Cleaning up my credit file

PippaGirl_2

I am beginning the process of cleaning my credit files. I have 4 main creditors but had a mobile phone contract years ago and the original company sold the debt on several times, they were the biggest hounders of all, all of them. They are all listed on my experian credit file even though it was one phone account. Who do I write to? Them all, even though they are all quoting defaults for the same account/debt?

TIA

Willing2Learn

Hi Pippagirl,

Why don't you raise a dispute with Experian? Much simpler than contacting four different people. Experian will investigate and amend your record upon its conclusion (subject to evidence proving inaccurate data has been recorded).

PippaGirl_2

The CRA just refers me back to the financial company and tells me to ask them to deal with it. So by that, maybe I just write to the mobile phone company? But that won't clear the other things up for the same debt will it.

yesican

As i'm currently sorting out my files,i have had to change my wording in order for them to help as just going straight to ask them to change,they'll probably ask you to contact the companies yourself.

e.g

Rather than saying, "Please do this for me"....i have been saying ,"Data that you hold on me is incorrect blah blah"...They have respectful helped me clean my files for me.

All the best..

PippaGirl_2

yesican wrote: »

As i'm currently sorting out my files,i have had to change my wording in order for them to help as just going straight to ask them to change,they'll probably ask you to contact the companies yourself.

e.g

Rather than saying, "Please do this for me"....i have been saying ,"Data that you hold on me is incorrect blah blah"...They have respectful helped me clean my files for me.

All the best..

The CRA's? Does this mean that these financial companies who have been given the debt to deal with by the phone company shouldn't have registered a default so this is incorrect? I'm confused, should it still only be with the original debt company then, the phone company?

And if I complain to the CRA, they will deal with it?

Sorry, I realised I am very clueless with this.

Willing2Learn

PippaGirl wrote: »

The CRA just refers me back to the financial company and tells me to ask them to deal with it.

As yesican said, you need to ask the right way. Can be done verbally, but I would do it in writing (email or post). If you do choose to write, then mark it for the attention of Data Controller

PippaGirl wrote: »

And if I complain to the CRA, they will deal with it?

Yes, the CRAs should investigate and liaise with the companies who may have reported the information that has caused the inaccuracy. Your report will be amended upon the conclusion of the investigation, subject to evidence proving there were inaccuracies.

Principle 4 of the The Data Protection Act says "Personal data shall be accurate and, where necessary, kept up to date.".


The ICO states that for organisations to comply with the provisions of Principle 4 they should:

• take reasonable steps to ensure the accuracy of any personal data you obtain;
• ensure that the source of any personal data is clear;
• carefully consider any challenges to the accuracy of information; and
• consider whether it is necessary to update the information.

I recommend checking your reports with the other two CRAs and raising a dispute with them too if their data is also inaccurate.

Please see the links below for more information and choose which sections you might want to consider directly quoting if you do decide to raise a dispute.

ICO guidance on Principle 4

Data Protection Act 1998, Schedule 1, The Data Protection Principles

PippaGirl_2

Thanks for your help.

I've fished out all my old letters and files and have written all my letters including what seems to be the two companies holding the debt for the 2 mobile phone contracts and will post them recorded tomorrow. There were 9 letters, that's quite bad isn't it. Still, it feels good getting this sorted and now I just hope that the DCO's all adjust their files correctly.

I have also written to one bank who are still recording me as having a financial association with my xh, saying I have a live and current joint current account with him. I've been in to the bank locally and they assure me it is a sole account in his name only and nothing to do with me so I have written to the DCO at that bank to ask them to correct their files. Interestingly, that account is in default and he is paying a monthly sum to pay it off and has been for years, so he's still in a mess financially despite his 6 figure salary. Feel a bit embarrassed that I'm aware of it when I shouldn't be!

PippaGirl_2

Got my first letter as a reply today, saying they'd ammeneded my file to say that debt is satisfied. Yay! Feels like one step closer to a clean file!

PippaGirl_2

My Noddle report has been updated today so I am looking at a much cleaner file.

But Nationwide Building society still show a default on a CC, though they updated Noddle with that on 28th Feb which would have been 3 weeks after I sent my letter. (I sent the clean up letters early Feb).

Then NatWest show default on a current account, they updated Noddle with this on 8th March so one month after I sent the letters.

1st credit show a default updated 7th March.

Then, my xh's Nationwide current account which has never been anything to do with me shows a default updated 13th feb. I wrote a separate letter about this to their Data Controller saying this is not my account and that I can see his defaults and that he has been paying the balance off by £100 a month and this is confidential information I shouldn't be able to see. On the details of this account it shows his date of birth but for some reason my name. In branch Nationwide tell me that this account is his and my name is not on it in any way and they can't explain why it is showing up on my credit report. The Data controller seems not to have amended that either. My xh earns a 6 figure salary so it's clear he is still in a financial mess. xh has a remaining balance of £67 on this account that he has not paid off for the last 6 months so this is going to remain in default every month and I'd like my name off it. What should I do now, their Data Controller has not responded to my letter at all?

Everything else shows as settled or satisfied (Yay!). Including one extra account that has appeared this month that I have never had or owed?! Looking into that new account's details it never shows a default, so why would it say settled? But, I notice on one of them the default is recent and I was BR last May, so shouldn't the default dates be no later than BR date, (that's Capital One)?

Should I leave it longer before writing more letters to ask them to correct things or should I give them more time?

I'm planning on paying for the other two CRA reports once I get Noddle looking clean, then I'm not wasting money just to have to pay again to check anything is then corrected.

Grateful for any advice.