in theory send an update any time they like, but that is likely to cost them money and I don't know if they legally have to. Then again, according to DPA, data held must be accurate and up to date, so if you quoted that bit (can't remember which of the DPA 'principles' it is, but you can google it easy enough) then you might be able to twist their arm.
Once they update Experian, it should show on your report within 48 hours at the latest. If not then give them a ring and make sure nothing has gone wrong.
Its generally quicker to go to the company rather than Experian, as Experian would have to go to the company anyway to ask for the update.
Not sure about Call Credit as I have never had dealings with them.

Sadly, a default can mean an instant decline even if its 5 years old, thanks to good old computerised scoring. However, if you appeal a decline / ask for a manual decision (you have the right under the Consumer Credit Act to opt out of automated scoring) then a human being might view your credit report with a bit more common sense? Well you would hope so anyway!

Default on a credit card 5 years ago - can it be re-registered?

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