Will my defaults ever drop off ?

Dannydebt

I have defaults from 2006, which I though would drop off in 2012. But I am repaying these with a token payment each month and after checking my credit report they are updating these defaults every month, does this mean that for as long as I pay them and they update them they will never drop off my file, or is it taken from the date of default e.g 21/07/2006 and would drop off six years later ?.

Thanks.

DarkConvict

I have been corrected on this before so this should be correct.

A creditor can place a default on your credit report every time you miss your contractual minimum payment.

I.e.
Full payment is £400.
Minimum is £40.
You pay £20.

Anything below the minimum payment, even one that has been agreed, it is still classed as an informal arrangement so they can place defaults on the credit report. Thus token payments will still get defaults on the report. Existing defaults only last 6 years, so they disappear after that point, but obviously if they keep applying more the newer ones are still visible until they have lasted 6 years.

The point of token payments is it is showing you can only pay what you can afford. So they may freeze interest or reduce other charges. Failing that if they ever consider court action the judge can see you have tried, and have paid exactly only what you can afford.

Tixy

Hi Danny

They will drop off 6years after the date of default, whether they are fully paid or not.

Tixy

DarkConvict

I think you can only have 1 default for any debt. They can mark a late payment against you every month you underpay or don't pay but the default date shouldn't change?

I think? Anyone?

fermi

They will simply be updating the status as "default" (a "D" or "8") each month, rather than issuing a new default each time.

Doing so does not extend the time the defaulted account will remain on your reports, because they can only register the initial default once.

The account and default will drop off the files six years after the original default was registered.

Dannydebt

Tixy wrote: »

DarkConvict

I think you can only have 1 default for any debt. They can mark a late payment against you every month you underpay or don't pay but the default date shouldn't change?

I think? Anyone?

Hi,
They only show........

DEFAULT DATE: 21/07/2006
LAST UPDATED: 20/09/2009
STATUS: DEFAULTED

They don't show a payment amount or anything like that, just the LAST UPDATED date changes every month, so I was wondering if they would drop of after 6 years of the DEFAULT DATE in this case 21/07/2006 or from the last LAST UPDATED date which could be never ending !.

Thanks.

fermi

Dannydebt wrote: »

They don't show a payment amount or anything like that, just the LAST UPDATED date changes every month, so I was wondering if they would drop of after 6 years of the DEFAULT DATE in this case 21/07/2006 or from the last LAST UPDATED date which could be never ending !.

6 years from the DEFAULT DATE.

So, July 2012.

alyewing

Hiya,

I'm going to kinda hijack this question to as another related question...

what happens to your credit rating after the default has dropped off??

Thanks for your help!

Aly

x

Tixy

Hi Aly and welcome

It gets much better. Obviously depending on what else is on there but in principle if this was the only 'blip' on your credit record then once its gone you credit rating should leap up to whatever it would have been had the default never occured.

alyewing

Tixy wrote: »

Hi Aly and welcome

It gets much better. Obviously depending on what else is on there but in principle if this was the only 'blip' on your credit record then once its gone you credit rating should leap up to whatever it would have been had the default never occured.

Thanks for that Tixy! I'm sure it is something that some other people would have been wondering as well!

moneyburner

Hi,

I have 3 defaults on my account, if they drop off in 6 years is there any point in paying them??? Sorry if this seems like a stupid question!!!