Phone provider error- is my credit affected??

mashmash90

Hello

Firstly I should say that I really don't think I've ever done any reasearch or reading up on credit ratings and never felt that interested so apologies if this sounds very stupid.... I am now looking to apply for a loan for my wedding so we can get stuff booked but I've had a very unfortunate incident occur with Orange. I was due to have my contract cancelled back in July and rang up to cancel etc which was confirmed to me over the phone. I cancelled my direct debit following what would have been the last payment and thought that was that....

Last month my neighbour passed to me a letter addressed to me which was posted to her address by accident (they didn't even bother to put the flat number!). I was shocked to read that it was from the Orange collections department and I supposedly owed about £80! I rang up and explained that I cancelled my contract, I even remembered the name of the lady I spoke to as she had a distinct name and they said she didn't put it down as an account closure which is why they carried on billing me. They agreed there and then to apply a credit back to my account to cancel out any debt and I just received this bill and noted my account is finally closed with them with no outstanding monies.

Now before I start applying for any loans etc and leaving any hard notes on my file, I wanted to get an idea of whether this is likely to leave a mark or because it's as a result of their error, it won't affect my credit rating?

I have a mortgage but no credit cards so not sure what my credit ratings will be like- I've never defaulted on any payments and have always been very good at paying bills on time, most with DD. I read somewhere that credit scores from experian mean nothing so never bothered to get a report?

What should I do?

GingerBob_3

mashmash90 wrote: »

Hello

Firstly I should say that I really don't think I've ever done any reasearch or reading up on credit ratings and never felt that interested so apologies if this sounds very stupid.... I am now looking to apply for a loan for my wedding so we can get stuff booked but I've had a very unfortunate incident occur with Orange. I was due to have my contract cancelled back in July and rang up to cancel etc which was confirmed to me over the phone. I cancelled my direct debit following what would have been the last payment and thought that was that....

Last month my neighbour passed to me a letter addressed to me which was posted to her address by accident (they didn't even bother to put the flat number!). I was shocked to read that it was from the Orange collections department and I supposedly owed about £80! I rang up and explained that I cancelled my contract, I even remembered the name of the lady I spoke to as she had a distinct name and they said she didn't put it down as an account closure which is why they carried on billing me. They agreed there and then to apply a credit back to my account to cancel out any debt and I just received this bill and noted my account is finally closed with them with no outstanding monies.

Now before I start applying for any loans etc and leaving any hard notes on my file, I wanted to get an idea of whether this is likely to leave a mark or because it's as a result of their error, it won't affect my credit rating?

I have a mortgage but no credit cards so not sure what my credit ratings will be like- I've never defaulted on any payments and have always been very good at paying bills on time, most with DD. I read somewhere that credit scores from experian mean nothing so never bothered to get a report?

What should I do?

You cannot trust mobile operators. See another post today for a similar issue.


Check what all three credit reference agencies hold against you, and if there's anything untoward from Orange get onto them immediately and require them to put it right.

mashmash90

@GingerBob thank you, how do I check and which credit agencies are the 3 you mention? Does it require payment to get these reports?

redux

You can sign up for free online reports at Noddle (Callcredit) and Clearscore (Equifax).

I can see mobile contracts listed at both of these.

Or you can pay £2 each for one off reports from Callcredit, Equifax and Experian.

Or the latter two have monthly subscriptions with a 30 day free trial, and make sure to cancel.

For you I'd suggest just as in the first paragraph would suffice, unless that shows something else you then want to see in more detail.

National_Debtline

Hi mashmash90,


I agree that you need to check your credit files and see if there are any negative marks from Orange. If there are you can make a formal complaint and request them to remove the information on the basis that it was their error and the money should never have been owed.


Do this in writing and if they refuse to remove the information you can take it to the Telecommunications Ombudsman and the Information Commissioner (who regulated the credit files). Keep copies of everything going forward and it may even be a good idea to keep a log of what has happened to date whilst it is fresh in your mind.


Laura
@natdebtline

mashmash90

I checked files and it was affected- I complained to ee who were really responsive and rang me a couple of days later to confirm they have notified the credit agencies- I have since checked and my credit score with all 3 refernce agencies has improved dramatically. Thanks for all advice!!

[Deleted User]

Ignore the score. Has the negative mark been removed?