T-Mobile Default Issues

Vagabond_UK

Hi,

I have an issue with T-Mobile I'm trying to sort out and I'd appreciate some advice. First to the background... apologies for the lengthy post and the sizeable images, but I wanted to provide as much info as I can.

A few years back I had a contract with T-Mobile with phones for both my wife and I on the contract. I was the sole account holder. During a girls' break abroad in 2006, my wife used her mobile to send texts to myself and our children - unknowingly racking up a hefty bill, as T-Mobile charged connection fees per text.

After trying to come to an arrangement to repay with T-Mobile, they eventually defaulted the account and passed it to a DCA and I began to repay them at an agreed rate per month. Everything was fine until October last month when the DCA stopped taking their regular standing order payment. Not wanting to be a non-payer, I tried to send payments manually but after a few days the payment would reappear back in my bank account - clearly the DCA was no longer collecting the account.

I contacted T-Mobile support (almost impossible!) via email and Twitter, only to be told that as the account had been passed to a DCA, they weren't able to accept payment on the account and I would have to deal with them. I had lost all record of who the DCA was, and asked them who was administering the account - they couldn't tell me which DCA was assigned my account.

So I was stuck in the position of wanting to repay my debt, but having no-one to pay it to. T-Mobile wouldn't take my money, nor would it seem the DCA, whoever they were. After a few months of trying, I gave up, and the DCA hadn't bothered trying to get in touch re: non-payment. I figured that after almost 12 months and no contact that it was a dead account.

Last month, I tried again with T-Mobile and the DCA with similar results, so I wrote to T-Mobile's CEO asking if he would expunge the remaining balance and consider removing the default as a gesture of goodwill in light of the hassles I had had. He agreed to the former, but not to the latter.

So fast forward to today and I'm checking my monthly credit reports through Equifax and Call Credit (Annualcreditreport) and I notice that T-Mobile have indeed marked the default as settled.

HOWEVER, they have also wiped all history of the debt between the original default date (Dec' 06) and the date of settling the default (July '11), alleging the account entered default in Sept '10 after a period of arrears - this is clearly not true!

I've screengrabbed my credit report from last month and this month to illustrate.

(Image links being mangled... )

I've opened a dispute with Equifax stating the above information and that the information recorded is inaccurate and not a true representation of the life of the account .. I wondered if there was anything else I can do?

Surely T-Mobile can't just doctor previous information in this manner to paint an erroneous picture of the behaviour of my account?

Vagabond_UK

The Images...

Image #1 shows my Equifax report for this account on 4th July 2011



Image #2 shows my account behaviour according to Callcredit on 1/8/11 ...



Image #3 shows my Equifax report for this account on 4/8/11...



Image #4 shows my Callcredit report (via Annualcreditreport) for this account on 4/8/11

Vagabond_UK

It appears to me that Equifax information is completely inconsistent with that being reported by Callcredit/Annualcreditreport?

topcat9

Hi Vagabond_UK,

This must be really aggravating for you but if it's any consolation, I suspect T-Mobile aren't deliberately trying to mess up your credit history. They have had to alter the records with two agencies to show the account as settled - one has been done correctly, the other looks like they've simply made a mess of it. I wonder if they intended to use 3 September 2010 as the settlement date for the default (as it seems to be around this time that the DCA stopped taking payments and your latest troubles began)? Then somehow either through their mistake or Equifax's, this date ended up being taken as the default date.

You've done the right thing anyway by disputing the date with Equifax. I would also get back to the CEO of T-Mobile to politely point out that whilst you're very grateful to them for marking the default as settled, the date has been reset incorrectly. When you've been messed around so much I'm sure you feel like just blowing your top with T-Mobile now, but you're nearly there!!

Vagabond_UK

Well, I've just received notice from TMobile that my credit report is accurate?? They don't say which one... I refuse to have a default noted for 2010 when this is clearly not the case.

chanz4

they are correct in what they are saying, the default was in 2006, but until paid the account is reported to callcredit as in default.

Vagabond_UK

Chanz, you're missing the point.

The account is in default - but in 2006. TMobile settled the account (in goodwill!) as of the date when the problems began with DCA not taking payments. The Callcredit report shown is what I believe a TRUE representation of my file; the Equifax report is not.

I don't believe they can simply erase parts of the account's history and move a default registered in 2006 to 2010!

nottoolate

Vagabond_UK wrote: »

I don't believe they can simply erase parts of the account's history and move a default registered in 2006 to 2010!

correct. they cant.

Vagabond_UK wrote: »

Chanz, you're missing the point.

not unusual.