Daughters debt on my credit score

Springersmad

My daughter took out a store card with next when she was still living at home and unbeknown to me, it was in my name. This wasn't an issue all the while she was paying it off but over the last year or so she has not been able to make full payments and has been getting into arrears.
My daughter has moved out and all correspondence is sent to her new address but in my name.
I have just had a notice on my credit report to say that next have now issued a default against me because this months money hasn't been paid. My daughter is a single mum on a zero hour contract and has had her hours cut and is struggling to make ends meet. She has told next that it is her who took out the account and not me and says they have said they can't do anything about it and can't remove it from my credit. I have tried contacting them but without the account number which I have no access to they won't talk to me about it. My credit rating was very good and now it is getting lower and lower. Is there anything I can do before I have no credit rating left at all.

born_again

Sadly as your name is on the account. Nothing can be done. Even with her telling them it was her. This could lead to a fraud marker @ CIFAS.
Were you aware that your daughter did this?

Forget the made up credit rating. lender do not see that. But they will see all the missed payments & default on your credit history.
In reality the best way out of this, is if you can pay debt off & between you close account. Then get daughter to pay you back, as & when she can.

elsien

If your daughter wants to sort it out, surely  she could give  you the account number herself?

However as per the above post, your daughter committed fraud by opening the account in your name, and because it is in your name (unless you’re willing to go to the police for a crime number and tell them your daughter, did this without your knowledge or consent ) the only real option is for you to pay it back if you can and then get the money back from her when she is able to repay. Make sure you get the account closed because she could potentially carry on spending on the card.
 

Might she have done the same for other accounts as well?

Kim_13

It’s not really surprising that Next won’t do anything without a crime number to force their hand - if they do, they lose the money they’re owed. Presumably they wouldn’t have given a store account to your daughter or she would have just taken it out in her own name, since she has been making the payments until now - in other similar cases, the person taking out the credit is using another’s name without any intention of paying for the goods. 

Push this too far and she will get a CIFAS marker and be unable to have a bank account for 6 years, with any accounts that she currently has being closed when the bank see the marker. Your grandchild(ren) might suffer as a result. Unfortunately for her a consequence of using your name is that her circumstances become irrelevant - she would be entitled to breathing space, potentially frozen interest - but the debt is yours. 

Is your daughter getting all the help she is entitled to? She should claim for any of UC, Child Maintenance, Child Benefit, Council Tax Reduction that may have been overlooked. Also any help that her water company may offer in her circumstances.

I would also suggest paying it and recovering the money from your daughter in due course - potentially letting her off of part of it in lieu of a Christmas gift (if you celebrate it) if that would be easier for her. 

The default will stay on your file for 6 years, but its impact will reduce once the debt is paid and over time until it is wiped altogether at the 6 year mark.  The only way to wipe it from your credit file before that time is the legal route and the associated consequences for your daughter. 

MEM62

Springersmad said:

My daughter took out a store card with next when she was still living at home and unbeknown to me, it was in my name. 

This is fraud.  

Springersmad said:

This wasn't an issue all the while she was paying it off but over the last year or so she has not been able to make full payments and has been getting into arrears.

This is absolutely an issue, as you have now discovered.  

Springersmad said:

She has told next that it is her who took out the account and not me and says they have said they can't do anything about it and can't remove it from my credit. 

That is not strictly true. You can deal with this by reporting it as fraud, both with Next and with Action Fraud.  You will not be held accountable for accounts that were fraudulently taken out in your name and, as you daughter is admitting to the offence, you should have no problem having your name removed from the account.      

born_again

MEM62 said:

Springersmad said:

My daughter took out a store card with next when she was still living at home and unbeknown to me, it was in my name. 

This is fraud.  

Springersmad said:

This wasn't an issue all the while she was paying it off but over the last year or so she has not been able to make full payments and has been getting into arrears.

This is absolutely an issue, as you have now discovered.  

Springersmad said:

She has told next that it is her who took out the account and not me and says they have said they can't do anything about it and can't remove it from my credit. 

That is not strictly true. You can deal with this by reporting it as fraud, both with Next and with Action Fraud.  You will not be held accountable for accounts that were fraudulently taken out in your name and, as you daughter is admitting to the offence, you should have no problem having your name removed from the account.      

Only thing with this is many lenders will want to see a prosecution when cases involve family members. As Action Fraud will do nothing. So needs local police involved & OP in this case to take it forward as fraud to court.
Lenders have found out that many families will not do this & also a lot of these cases are worked by the families (no offence to OP)

DullGreyGuy

born_again said:

MEM62 said:

Springersmad said:

My daughter took out a store card with next when she was still living at home and unbeknown to me, it was in my name. 

This is fraud.  

Springersmad said:

This wasn't an issue all the while she was paying it off but over the last year or so she has not been able to make full payments and has been getting into arrears.

This is absolutely an issue, as you have now discovered.  

Springersmad said:

She has told next that it is her who took out the account and not me and says they have said they can't do anything about it and can't remove it from my credit. 

That is not strictly true. You can deal with this by reporting it as fraud, both with Next and with Action Fraud.  You will not be held accountable for accounts that were fraudulently taken out in your name and, as you daughter is admitting to the offence, you should have no problem having your name removed from the account.      

Only thing with this is many lenders will want to see a prosecution when cases involve family members. As Action Fraud will do nothing. So needs local police involved & OP in this case to take it forward as fraud to court.
Lenders have found out that many families will not do this & also a lot of these cases are worked by the families (no offence to OP)

Are you sure it's a prosecution? That is down to the police/CPS and they may decide in the circumstances a warning or other mechanism of punishment is more appropriate than prosecuting. 

Insurers have similar issues when kid takes parent's car "without consent" and then wraps it around a tree but we want a police report of the theft but wouldn't then decline the claim if the police/CPS decide not to prosecute. 

Springersmad said:

Is there anything I can do before I have no credit rating left at all.

Yes, ultimately have her arrested for fraud... unfortunately its too easy for someone to claim the family member didn't have consent as a get out of jail free card and hence they will want to see that it truly wasn't consensual via the fact she's going to get a police record about it, will be banned from travelling to the US and all the other such consequences. 

born_again

Police will try to say it's a civil matter. But it could go down the civil prosecution. But just like insurance, the odds are next to none.

I have once spoken to the police over something like this where they tried to argue it was civil matter or bank should report it.
They were told as a bank we were not refunding in this case & that the parent was a victim of a crime committed by another family member. As this was a loss of money the police wanted to wash their hands of it. Had it been violence they would have had to take action..

Grumpy_chap

Springersmad said:

My daughter took out a store card with next when she was still living at home and unbeknown to me, it was in my name. This wasn't an issue all the while she was paying it off but over the last year or so she has not been able to make full payments and has been getting into arrears.
My daughter has moved out and all correspondence is sent to her new address but in my name.
I have just had a notice on my credit report to say that next have now issued a default against me because this months money hasn't been paid. My daughter is a single mum on a zero hour contract and has had her hours cut and is struggling to make ends meet. She has told next that it is her who took out the account and not me and says they have said they can't do anything about it and can't remove it from my credit. I have tried contacting them but without the account number which I have no access to they won't talk to me about it. My credit rating was very good and now it is getting lower and lower. Is there anything I can do before I have no credit rating left at all.

If you genuinely did not know that the credit had been taken out in your name, this is fraud.  The only thing you can do is to report that as such and let your daughter face the consequences in full.

The alternative would be to get the account details, clear the debt in full and close the account.

DullGreyGuy

born_again said:

Police will try to say it's a civil matter. But it could go down the civil prosecution. But just like insurance, the odds are next to none.

I have once spoken to the police over something like this where they tried to argue it was civil matter or bank should report it.
They were told as a bank we were not refunding in this case & that the parent was a victim of a crime committed by another family member. As this was a loss of money the police wanted to wash their hands of it. Had it been violence they would have had to take action..

You mean a private criminal prosecution?  Private criminal prosecutions are exceptionally rare and even if you are prepared to go down that route the CPS are entitled to take it over and then discontinue it if they want eg if they don't think there is a public interest. 

With insurance if the police decide to just give a warning or such, not that uncommon given they can just do a FPN for the driving without insurance and ignore the theft bit, then we'd still provide Theft cover as long as the police report doesn't state the family withdrew the complaint/discouraged prosecution etc. 

In most cases parents don't want to get their kids criminal records and so they don't go to the police and the decline stands. It also means if a third party is involved they also have to pay their losses (or reimburse ours)... did have one father asking me what I would do given it was looking like a £20k bill for the third party plus whatever damage their was to their own vehicle. 

MEM62

born_again said:

MEM62 said:

Springersmad said:

My daughter took out a store card with next when she was still living at home and unbeknown to me, it was in my name. 

This is fraud.  

Springersmad said:

This wasn't an issue all the while she was paying it off but over the last year or so she has not been able to make full payments and has been getting into arrears.

This is absolutely an issue, as you have now discovered.  

Springersmad said:

She has told next that it is her who took out the account and not me and says they have said they can't do anything about it and can't remove it from my credit. 

That is not strictly true. You can deal with this by reporting it as fraud, both with Next and with Action Fraud.  You will not be held accountable for accounts that were fraudulently taken out in your name and, as you daughter is admitting to the offence, you should have no problem having your name removed from the account.      

Only thing with this is many lenders will want to see a prosecution when cases involve family members. As Action Fraud will do nothing. So needs local police involved & OP in this case to take it forward as fraud to court.
Lenders have found out that many families will not do this & also a lot of these cases are worked by the families (no offence to OP)

Yes, you are absolutely spot on.  Action Fraud will do nothing but they will issue a crime number to prove that it has been reported.  This can be given to Next.  In addition, the OP's daughter has already admitted to the offence so that helps.  If the OP wants this off his history then he needs to follow through with reporting it.  Otherwise it will remain his problem.