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Illness & credit cards

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Hi

2 years ago I was admitted to hospital with a suspected stroke luckily after 10 days I was given the all clear but diagnosed with problems in my central nervous system. My world turned upside down. I lost my independence my driving licence my children & my job.

I was off work and received sick pay until May I then applied for ESA and PIP

I finished work through ill health on the 31st July losing my salary. As you can imagine things started to spiral & we had to live on our credit cards.

Subsequently I had an ESA assessment and was put into the support group I also obtained higher rate daily care & standard mobility on PIP. I am now registered as disabled.

Due to 2/3rds of my income being lost I was advised by CAB to contact the credit card companies and stop paying interest. Payments were agreed & I have played the subsequent payments on a regular basis. One of the cards has now been taken over by a debt company.

My credit rating as dropped from 999 (I have never been in debt) and is now around 629. Im gutted that this has happened and this had not helped with my mental state of mind.
Is there anyway that this information could be put on my file (I have all the medical letters to back my story) I am devastated that i am in this situation and have no idea what to do anymore.

Any advice would be much appreciated.

Thank you

Comments

  • Ignore the scores as they’re not real.

    Are the accounts marked as being on AP?
  • macman
    macman Posts: 53,129 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper
    What he said. The scores are made up, and the only person who can see them is you.
    No free lunch, and no free laptop ;)
  • System
    System Posts: 178,346 Community Admin
    10,000 Posts Photogenic Name Dropper
    So, DONT "ignore" your score completely. That is bad advice.
    While you're score itself mean very little, a drop from 999 to 629 CAN indicate something going on. It would be worth double checking all the details on your credit file to check you aren't defaulting on something. It could be that the score has dropped because experian has changed their algorithm and you have nothing to worry about. But it could be because your file has changed for the worse. Either way check it out. If everything is above board then at that point disregard the score itself.
    This is a system account and does not represent a real person. To contact the Forum Team email forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com
  • Just look at the data - ignore the score.

    The "score" drops when you pay off or close an account - which is a good thing, but the "score" reacts negatively as it is a change.
  • System
    System Posts: 178,346 Community Admin
    10,000 Posts Photogenic Name Dropper
    !!! wrote: »
    The "score" drops when you pay off or close an account - which is a good thing, but the "score" reacts negatively as it is a change.

    I thought you said the score was completely random?
    This is a system account and does not represent a real person. To contact the Forum Team email forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com
  • beany_bot wrote: »
    I thought you said the score was completely random?

    It is.

    Rather than spam people's posts with your inane questions, try sending a PM instead.
  • JimmyTheWig
    JimmyTheWig Posts: 12,199 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    Jojem2 wrote: »
    Is there anyway that this information could be put on my file (I have all the medical letters to back my story)
    I don't know, but what if there was?
    Your credit report is looked at by lenders to decide whether to lend you money or not. It isn't used by anyone to determine whether you are a "good person" or not.
    If the medical information was on your file, do you think that would make a lender more likely to lend you money?
  • System
    System Posts: 178,346 Community Admin
    10,000 Posts Photogenic Name Dropper
    !!! wrote: »
    It is.

    Rather than spam people's posts with your inane questions, try sending a PM instead.
    I'm not spamming, You are literally contradicting yourself. You are telling the OP that their score dropped because of x,y,z but also saying it is completely random. Which is it?
    This is a system account and does not represent a real person. To contact the Forum Team email forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com
  • beany_bot wrote: »
    I'm not spamming, You are literally contradicting yourself. You are telling the OP that their score dropped because of x,y,z but also saying it is completely random. Which is it?

    Again, correct.

    The score is random. The behaviour is random. And sporadic.
    Nothing can chance on one's file yet the random number will still change.

    Are you getting it yet?
  • Willing2Learn
    Willing2Learn Posts: 6,294 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper Photogenic
    edited 23 January 2019 at 2:21PM
    Jojem2 wrote: »
    2 years ago I was admitted to hospital with a suspected stroke luckily after 10 days I was given the all clear but diagnosed with problems in my central nervous system. My world turned upside down. I lost my independence my driving licence my children & my job.

    I was off work and received sick pay until May I then applied for ESA and PIP

    I finished work through ill health on the 31st July losing my salary. As you can imagine things started to spiral & we had to live on our credit cards.

    Subsequently I had an ESA assessment and was put into the support group I also obtained higher rate daily care & standard mobility on PIP. I am now registered as disabled.

    Due to 2/3rds of my income being lost I was advised by CAB to contact the credit card companies and stop paying interest. Payments were agreed & I have played the subsequent payments on a regular basis. One of the cards has now been taken over by a debt company.

    My credit rating as dropped from 999 (I have never been in debt) and is now around 629. Im gutted that this has happened and this had not helped with my mental state of mind.
    Is there anyway that this information could be put on my file (I have all the medical letters to back my story) I am devastated that i am in this situation and have no idea what to do anymore.
    Hi,

    I'm really sorry to read about your deteriorating health and the impact it has had on your life. :(

    Unfortunately, your credit card agreements have been broken. Your creditors have reported this to the CRAs and this has had a negative impact on your credit files. Your medical history is not relevant when it comes to creditors accurately reporting your account status to the CRAs.

    On the plus side, your score is not seen by anyone except you. Lenders neither see nor use your score. Lenders only consider the data held in your credit files when they score you using their own independent criteria and policies. This means you need not worry about your score :)

    How are you managing with your payment arrangements? Is everything within budget and sustainable in the long-term?

    FYI, I had to resign from my employment back in 2008 due to deteriorating health. It was not the end of the road employment-wise. It just meant I had to find a new way to live my life so that I could manage my illness whilst still working in a reduced capacity. The world is still your oyster :)
    I work within the voluntary sector, supporting vulnerable people to rebuild their lives.

    I love my job

    :smiley:
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