CIFAS-how can I great rid off credit file?

barleymim

Last year I got my identity stolen and as a result I had a CIFAS put onto my credit file and I have not been able to get a credit card or even a £15 a month mobile phone contract since.

I pay all my minimum payments (and more), never go over my overdraft and have never missed any card or bill payments. Does anyone know how to get rid of this CIFAS? It's killing me and it's so unfair as I was originally the victim here!

INT1

If you were a victim it shouldn't be going against you.
You would have to contact the card issuer/bank that applied it to get it removed.

orc_2

This might be a shortcut.

Apply for a free trial with Experian, remember to cancel it once issue corrected by Experian. Raise a dispute to Experian stating you do not agree with CIFAS entry. They will then raise the issue with the card providers on your behalf. They get through to exactly the right people and tend to settle things fairly quickly.

Using Data Protection Act, you should not have incorrect information on your record which harms you and card providers have a duty to ensure this.

Let us know how you get on.

izools

good tip orc however this would only affect his experian credit file.

The CIFAS marker may still remain on his Equifax and Call Credit files.

I've had similar issues with my OH who had a CCJ incorrectly recorded against his name, which when disputed with Experian was remvoed, and the registry trust wrote to us saying they were removing it - but it was still on his Equifax file a year later! So had to raise separate NOD with all three CRAs to get it resolved

In any case, the CRA will only remove it with the creditors permission, and IME creditors don't do diddly squat about a NOD, they want big threats sent to them in writing time and time again by the customer before they remove the data...

...Speaking of which - this is funny -

The default date of my old RBS loan and Overdraft that was written into my Bankruptcy was marked as three months after the date of bankruptcy. I raised a notice of dispute so they wrote back to the CRA saying "OK, We'll amend the default date to one day after discharge". I don't think so! That's one year and one day too recent according to the DPA! They're getting some correspondence from myself and the ICO soon

jenny_13

Have the bank that put the marker on your account accepted it is ID theft? Contact them and ask them to remove it as it was a result of ID theft and they should be able to sort it for you.

never-in-doubt

A CIFAS (Cat 4) only lasts for 13 months so if it was placed last year then not long til it drops off....

You can only get the lender that placed it to remove it, the CRA's will not do it. If the lender refuses then you appeal to CIFAS who have a duty to investigate and can if necessary remove it.

However they auto disappear after 13 months if the lender that added it does not suspect the fraud is continuing.

Going to the CRA's and joining to cancel etc is a waste of time and not necessary - they will be able to do nothing. See here for the rules on what these guys can/can't do! Credit Reference Agencies

hopefulfooluk

Surely this is what CIFAS markers are intended for - what's the point of removing it prematurely? Removing it early would mean that any old soul could easily steal the OP's identity again and I'm sure that's not a desired scenario!

Lenders are not allowed to auto-decline based on a CIFAS marker being present so while that means that auto-acceptance is not usually going to happen while a marker is on there, it shouldn't have any bearing on the credit being granted once the lender has completed their extra checks to make sure the application is genuine. OP have you tried appealing some of the rejections?

Snooze

hopefulfooluk wrote: »

Surely this is what CIFAS markers are intended for - what's the point of removing it prematurely? Removing it early would mean that any old soul could easily steal the OP's identity again and I'm sure that's not a desired scenario!

Lenders are not allowed to auto-decline based on a CIFAS marker being present so while that means that auto-acceptance is not usually going to happen while a marker is on there, it shouldn't have any bearing on the credit being granted once the lender has completed their extra checks to make sure the application is genuine. OP have you tried appealing some of the rejections?

In theory, yes that is correct, but in reality it will always be a decline because they don't have spare folks to manually go through 'dodgy' apps to assess the risks. Bottom line - if you have a CIFAS of any category you can forget getting any credit for 13 months.

R

never-in-doubt

Snooze wrote: »

In theory, yes that is correct, but in reality it will always be a decline because they don't have spare folks to manually go through 'dodgy' apps to assess the risks. Bottom line - if you have a CIFAS of any category you can forget getting any credit for 13 months.

R

Exactly - the only exception to this is usually when it is a Protective Registration and although they are not auto declined, they are 'scanned' quicker than a normal appeal. If you have a Protective Registration marker then you should always appeal a decline as they will then allocate the case to an underwriter/decision maker.

Regards to the OP, he actually requested a Protective Registration marker (I missed this point in my original post) therefore meaning it will not calculate in the scoring model as adverse but neutral meaning no points are awarded until investigated. Therefore it will never fail on credit score until after an underwriter has looked into it - they will usually say declined due to your credit file or something.

That said, it is possible to get finance from companies that do not subscribe to CIFAS - one such company is Citi. They will notice the entry on your credit file but if its a 'hidden cifas' meaning you need to SAR cifas to see what is showing, companies like Citi will never see the entry.

I'd never suggest having a cifas - they just cause more bother long term.

For info,

never-in-doubt wrote: »

The CIFAS categories are as follows:

0 Protective Registration
Recorded at request of the person named or to protect the identity of a deceased person1 False Identity Fraud - Use of a false name with an address

2 Victim of Impersonation
Use, by another person, of this name and/or address

3 Application Fraud (Facility Granted)
An application/proposal for any facility with one or more material falsehoods in the information provided - the facility was granted

4 Application Fraud (Facility Refused)
An application/proposal for any facility with one or more material falsehoods in the information provided - the facility was refused

5 Conversion
Conversion (disposal or sale) of goods (to which the hirer/buyer does not have title) under a hire-purchase, conditional sale, contract hire, leasing or rental agreement

6 First Party Fraud
Opening an account or other facility for a fraudulent purpose, or the fraudulent misuse of an account or facility

7 Aiding & Abetting
Aiding, abetting or assisting, or conspiring with, another or others to fraudulently procure credit, hire or other facilities, or other product or service

8 Insurance Claims Fraud
The making of a claim(s) under one or more insurance policy(ies) with one or more material falsehoods or by presenting a false or forged document.

Where a CIFAS record is marked with a category '0' this means the entry on the database has been made at the request of the person named. In the majority of cases, the person has been a victim of a crime such as burglary or mugging and has had personal documentation, which could be used to fraudulently open an account, stolen from them.

The other categories describe different types of fraudulent activity. Particular attention should be paid to category 2. This category covers the 'victims of impersonation'. Their details appear on the database for their own protection. The information does not mean these individuals have committed frauds.

Category 6 covers a variety of situations. For example, someone who deliberately reports their credit card as stolen, when it has not been stolen and they are continuing to use it would be covered by this category. The same would apply to someone who reported they have not received some goods by mail order, when the goods had been delivered and the individual was using them.

INT1

Snooze wrote: »

Bottom line - if you have a CIFAS of any category you can forget getting any credit for 13 months.

R

Absolute rubbish. There are markers applied by CIFAS members to protect consumers, just like there is a marker that consumers can pay and get applied to protect them. It won't be a straight decline on any application but it will refer.

never-in-doubt

aldo wrote: »

Absolute rubbish. There are markers applied by CIFAS members to protect consumers, just like there is a marker that consumers can pay and get applied to protect them. It won't be a straight decline on any application but it will refer.

Yes rubbish in respect of cat '0' (protective registration) otherwise it is a 13 month wait....