Can banks remove late payment markers from customer credit files?

mikechaos

Hi, 
Are banks able to amend credit files and remove late payment markers at their discretion, or is there a legal reason why they can't do this? I am currently in discussions with one of my banks regarding this. They are saying that they are not allowed to remove a late payment marker as the credit file needs to be a true reflection, however I am unsure if this is just their policy, or something that it stipulated by the FCA?

Thanks

Rob 

m-holland

Is what the bank in question currently reporting to the CRA accurate?
Was the payment late?

Willing2Learn

They can record whatever they like on your three credit files.  Your job is to ensure that all data is accurate.

You can ask for a 'goodwill gesture' if you want the negative marker removed.

Thrugelmir

Would make the data worthless to other users if factual information wasn't reported. 

D3xt3r5L4b

They report on facts.

Don’t make late payments and you won’t get marked down for it.

mikechaos

m-holland said:

Is what the bank in question currently reporting to the CRA accurate?
Was the payment late?

Yes it was. Totally our fault. It's bee a gruelling couple of months and we slipped up. I just wondered if they would offer a gesture of good will as this one payment didn't represent our previous payment history with them. 

mikechaos

D3xt3r5L4b said:

They report on facts.

Don’t make late payments and you won’t get marked down for it.

D3xt3r5L4b said:

They report on facts.

Don’t make late payments and you won’t get marked down for it.

We accept that it's our responsibility to pay on time. I have never suggested that it's anyone else's fault but ours. I was just wondering if they would remove it as a gesture of goodwill considering that we have had to deal with some dreadful circumstances over the last couple of months. If they won't then we will accept it and move on. You probably didn't need to post such a curt reply. 

Fighter1986

All organisations who share data with credit reference agencies are legally obliged to report factual data.

If you were in arrears, your credit file must reflect this. If you weren't, your credit file must also reflect this. 

[Deleted User]

It doesn't represent your previous history, but it represents your activity at the time.

Your previous - and hopefully future actions - remain unaffected.

Fighter1986

mikechaos said:

D3xt3r5L4b said:

They report on facts.

Don’t make late payments and you won’t get marked down for it.

D3xt3r5L4b said:

They report on facts.

Don’t make late payments and you won’t get marked down for it.

We accept that it's our responsibility to pay on time. I have never suggested that it's anyone else's fault but ours. I was just wondering if they would remove it as a gesture of goodwill considering that we have had to deal with some dreadful circumstances over the last couple of months. If they won't then we will accept it and move on. You probably didn't need to post such a curt reply. 

If it's just a couple months blip and everything is back up to date now, with nothing having fallen into default, it won't have a very long term effect.

Lenders will see you are usually very good at paying on time and just had a little stumble, and they'll judge you accordingly. 

MinuteNoodles

mikechaos said:

We accept that it's our responsibility to pay on time. I have never suggested that it's anyone else's fault but ours. I was just wondering if they would remove it as a gesture of goodwill considering that we have had to deal with some dreadful circumstances over the last couple of months.

Lots of people do from time to time, they still pay their regular bills. I had emergency spinal surgery last summer which put me out of work for three months dropping my wages by over 80%, still paid my bills. The dreadful circumstances didn't cause the late payments, a lack of a 3-6 month emergency fund did.
As has been said above, a few late payments in isolation won't do you much harm. By all means you can ask but don't expect anything to be done because they're under no obligation to even if you catch up. Move on and get that emergency fund built up so it doesn't occur again.