Negotiating removal of defaults?

fompas

Hi everyone,

I'm looking for a bit of advice... Whilst at uni I got really stupid with credit and long story short ended up in a Debt Management Plan. This started 2 years ago and as usual with these things nearly all of my accounts have defaulted.

I've worked really hard to sort my finances out and learned to look after my money better and now want to try and sort my credit file out.

I owe approx £7500 to my creditors and they're currently receiving less than £50 to spread between 7 of them as this is what DMP company said I could afford.

My question is: if I called them individually and offered to pay them back now in full, could I negotiate that by doing so they remove the default from my credit file? I've just inherited a sum of money which is enough to pay them off, however if the defaults will remain anyway, I don't see the point and would rather pay them off slowly. I'm

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks.

HelpfulTips

Unfortunately not, your credit report must show how you have managed credit for the last 6 years. They will show the defaults as satisfied if they are paid off, but they will remain in your credit report for 6 years after you settle them. It wouldn't be accurate if they remove the default as it would suggest you have always manages your credit well. I'm not having a go, and I'm glad to hear your in a better position now, but you will have to bite the bullet on this one

TopperHarris

This is not always the case. Colleague of mine had x 2 defaults with T-Mobile and another company i do not remember the name of.

He offered to make a final payment and T-Mobile removed the default. The other company which i think was a credit card said they would not.

boo_star

TopperHarris wrote: »

This is not always the case. Colleague of mine had x 2 defaults with T-Mobile and another company i do not remember the name of.

He offered to make a final payment and T-Mobile removed the default. The other company which i think was a credit card said they would not.

They're technically breaching the DPA but I'm sure some will do so to close an account.

Bravestar

fompas wrote: »

Hi everyone,

I'm looking for a bit of advice... Whilst at uni I got really stupid with credit and long story short ended up in a Debt Management Plan. This started 2 years ago and as usual with these things nearly all of my accounts have defaulted.

I've worked really hard to sort my finances out and learned to look after my money better and now want to try and sort my credit file out.

I owe approx £7500 to my creditors and they're currently receiving less than £50 to spread between 7 of them as this is what DMP company said I could afford.

My question is: if I called them individually and offered to pay them back now in full, could I negotiate that by doing so they remove the default from my credit file? I've just inherited a sum of money which is enough to pay them off, however if the defaults will remain anyway, I don't see the point and would rather pay them off slowly. I'm

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks.

If your financial sitution has changed, and very dramatically so in less than 2 years it would appear if you can now settle your debts in full, then you should refer back to the company that set up your DMP - I'm sure they will be very interested.

I'm sure they will first want to check you really are in a position to settle all your debts, without undue strain that could put you right back to stage one and ongoing financial difficulties.

As you should be aware, a DMP is not a legally binding agreement, so creditors can still chase you for their money.
They could also take you to court if they wanted.

Normally they wouldn't bother, as they know they cannot get blood out of a stone, and if the DMP said you could only afford a total £50 per month, then they know that is all you could afford and that is being shared amogst your creditors.

But if they discover you do have the means to pay more (or perhaps have gained assets that could be siezed or otherwise have a charge put over them) then they may well go about pursuing you in court if you don't pay what you owe ... and have now admitted you can pay.

You didn't say if interest has been frozen, but lets assume it all has been, but evenso at £50 a month, that's going to take over 12 years to pay off. Do you really want this hanging round your neck for 12+ years when it doesn't need to be?

Also, whilst there is nothing technically stopping you, you should not be taking on any further borrowing whilst you are in the DMP - the company that set up the DMP for you should have advised you of that.

System

What section of the DPA would be breached by such a settlement?

boo_star wrote: »

They're technically breaching the DPA but I'm sure some will do so to close an account.

matttye

Heng_Leng wrote: »

What section of the DPA would be breached by such a settlement?

http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1998/29/schedule/1/part/I/paragraph/4

"4

Personal data shall be accurate and, where necessary, kept up to date."

Strictly speaking I don't think removing an entire account from a credit file would be breaching the DPA, but amending an account history so it looks like there was no default definitely would be.