DCA changed date on default..what now

brians_daughter

Hi all i have posted this a while ago but was advised to only start to challenge it now. I had a debt that shows as defaulted on my credit file ORIGINALLY in October 2003. So it should come off my file this coming month.

The creditor sold the debt to a DCA who changed the date of the default to 2005, and the balance showed £1 less than the original default. I have copies of my credit file with the original default on there and i also have a copy of my credit file now showing the default change date. they also have my name incorrect (spelling error) and my DOB wrong as well!

I have written to equifax and experian but they simply wrote to the DCA who stated the info they have shows i defaulted in 2005 - not 2003. I have provided them both with copies of my report which clearly shows teh default as 2003 not 2005 but they arent willing to assist

Now, i know this isnt the case re 2005 as i defaulted when i lost my job and went through a rough relationship breakdown. Since 2004 I have tried my best to pay my debts ontime and certinally never defaulted on anything.

I actually called the original creditor to try and speak with them around 18 months ago to try and find out what the debt was for and if i did owe it , they said that they seemed to have no record of the debt but suggested maybe it wouldnt be on their systems if it had been sold.

I had other defaults but i paid these off and now they have dropped off my credit report. I have truely learnt my lesson regarding debt and I am trying hard to become debt free but i do need credit in terms of mortgage etc so its quite important i get this sorted before i get lumbered with a bad mortgage deal again!

Can anyone assist? What do i do?

fermi

Follow the procedure described on page 19 onwards of this:

http://www.ico.gov.uk/upload/documents/library/data_protection/practical_application/credit_explained_leaflet_2005.pdf

Raise a formal complaint with the ICO if needed.

brians_daughter

thanks so much! i have googled til my fingers hurt and couldnt come up with anything!

fermi

Good.

Plus this is the ICO's own guidance which confirms they should NOT have done this.

From: Technical Guidance Note - Filing defaults with credit reference agencies

The ‘sale’ or assignment of debts on defaulted accounts

52 When the rights to a debt are sold to a third party, the lender has to make sure the records with the credit reference agency are accurate, up to date and adequate. If they want information about the debts to continue on the credit reference file they will need to come to an agreement with the purchaser about who is to be responsible for this.

53 If the purchaser agrees to take control of the record, the customer should be informed that the debt has been sold or assigned and to whom. The credit reference agency file should be changed to show the name of the purchaser and that the rights to the debt have been sold or assigned.

The purchaser should then make sure the record is kept up to date including changes to the amount still owed. The purchase should not affect how long the record is kept. It should be removed six years after the default.