Improving My Credit

nathanj_3

Hey folks,
I've only just come across this site after watching Martin's new TV series 'Make Me Rich' and I have to say it's full of really useful information.

I've started to take a look at my credit reports and noticed two problems, one is a default for payment on my broadband account and another from a mobile phone company in 1998.

The broadband account was a problem we had with a house fire, I didn't contact them for about two months after the fact to transfer services to my new house. This was paid in full and I'm still a customer with them.

How/can I get this removed from my credit file?

The mobile phone bill from 1998 was due to a dispute with my handset insurance company. The phone was lost and they tried to charge me the full price of the handset to replace it - I refused to pay and the mobile company demanded full payment of my contract. Stupidly I left this one alone...

Can I do much about this now?

Other than these my credit file is clean (although it does score me poorly for my low amount of credit searches), how can I improve my score and be accepted for a low limit credit card?

Peachy_2

hiya
This isn't guaranteed to work, but it did for me... Contact your broadband supplier's head office / complaints department and ask to speak to someone re your credit file entry. Try to get someone like a manager - or as high in authority as poss (i.e. with the ability to be able to change your credit entry basically) Be reeeeeaaaaaaaaaaally nice and complimentary about the service and that you're still a customer of theirs and explain what happened. And then just ask them if they would (and this is the key phrase) " as an act of goodwill " remove the negative entries that you got given that since that time you've paid regularly and in good time etc.

Do the same with the mobile phone company, but this time be a bit more assertive - make a complaint (as they were seemingly in the wrong in the first place!) and don't accept what they say if they at first start to just say you owe them etc. Take it as high as it will go and say (if you wanted) that you would be prepared, as an act of goodwill again, to pay for the handset now if they would likewise remove the negative credit file entry. Sometimes its better to pay for something just so your credit record's better - but obviously ONLY if they agree to take off the bad entry...

I paid an HSBC loan off that I had late payments (several) and as I had been a customer for over 11 years, they seemed quite ok about it and removed the late payments.

Equally, T-Mobile removed six months of late payments when I explained that there must have been a mix up when I moved house about my final payment to them - I paid them the outstanding £25 only after they agreed to take the entry off.

Also NTL are looking into removing a default (ok was only £4!!) as I similarly had a good payment history with them thereafter.

SO mine should be ok come Jan when all the details are updated.

Let me know how you get on, its worth it if you don't mind the hassle of having to charm them, which if that gets nowhere, make a big complaint etc.

Am going to post this somewhere else too but also wanted to say Abbey have offered me £305 to say sorry to me for rubbish treatment after I complained persistantly, so it really really is worth getting in touch with the supplier and talking!

Good luck, hope it works!

Peachy

(PS also make sure you're on the electoral role) :xmassign:

Peachy_2

PPS - actually if that default mobile phone entry is 1998, that's 7 years ago - so it should have been taken off after 6 years! Check with the supplier and write to the credit file companies to make sure they've updated correctly!

mummytofour

IMHO these defaults should now be ignored as thery are over 6 years old.

I think you will find that if you are looking for credit now these defalts should no longer hinder you.

Welcome to the site!

Vxx

southernscouser

mummytofour wrote:

IMHO these defaults should now be ignored as thery are over 6 years old.

I think you will find that if you are looking for credit now these defalts should no longer hinder you.

Welcome to the site!

Vxx

They will still hinder you as they are on your file.

But as someone else said, after 6 years the default should be removed from your file. I can't remember how you go about this but many on here will.

---lee---

southernscouser wrote:

They will still hinder you as they are on your file.

But as someone else said, after 6 years the default should be removed from your file. I can't remember how you go about this but many on here will.

I thought they were only removed 6 years after they were settled?

digp

no. 6 years from when default notice issued. some companies deliberately delay issuing the notice of default (nothing you can do about it it seems). raise a query with the c.ref. agency

---lee---

digp wrote:

no. 6 years from when default notice issued. some companies deliberately delay issuing the notice of default (nothing you can do about it it seems). raise a query with the c.ref. agency

Correct :j . I was talking rubish. Got my credit report a week or so ago - just checked in the handy little Experian handbook thing. 6 Years from the date the client decides that the account was defaulted. Therefore the credit reference agencies should remove these entries if you query them. Good luck.