Anyone had problems with their credit file ?

[Brown Dog]

After having a few problems with a certain mobile company I was thinking of changing providers... but before I did that I decided to check my credit history(incase I wanted the option of buying a phone on a plan). So i forked out the $27 and got my credit file, needless to say.....it contained some interesting infomation that I never knew about myself .

Apparently I have had an address and a job I never knew about and a quite substantial credit card debt for the last 5 years on a card from a bank I have never even had an account at. There was also applications for other credit cards and a phone account...all mysterioulsy made on the same date in 2003 .

I contacted the collection mob for the credit card and they said I need to get them a police report number because there has "obviously been some fraudulant behavior"....well duh. I also contacted one of the other credit card suppliers...but they have no record of my name making an application.

Has anyone ever had to fix up something like this ?...and what was the outcome ?...

I got a little concerned when I read that I may be liable for the debt incase of identity theft....though i dont see how this is identity theft as who ever made the application didnt even use my address (which has been the same for 20+ years) and that would have been pretty obvious if the credit company requested proper ID for the application

cheers
BD

[Brown Dog]

nobody

[abitfishy]

I don't know if I would worry about the identity theft issue just yet. It all depends - you may well have those credit card debts and all the applications on your file due to identity theft, however its also very possible (and much more likely) that when an organisation makes entries on your credit file, they are simply added to the wrong persons file - very easy if you have a common name and live in a big city, which you do (Sydney). You also mention the applicant did not give an address or any positive ID - well if thats the case they have no right to add it to your credit file. There are procedures in getting the wrong information removed from your credit file, however the organisation telling you to get a police report number sounds more like they couldn'tbe bothered - I mean what exactly are you going to tell the police? That you don't agree with your credit file and someone must have been posing as you? I can tell you that any police station in sydney will tell you they have better things to do.

Get back in touch with your credit file provider and tell them if the identity of the 'other' person was not confirmed with ID that they are removed immediately. If they did give ID, find out how specific the ID was. If it becomes clear it is identity theft, THEN you might get somewhere with the local plods, but go armed with as much evidence as you can - it always helps to do their job for them when you can.

[Brown Dog]

I think you might bit right Abitfishy....

As far as I understand it the only ones who can add info to your credit file are the credit providers...and according to my file the only provider to have access are the credit card company and their collection agency...so they are the ones who added the dodgy address and employment history. Which surely wouldnt be very hard to verify ?

I am also starting to think that its a stuff up...because as you say, I have a very common name...I have actually had dept collectors send me fake summons before, obviously based purely on my name.

I couldnt quite understand what im sposed tell the cops either . But apparently "Collection House" is sending me a letter to take down to the cop shop to file a police report and get a number...then they will "investigate" from there. I will be asking a couple of cop freinds what they think before I do visit my local station though.

I just found all this quite interesting....all this "history" Ive had for the past 5 years that I didnt know about. They certainly havent been looking to hard for me .

[Bleedin Thumb]

I agree with Fisho more likely that someones history has been put on your file - probably by the Credit Collection agency. Trying to get stuff off your credit history is very hard, most of the time you are better of waiting for it to disappear after the mandatory 5 or is it 7 years?

Ive gotten into a commercial bun-fight with different companies on two occasions and they have posted bad debts on my credit history..fraud I recon - but anyway banks know how to read the things and ignore most of the stuff that shows up.

I would be sticking it up the credit agency and tell them that you have spoken to the police and that their advise is that it appears to be an administrative error and that you have a case against them for contravening Federal Government privacy laws which is a serious offence.

Also that If they do not take this misinformation of your credit history within 10 working days the matter will be handed over to your solicitor.

It won't do diddly squat, these guys just dont give a rats but you could have some fun.

[Brown Dog]

I like the way you think Bleedin

Im not overly concerned about the consequences of having a crappy credit history....although I did get turned down for a new mobile a couple of years ago, there are ways around that so its no biggy.....plus I dont have plans for borrowing in the near future.

I reckon I will give what you have said a go. Im going to wait to see what this letter is they have sent me is about then see I can have some fun .

I did just speak to the credit history mob though and they are going to remove the dodgy address and employment history for me.....dont know if that really does much though

cheers
BD

[HappyHammer]

Need to remember there's more than one credit history company out there.....

HH.

[Brown Dog]

Need to remember there's more than one credit history company out there.....

HH.

That why I went with the largest ...start at the top

[abitfishy]

I got my credit file last year from one of the big providers and I must admit, it was very boring. No wonder I have no money.

[Waldo]

G'day Brown Dog,

No bad credit history, but a frack up by a debt collection agency contacting me for money owed to someone by way of mistaken identity and having many documented phone calls,letters and emails to and from has probably given me a bad mark against. If it has I will be taking some serious action against.

I don't even have a credit card, I like to pay everything in cash, the exception is paying electronically.

My SWMBO and I know every cent owed to anyone and the only money owed is on our mortgage.

The debt agency had all my details because my silly Mum (in another state - so they didn't even know where the person of the same name lived - so they were just fishing!) sent them my details when she received a letter from the d/collection joint asking if they knew a person by my name, without even considering it wasn't me she sent my details to them Only details she didn't give was my birth date. I am meant to have been born in 1983, I'm 36. So I told them to frack off, that I won't be paying as I owe no one any money especially as they can't give me the alleged details of whom I allegedly owe - unless I pay a $36 fee

[johnc]

The credit history people match information available, to people they think fit. It is entirely possible that someone else out there with a similiar name date of birth etc but not a perfect match has had there info incorrectly matched to you. Nothing sinister just a stuff up, and it happens more often than you might think. The hard part is fixing it, as you are starting to discover, I am aware of one person who took the step of getting all the negatives, approaching those groups and getting written confirmation that he was not a problem. In the end it was the only way he could get credit. His problem was similar name identical date of birth to someone in another state with a string of unpaid fines and loan defaults.

Of course it could be fraud, good luck in fixing it, this is not easy to sort out.

[abitfishy]

Speaking of which Waldo, it still relates to possible bad credit without cause - I'm in a similar situation. My business name 'The Mobile Computer Doctor' (shameless plug, was the same registered business name as one in VIC and SA (and I think QLD) owned by a couple that took money for web hosting as part of their range of businesses and took off. There was even a thread on 'whirlpool' (a broadband/ISP discussion forum) about them. What makes it worse is that when the domain name by the same name expired (having been registered to them), I registered it myself. It seems there were dozens if not hundreds of people ripped off by them and I am getting regular calls from debt collectors. Luckily they aren't accusing me of owing the money, moreso seeing if I am in any way connected, so its not too bad, but I have on occasion lost my cool and told them in no uncertain terms to 'take a hike'. Hoping something doesn't get on my credit file from that.

[Brown Dog]

g'day Waldo

I had something similar happen.... I had a collection agency sending me letters telling me I owed them money for about a year...I ingonred them...then they sent me a fake summons....so i rang them up and politely asked then to stop F*cken sending me fraudulant documents.

Apperently they just wanted me to ring up and say it wasnt me.....I toldem to F*ck off again ...and that was it.

These companies must just send out this ???? to everyone with same name and hope the clown that owes the money will contact them and say "yes its me, where can i send you a cheque"

I blame my parents...for giving me such a common boring name...I reckon there must be hundreds of thousands of blokes with my name and half of them are dodgy

cheers
bd

[Waldo]

I toldem to F*ck off again :

For some reason I have a habit of refusing to pay money unless I owe it. I've had plenty of fraudulent faxes saying pay up for a listing in a dodgy phone book business listing - not White or Yellow Pages.


That's what I've been doing, and was I livid each time I shouted down the phone at the person on the other end. They're just lucky they couldn't see how livid I was and that I couldn't get within striking distance.

Been several months now, last contact from them was a SMS (Mum gave them my mobile too ) which I ignored.

[Brown Dog]

Been several months now, last contact from them was a SMS (Mum gave them my mobile too ) which I ignored.

I think ignoring them is the best way to deal with these idiots. The only reason I contacted the clowns that were after me was to see what they had to say about sending a phony court summons in the post (Im no lawyer but that has to be a little bit naughty ).

After getting stuff in the mail on a regualar basis (at least once a month from memory) with threats to tarnish my crdit history and such... it all went noticably quiet after I queried them about the summons and toldem to F*** off ...and as far as I can tell they never accessed my credit file.

cheers
BD