Help me please

skyrocket123

I am taking a deep breath and hoping you can help me.
A few years back my marriage dissolved and I was left with the majority share of the financial burden from that marriage. When the house was sold I cleared the majority of debt as far as I was aware and got on with things accepting that my credit rating was poor. I adopted the ostrich method of not being able to cope with debt issues

I am now happily remarried and my husband has no debt and pays everything on time.
I expected my credit rating to have hugely improved however last night I did a credit check with Credit Expert and found numerous things on my file.

A couple of missed payments for two lots of mobile bills with 3 that are showing as default (dates of default 2011 and 2013), a Lowel finance default in 2011 and a T mobile (default 2010 and a Cap One (default 2010)

These are not huge amounts and even though they are defaulted I could pay them but reading around would it benefit me to do so?

As I understand it once an account is defaulted it will come off my file in 6 years?

If I phone up and pay these amounts will it make things better or just stay the same?

I also got a CCJ in 2011 but after the CCJ was passed I actually paid the full amount of that so I had hoped that would be gone now.

I don't know what to do (if there is anything I can do)

Impulse says to pay off the small debts but if it doesn't actually change my rating what's the point?

Please can you advise?

tallyhoh

I would pay them, they still have time to start court proceedings.

skyrocket123

Are they likely to for amounts under £50? all but two of the debts are for under £50.
Two of the amounts are for just under £500 but most of that is charges they put on top.

EssexHebridean

Thinking beyond the obvious of the 6 year question - don't forget to consider how paying -v- not paying will make you feel, too. Some people simply need to clear stuff if they have the ability to do so else the guilt of failing to do so hangs over them. Just an additional thought to chuck into the mix.

skyrocket123

Essex I appreciate what you're saying but I was left with the majority of my ex husbands debts which I cleared with my half of the house sale money. Trust me that wasn't a small amount either. He didn't pay his debts, I did. I was left with very little and still had to continue and house etc our two children with very little financial support from him. He escaped pretty much debt free in the end because once he left all of the debts ended up being sorted out by me.

So the 'feel good' factor of paying more money out if it won't actually clear my name is lost to me.
I want to be free of the whole sorry mess but I was a clear name more.
If time will give me that then great.
If paying those debts off will clear my name and credit file - fantastic.
But if paying those debts won't actually clear my name then what's the point?

sourcrates

Hi,

Small amounts like that are unlikely to see legal action, despite what you might think, less than 10% of defaulted debts ever end up in court, but you can never say never, it's impossible to predict what a creditor will do.

Paying them won't vastly improve your credit file, only time will do that.

Defaults will be gone after 6 years, if you haven't made any payments in those 6 years, then the limitations act comes into play, and they will become statute barred.

skyrocket123

SourCrates Thank you for your reply. Supposing it got near to the end of the 6 years and they decided to go to court. If I pay it then will it stay another 6 years on my record or would it drop off my file?
If I phone them today and pay it can they take it off my file if they wanted to?

sourcrates

skyrocket123 wrote: »

SourCrates Thank you for your reply. Supposing it got near to the end of the 6 years and they decided to go to court. If I pay it then will it stay another 6 years on my record or would it drop off my file?
If I phone them today and pay it can they take it off my file if they wanted to?

No, they will fall off your file after 6 years regardless of weather you pay them or not.
Paying the debt will not extend the time it's visable on your file.

Creditors have a duty to accurately record how you use credit, some people have negoatiated default removal as part of a settlement deal, it's up to the creditor in the end, don't expect them to do this though, but it never hurts to ask.

DCFC79

Just a few points, don't worry about your credit score, there's no definitive score/rating that lenders can see, what they see is your credit history.

No harm in asking if the defaults be removed, id get it in writing that this will happen if you pay x amount.

skyrocket123

I suppose it's a risk though at this stage to get in touch with them and offer to settle the debts if they then say they won't remove the defaults.

KirstyO

skyrocket123 wrote: »

I was left with very little and still had to continue and house etc our two children with very little financial support from him. He escaped pretty much debt free in the end because once he left all of the debts ended up being sorted out by me.

It sounds harsh but the companies that you owe money to don't really care about the circumstances.

skyrocket123 wrote: »

But if paying those debts won't actually clear my name then what's the point?

The point is that at some point you and your ex-husband owed that money. It was either credit or bills for products and services that you used. If you weren't in this situation and someone sent you a bill for a holiday that you had been on, you would pay because you had been on the holiday.

I appreciate that you're disappointed that this didn't go away as you thought it had, and if you genuinely believed that you had settled all the accounts then you might have grounds to get charges and fees removed, but ultimately the account balances before all of those fees were debts that you jointly agreed to on an equal basis.

Relationship breakdowns are horrible, and parties will always apportion some of the blame to each other, but you will be the better person if you deal with these in the right way and move on with your new (and better!) life. Defaults won't ruin you, and some of them will drop off next year! It's an inconvenience but that is what it is supposed to be, a barrier to getting more credit that possibly you can't afford based on your previous credit habits.

please don't think i'm a monster, all I want to do is show you that by taking a step back from the centre of it all (which is INSANELY hard) gives you a broader picture of what the lenders and credit reference agencies see. They are not known for being sympathetic and compassionate but they do have to be fair, so there is no harm in contacting them to discuss getting fees and charges dropped and defaults reversed. The worst they can do is say no.

If it were me, I couldn't cope with the guilt that comes with unpaid debt. It has almost broken me once, and I believe would do it again if given the chance. I would have to suck it up, pay it off and feel that weight lifted off my shoulders.

Home ownership is possible with defaults. I was approved for a mortgage last year with my little monster still two years away from dropping off. After all of the 2010/2011 ones drop off next year, you are in a much better position (but note even once the accounts have dropped off and possibly become statute barred, it doesn't mean that you no longer owe the money, it means that you cannot be pursued for it, two very different things!).

I hope that you make an informed choice with your next move. whatever happens you can look forward to a squeaky clean credit file in the next 2-3 years (and some people on here would do anything for that).

K