Alias on credit report

downesy88

Hi, my credit file had an alias attatched by halifax bank (they claim to know nothing about this). The alias was my dad, iv been unable to get a mortgage because of this as all his credit information was on my account, so what I provided to the mortgage application wasn't correct in terms of out goings. Not only is this a data protection issue as I have access to his credit accounts but also it caused us unbelievable stress as my partner and I are first time buyers trying to secure our perfect house, not mentioning the stress it's caused my parents being in this position. We were advised by our mortgage advisor to make a claim (both myself and my dad) but I was just after some advice on how to approach this and if it is worth pursuing. (Sorry if it's in the wrong section, this is the first time using the forum)
Thanks

mwarby

I think there is a form or template letter, if you search for notice of disassociation

If your sure the link is from Halifax, try making a formal complaint in writing, and get your dad to do the same. It might also be bank of Scotland or Lloyd's all of which are part of same group

downesy88

Thanks, yes it says on the report that the alias was confirmed and actioned by halifax. I have now got the disassociation actioned aswel after no help at all from experian. Would you say there was a case for us to follow up on in terms of a claim against halifax?

MEM62

You can certainly lodge a complaint. If by 'claim' you are looking for some kind of financial compensation then you will have demonstrate what financial losses you have suffered as a result of the incorrect info.

downesy88

Is it not a breach of data protection? As I have all the access to my dads credit accounts? Surely because we're are related shouldn't make a difference?
Thanks

JimmyTheWig

If this is down as being an alias, and his credit details are included on your credit report, then this is more than just a financial association, and I'm not convinced that a notice of disassociation will be sufficient to resolve it, will it?
A notice of disassociation, as far as I am aware, is where you used to have a joint account with someone that you are no longer involved with. Here they're not saying that the OP had a joint account with his dad. They're saying that he _is_ his dad. [I'm trying to ignore the great sci-fi and Freudian connotations of this!]

So, first things first, OP. You need to get it fixed.
Am I right in thinking that you bank with Halifax?
Does your dad?
Does your dad have access to his credit file? Are you on it as an alias? Is his Halifax account on it?

If you both bank with Halifax then I'd suggest that you both raise it with them. If just one of you does, I'd suggest just that one does it.
Hopefully Halifax can resolve it quite quickly.
But remember, in the first instance the important thing is to get it sorted. Don't go to Halifax talking about claiming or compensation. That's not relevant at this part. If things are slowed down due to that sort of discussion then Halifax may claim later on that you slowed things down.

Once it is sorted and your credit files (remember there are three of them) are correct, you can sort out your mortgage.

Then you can look at what you can get from Halifax.
You have two options...
1. Compensation. Work out exactly what this has cost you. You can include phone calls, increased fees from your mortgage broker (with proof), cost of statutary credit reports. None of that will probably come to much. If, however, you can prove that you missed out on a good mortgage deal because of the delay and have ended up with a worse deal then you can claim the costs of that from them. But I doubt that this will be the case.
2. Goodwill. Tell them, as a good customer, how this has made you feel and how it has damaged your opinion of them. Ask nicely if they will consider a goodwill gesture for the time and inconvenience caused. In your position I'd be hoping for £50.

You may notice from my tone of wording that I'd go for option 2.

downesy88

Thanks for your reply, I have actually solved my credit report now, experian were useless, I phoned halifax directly, who neither myself or my dad have ever banked with, or indeed had any dealings with, which made our case a little more challenging. The fraud team reiterated that we had no existence on any of their systems and actually phoned experian directly to sort out the issue for me, I even let them access my experian account to see exactly what was on it in terms of halifax (I'm hoping tomorrow it should all be updated).

downesy88

So basically neither experian or halifax know what has happened, my credit report was perfect 1 month ago, all they know is I have somebody else's credit history on my account. Doesn't inspire confidence.

GingerBob_3

downesy88 wrote: »

So basically neither experian or halifax know what has happened, my credit report was perfect 1 month ago, all they know is I have somebody else's credit history on my account. Doesn't inspire confidence.

The problem you're up against is that credit reference agencies have no quality assurance protocols, so basically anything goes. If, as a result of the malpractice, you've lost out on a mortgage try and quantify any losses (unfortunately this might not be easy) and seek compensation. Maybe consult a solicitor.

PaulW922

This thread does show the difference between an alias and an association and the potential damage. You often see a woman's maiden name or sometimes a person's shortened surname as an alias, which is usually fine, but this is something totally different.

My guess is that your Dad at some point applied for a Halifax credit product and during the application process the two names (yours and his) became linked. That would almost certainly be down to Halifax (unless you dad gave your details which I am sure he didn't). If an application was declined then Halifax after a short time may not have any record, as no account was opened.

I think that the credit agencies and probably the Govt too need to address the fact that banks and other reporters do not seem able to justify the entries they have made. Basically, if they have made an entry then all the time it remains visible, they should keep a record of why they did it. I am not anti-credit reference like quite a few people here but I do think that there needs to be a much stronger obligation on the industry to justify what they have recorded.

downesy88

The worrying thing about this whole episode was the fact that on the 31st July my credit file was perfect I applied for a mortgage in principle and it was accepted, then somehow in the last month this when iv come to do the full mortgage this alias has become apparent. That's what we can't get our head around, it's only been attached in the last month, neither of us have applied to halifax about anything for as long as we can remember and especially in the last month. I don't like the fact that my potential mortgage provider can clearly see this, and I can provide proof of this yet because their computer says no (excuse my little Britain reference) nothing can be done. Surely common sense can prevail somewhere?