Credit Rating Woes

Fieval

Hi guys, I'm new to this and wasn't sure where to put this topic but I've recently come across a problem that has royally screwed up my financial life and I was wondering whether anyone has any further advice / people to complain / gain recompense for...

I share my name with my father and am currently living at the same address. At some point in the last couple of weeks (I assume when the new electoral role info went in) My credit rating and my father's have been merged into one file. As my dad has had quite a lot of money issues stemming from self employment etc... this has taken my credit rating from perfect to awful due to a combination of his debts / the fact there are 2 different birthdates on many accounts / his financial dependencies on my record. This has led to my credit cards being cut by over £2000 without prior information and has left me unable to apply for loans / credit / new house rental agreements as my credit rating has dropped so much.

Normally this wouldn't be as much of a problem as it is currently but I was accepted for a new job at a much higher salary / position that I've been unable to take as I can't relocate / buy a car to commute or anything. This has left me considerably out of pocket and has meant I have had to turn down a potentially life changing opportunity, all down to an administrative mistake that I have no control over.

I've used Noddle to raise the discrepancies on my credit report but they take a long time to fix and aren't easily contactable with questions etc. So I was wondering is there a central authority I can contact / complain to / gain some recompense for all the heartache this has caused me over the last month and in the run up to Christmas. I was also planning a big holiday for my 30th including a trip abroad on credit card but this has also had to be cancelled. Any suggestions or assistance would be greatly appreciated as I'm feeling more than a bit aggrieved at the whole series of proceedings now!

BugsyBrowne

Noddle credit report is like Primark its now getting more & more customers because its cheap but once you're in the place its not really what your looking for so you then decide to head over to the big stores(Experian) like house of Fraser which has less customers because of the price but has exactly what your looking for.

Fieval

To be fair I'd imagine it's not Noddle's fault that the information is mixed. It's whoever merged the reports of mine and my father. That's who I'm after talking to. The base procedure will surely be the same no matter who I ask (Noddle, Experian, Equifax etc) they will all show the reports merged.

I really want to complain to those people surely?

sfax

Are you saying your credit report has credit agreements that are solely in his name? Do you share the same first name or initial?

I would get a subscription with Equifax and also with Experian and raise online disputes on their websites for every one of the inaccuracies. Equifax usually turn them around in 2 weeks.

Noddle use CallCredit which hardly any lenders use when searching so not much point cleaning that one up first - but worth doing long term.

Fieval

Yeah. My credit report has between 11-17 references on it to bank accounts, loans, credit agreements, mortages and dependants that are his. We share the first name but I go by michael andrew instead of michael.

Experian_company_representative

Your credit reports should not be mixed up. Credit report data should include a full name and date of birth, which enables us to differentiate between people at the same address, even if they have similar names. Check your reports with all three CRAs and alert each agency to any discrepancies you find. Do not assume a data matching problem with one agency will be the same with the other two as we use different algorithms to arrange and target data. You can order a copy of your Experian report here and, if you do find confusion with your father, you can request a 'disassociation' here.

James Jones

Fieval

Hi James. I know reports shouldn't be mixed up. However they are. It is clearly obvious as there are references to my father's bank accounts clearly visible on mine. I will look at other reports and use the disassociation point. But as I've previously stated I'm after a direct complaint here as there has been a mix up and it has made my life very difficult and will continue making life difficult until it is fixed. I know that there is a definite problem as my rating was reduced over night and the references are there to see. Hence why I'm so annoyed.

chanz4

compo....nope

Fieval

Also, in addition to this farce. When this is fixed (hopefully quickly) I assume my credit report will return to it's previous standard? I don't feel that I should have to re-build my record from scratch after I've been working on it for years to keep it decent!

sfax

Fieval wrote: »

Also, in addition to this farce. When this is fixed (hopefully quickly) I assume my credit report will return to it's previous standard? I don't feel that I should have to re-build my record from scratch after I've been working on it for years to keep it decent!

Your credit report is just a compilation of information supplied by lenders and other agencies. Once you have removed the things that aren't pertaining to you, it will only show your credit agreements etc so the next time a lender searches, that is all they will see. There shouldn't be any need to rebuild anything

I would get your Experian and Equifax reports first because you're basing all of this on one report which is the least reliable and least used of the three. I wouldn't take any action based solely on what's on Noddle (CallCredit) because they may have merged your reports incorrectly whereas Experian and Equifax didn't

Maestro.

This sounds like a complete !!! of a situation to be in, especially about the job.

I assume you have explained what is happened to the employers and were unable to come to some sort of agreement? You worded your post as if that door is now closed forever.

It's time to start ascertaining facts. Get on the phone to Experian and Equifax and start asking for answers... loudly, if the civil approach doesn't cut it.