Removal of AP Markers - Barclaycard

Hatecreditors.com

AP or AR means 'Arrangement to Pay'.

When you can't meet your contractual payments with a creditor and enter a 'Payment Arrangement' they will mark your credit file with an AP/AR (as opposed to a late payment marker or default).

Sounds better than a Default right? Or so I thought......it's actually worse as creditors still see it as equal to a default, but they will stay on your creditor file indefinitely until fully paid. And even then it will stay on for 6 years from your last payment.

A default drops off after 6 years regardless of its status (i.e outstanding or paid).

rizla_king

LittleAoife wrote: »

Sorry to sound like an idiot but what is an AP marker??

Arrangement to pay.

Used by creditors instead of a default so they can ***k your credit file for the maximum amount of time they can get away with.

michael1983l

Simple sollution to the problem. Boycott paying them

Stewart_78

Hatecreditors.com wrote: »

It sounds like you were talking to thesame person as me! My blood pressurewould have been through the roof that day!

I wouldn’t hold out any hope onBarclaycard. They’re a bunch of*******. I’ve even heard horror stories aboutthem applying defaults when the debt is almost paid off to well and truly screwyou for as long as possible.

Oh the wonder of hindsight! If I only knew not to pay them a penny untilthey defaulted me I’d be laughing now!

Indeed. My wife started a DMP a little after me and tried a little harder than I did to placate them. I didn't answer the phone for 6 months but she talked it over with them. They did AP my file but agreed that they should have defaulted and changed it. I'm just about to start the same process with her account although she pays a lot more than me so it's touch and go.

My advice to anyone entering a DMP would be to plead outright poverty, offer a pittance and you'll be better off in the long run. Paying more makes them ask for more, not default you and screws you over in the long run.

michael1983l

I personally would wait for all accounts to go into default before starting your DMP. They will be more eager to negotiate after 6 months of no payment and there will be no AP's

Hatecreditors.com

By way of an update to this, I’ve now receivedthe following response (after 2 months). Before I detail their response, I just want to say I’m not holding outany hope for these people as they seem almost as bad as Barclaycard:



....youare concerned that Barclaycard have placed inaccurate data on your creditreference files in terms of the arrangement to pay markers, whilst You acceptsome form of identification should have been placed on your file, you believe thatby placing an arrangement to pay has had a detrimental effect on your beingable to obtain further credit.



What we will do now



We willwrite to Barclaycard, to Explain why they have felt it necessary to place anarrangement to pay markers on your credit reference file.



Now the reason I don’t hold out any hope isthat the ICO clearly don’t have the ability to interpret their own flipping guidelines. Surely they should be able to look at thisand say ‘our guidelines state that you can’t put someone in a worse position thansomeone who has made no attempt at payment’.



Why have they asked Barclaycard why it’snecessary to place an arrangement to pay maker. All they’re going to say is ‘because it was a payment arrangement undera DMP’. Then I assume the ICO will say, ‘oh,ok then, that’s fine’.



I think I might just give up on all this andaccept the credit file for the next 6 years. Sighhh

fermi

They have to give them a chance to respond first, in case there are circumstances or factors that you have omitted from telling the ICO about.

Hatecreditors.com

Thanks for your response Fermi.



It looks like I may have misinterpreted theire-mail then! I just thought it wasstrange that they’re asking why Barclaycard have applied the markers when theyhave received all correspondence from me and Barclaycard. But you’re right, they will need to heartheir side of the story.



What I found a bit strange was the ICO finishedwith ‘if you don’t hear from Barclaycardwithin 28 days please do not hesitate to contact us’. Surely Barclaycardwould be responding to the ICO directly rather than me? Or is this because I am their customer andthey need to write to me directly?



Hopefully Barclaycard will rethink theirdecision now the ICO are involved. Or isthat wishful thinking?



Thanks for your help.

Bettingmad

Hatecreditors.com wrote: »

Thanks for your response Fermi.



It looks like I may have misinterpreted theire-mail then! I just thought it wasstrange that they’re asking why Barclaycard have applied the markers when theyhave received all correspondence from me and Barclaycard. But you’re right, they will need to heartheir side of the story.



What I found a bit strange was the ICO finishedwith ‘if you don’t hear from Barclaycardwithin 28 days please do not hesitate to contact us’. Surely Barclaycardwould be responding to the ICO directly rather than me? Or is this because I am their customer andthey need to write to me directly?



Hopefully Barclaycard will rethink theirdecision now the ICO are involved. Or isthat wishful thinking?



Thanks for your help.

I went down this route 6 months ago, ICO as usefull as a box of chocolates in a sauna. I quoted their own guidelines in my complaint i.e I had already been on a DMP for two years and evidenced that I would still be on one for another 4 years.

Two Barclaycard accounts littered with AP markers for the full two years. End result found in Barclaycards favour because they informed ICO that my DMP was reviewed on a 6 month basis therefore they were able to continue placing AP markers throughout.

It is an absolute joke and as far as I am aware nowhere further to appeal to. MSE need to look at taking this behavior of using AP markers to punish those making a genuine attempt to clear their debt. It is so perverse when I am obviously at a significant disadvantage to the scenario if I had not made any attempt to pay until I forced a default.

fermi

So what is happening to the complaint via the FOS?