MyCRA Specialist Credit Repair Lawyers

Tag: credit record

  • Access to credit will fall with introduction of new credit reporting data – and it’s being collected now

    Press Release

    default listingAccess to credit will fall with introduction of new credit reporting data – and it’s being collected now.

    27 June 2013

    Credit numbers are expected to decline when more data is reported about Australian credit habits in March next year, and a consumer advocate for accurate credit reporting warns, some simple mistakes may mean it is your credit worthiness on the line.

    CEO of MyCRA Credit Rating Repair, Graham Doessel says this is an important time to know about Australia’s credit laws, and to be careful with how you use and repay credit.

    “Australian consumers are currently under the microscope with their repayments, and if they are more than five days late with their repayments to licenced Credit Providers, that is going on their credit record now for two years and will show up as of March next year,” Mr Doessel advises.

    “In my opinion, this is going to trip up many Australians. With only a 5 day grace period proposed, it may mean many Australians are unnecessarily banned from credit due to simple billing mistakes, lost paperwork and other payment mishaps,” he says.

    The prediction of reduced credit numbers has been echoed by Dun & Bradstreet CEO, Steve Brown at a recent Australian Banking and Finance Conference.

    Publication Banking Day reported Mr Brown as telling the conference that a contraction in consumer credit will take place following the introduction of comprehensive reporting in March.

    “Lenders will start to learn things about consumers that they did not know before, such as the number of late payments they make,” Brown says.

    And so say Citigroup.

    “Citigroup Australia’s country risk director for consumer, CLN Murthy, agreed that there would be a tendency to reduce credit limits after comprehensive credit reporting came in,” Banking Day reports.

    Repayment information will be part of five new data sets to show up on your credit report as part of wide-sweeping amendments to Australia’s Privacy Act, which includes a new Credit Reporting Code of Conduct.

    “Prospective lenders will be privy to your repayment habits – and the word is out that more and more information may be on the table going forward,” Mr Doessel warns.

    Banking Day recently reported that Mr Brown and others in the consumer finance industry will be pushing for even more data to be included in the future.

    “Brown said Dun & Bradstreet would like to see the inclusion of account balance data in credit files,” Banking Day reports.

    The long term plans with respect to repayment history information is to be able to offset good repayment history against a default listing. The conference predicted that products and pricing structures could be developed for these borrowers.

    In the meantime, Mr Doessel says there are some simple things credit-active Australians can do to make sure their credit-worthiness remains in-tact:

    1. Pay on time, every time. Pay within five days of your bill’s due date to avoid a late payment notation. It doesn’t have to be a big amount to impact you. Too many late payment notations will probably mean you’re refused credit, or offered only a high interest rate.  

    2. If you can’t pay, actively seek help. There are new laws to help prevent you from being defaulted if you are under financial hardship, provided you get in early with your Credit Provider. So there is a new incentive to get in and work it out prior to letting your accounts go into arrears and copping a default listing.

    3. Seek cautions credit limits. If you’re not using it, don’t have it is the general adage. If you take out a credit card or other line of credit, it’s probably not wise to opt for a lofty limit, but ask for an amount closer to what you intend to use.

    4. Consider identity theft risks. Understand how lucrative your personal information is and take steps to keep abreast of how it can be at risk. New laws will allow you to place a ban period on your credit information if you believe you may be at risk of identity theft. Acting quickly may prevent credit file misuse.

    5. Check your credit file regularly. With the new information available, it will be more important than ever to check your credit file. Many people don’t know you can do this for free annually through the Australia’s credit reporting agencies and a copy is sent within 10 working days.

    6. Correct credit information which you believe is inaccurate, inconsistent or unfair. To offset the new information, new laws will make it fairer for those disadvantaged individuals to access and correct their credit report.

    But Mr Doessel says there will still be a requirement to work within and have knowledge of credit reporting law when disputing an inaccurate or unfair credit listing.

    “It is important to note, that Credit Providers and Ombudsman must act impartially and cannot advocate for you,” he warns.

    He says you can start by contacting your Credit Provider yourself to alter incorrect information, or you can put your case for dispute in the hands of an advocate.

    “You should take steps to rectify mistakes before the information has any bearing on a credit application you may make in the future,” Mr Doessel says.

    “You should take steps to rectify mistakes before the information has any bearing on a credit application you may make in the future,” Mr Doessel says.

    /ENDS.

    Please contact:

    Graham Doessel – CEO Ph 3124 7133

    Lisa Brewster – Media Relations media@mycra.com.au

    Ph 07 3124 7133 www.mycra.com.auwww.mycra.com.au/blog

    MyCRA Credit Repair 246 Stafford Rd, STAFFORD Qld

    MyCRA is Australia’s number one in credit rating repairs. We permanently remove defaults from credit files. CEO of MyCRA Graham Doessel is a frequent consumer spokesperson for credit reporting issues and is a founding member of the Credit Repair Industry Association of Australasia.

    Image: Victor Habbick/ www.FreeDigtalPhotos.net

     

     

  • Interest rate cuts no help for millions of Aussies living with credit file defaults

    Home loan rates were reduced on 1st November, but for millions of Australians who are living with defaults on their credit file, they will be hit with $22,867.15 (1) more in home loan repayments over the first three years of the loan.

    The Reserve Bank of Australia has cut interest rates for the first time in more than 2½ years, lowering its key cash rate by 25 basis points to 4.5 per cent.

    Many big banks have already passed on the reduction, potentially saving the average householder about $49 per month. We talk about massive savings for the average Australian with these cuts, we talk about encouraging people to switch lenders to increase competitive rates, but this is not a reality for people with credit rating defaults.

    For those approximately 3 million or more* Australians who are living with defaults on their credit file, the interest rates cuts will be negligible. Most banks won’t lend them money, forcing them into non-conforming loans and paying top dollar because their credit file shows they are a bad risk – and it may not be true. *(3.47 million – Source Veda Advantage Nov 2008).

    For the five year term of the default they will be paying a staggering $702.21 (1) more per month if they enter a non-conforming loan at higher than standard interest rates.

    (1) Based on average loan of $400,000 over 30 years on non-conforming loan interest rate of 9.5% vs standard variable rate of 7%.

    And the alarming part of this is that many of the defaults sitting on Australian credit files today simply should not be there.

    There are more than 14 million credit files in Australia (14.7 million files are held by credit reporting agency, Veda Advantage alone), and approximately 3.47 million negative listings, but the number of possible errors which exist is not certain.

    The possible volume of errors on Australian credit files was exposed by a small scale study conducted in 2004 by the Australian Consumer Association (now Choice Magazine). It revealed about 30% of Australian credit files were likely to contain errors.

    “In our view, there are serious, systematic flaws which are leaving an increasing number of Australian consumers vulnerable to defamation, mis-matching and harassment,” the ACA report said.

    Transferring those figures from the Choice study to the number of credit files in Australia today, could mean potentially 4 million errors currently exist on credit files in Australia.

    Recently Channel 7’s Today Tonight interviewed Veda Advantage’s Head of External Relations, Chris Gration on the possible number of errors on credit reports. He admitted errors within their system alone amounted to 1%.

    “We give out about 250,000 credit reports to consumers every year. But only in 1 per cent of cases is there a material error on the file, so a default or an enquiry that’s incorrect,” Mr Gration told Today Tonight.

    Even if as little as 1 per cent of those 14 million credit files contained errors, that would still currently leave 140,000 credit files in Australia containing errors that just shouldn’t be there.

    Under current credit reporting legislation, it is up to the consumer to check for errors. Credit file holders are able to obtain a copy of their credit report from one or more of Australia’s credit reporting agencies for free every 12 months.

    But consumers are often not aware across the board of their responsibility to check the accuracy of their own credit file so many errors go undetected until such time as people apply for credit such as a home loan.

    But by then the matter is urgent, and they are generally forced to take on non-conforming loans at sky-high interest rates to secure the home. Or give up on their dreams of home ownership altogether, at least until the default listing runs its term. (Unless of course they or their broker are familiar with how credit repairers work).

    Many people don’t realise that any person who finds inconsistencies on their credit file has the right to have the discrepancy rectified. As many people find out – that is easier said than done.

    When disputing any adverse listing, it is up to the credit file holder to provide reason as to why the creditor has not complied with legislation. Unfortunately many people find this process difficult – negotiating with creditors is not always easy for the individual to undertake.

    That’s where credit rating repairers come in to close that gap.

    Credit repairers check the process of listing defaults for legislative and or compliance errors, any such errors could deem the credit file default listing unlawful, at which time the creditor is advised by the credit repairer to remove the default. This usually results in a clean credit record allowing people to borrow with the lender of their choice.

    So if people are forced to pay thousands more in interest due to credit rating defaults, which leaves them struggling to get ahead on their mortgage OR if a new loan applicant finds they are surprised with a bad credit report which could see them entering into a high interest loan, it may be worth contacting MyCRA Credit Repairs tollfree on 1300 667 218 to find out whether they may be a suitable candidate for credit repair.

    Image: Salvatore Vuono/ FreeDigitalPhotos.net

    Image: photostock/ FreeDigitalPhotos.net

  • Internet dating scams rampant in Australia

    Lonely hearts watch out – your wallets or your good credit rating could be next!

    It was revealed by Queensland’s Courier Mail last week that more than $15 million was lost by victims of dating scams last year. This was perpetrated by overseas criminals mainly from West Africa, masquerading as online love interests.

    In response, dating websites in Australia will be now be required by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission to display scam warnings in an attempt to combat one of the fastest growing types of scam, preying on lonely people. It is threatening action against companies that fail to comply.

    A top-level fraud conference on the Gold Coast was told almost 600 Australians had lost $15.1 million to cyber-criminals posing as potential partners, with one-in-five being duped of more than $100,000.

    Police Commissioner Bob Atkinson said romance scams had become the “fraud of choice” and victims were being left financially and emotionally crushed.

    “We’re seeing thousands of Australians sending millions of dollars to criminals overseas every month,” he told the International Organised Fraud Symposium at Sanctuary Cove.

    “Apart from losing large amounts of wealth and in some cases their homes as a result of this brutal type of offence, some people take suicide as an option,” he said.

    And the victims? Mostly elderly widows.

    Queensland Police Fraud Squad chief superintendent Brian Hay said women “are twice as likely to be victims”.

    “It’s particularly savage. We’re talking about vulnerable people who put their heart on the line and lose their house and life savings as well,” he said.

    How the scams work

    The Government’s SCAMWatch website explains in more detail how these dating scams work.

    “Scammers target victims by creating fake profiles on legitimate internet dating services. Once you are in contact with a scammer, they will express strong emotions for you in a relatively short period of time and will suggest you move the relationship away from the website, to phone, email and/or instant messaging. Scammers often claim to be from Australia, but travelling or working overseas.

    They will go to great lengths to gain your interest and trust, such as sharing personal information and even sending you gifts. Scammers may take months, to build what seems like the romance of a lifetime and may even pretend to book flights to visit you, but never actually come. Once they have gained your trust they will ask you (either subtly or directly) for money, gifts or your banking/credit card details. They will pretend to need these for a variety of reasons.” The website explains.

    How scams affect the victims

    For people who have fallen for this type of scam, generally they are robbed of money. But in some cases, the fraudsters can have enough personal information about their victims to be able to get credit cards or loans or even mortgage properties in their name.

    The costs of identity theft can be significant long term for the victim and are magnified by the fact that  identity fraud is not often detected until the victim attempts to take out credit in their own name and is refused due to credit rating defaults they didn’t initiate.

    It can be quite a shock for someone to realise their entire financial freedom has been taken away, along with any monies that have been stolen from them. Basically someone with credit file defaults finds it extremely difficult to obtain credit for 5 years while the listing is part of their credit record.

    Any kind of credit account (from mortgages and credit cards through to mobile phone accounts) which remains unpaid past 60 days can be listed as a default by creditors on the victim’s credit rating. Credit rating defaults remain on credit files in Australia for 5 years. The consequence of people having a black mark on their credit rating is generally an inability to obtain credit.

    Repairing a credit rating in Australia can sometimes be difficult for the individual to undertake. By law in Australia, if a listing contains inconsistencies the credit file holder has the right to negotiate their amendment or removal, but the difficulty is, to clear their good name, the identity theft victim needs to prove to creditors they did not initiate the credit. Not only are victims generally required to produce police reports, but large amounts of documentary evidence to substantiate to creditors the case of identity theft.

    SCAMwatch outlines some ways people can protect themselves when dating online:

    -ALWAYS consider the possibility that the approach may be a scam…Try to remove the emotion from your decision making no matter how caring or persistent they seem.
    -Talk to an independent friend, relative or fair trading agency before you send any money. THINK TWICE before sending money to someone you have only recently met online or haven’t met in person.
    -NEVER give credit card or online account details to anyone by email.
    -Be very careful about how much personal information you share on social network sites. Scammers can use your information and pictures to create a fake identity or to target you with a scam.
    -If you agree to meet in person, tell family and friends where you are going. If this includes overseas travel, consider carefully the advice on www.smarttraveller.gov.au before making any plans.
    -Where possible, avoid any arrangement with a stranger that asks for up-front payment via money order, wire transfer or international funds transfer. It is rare to recover money sent this way.
    -If you think you have provided your account details to a scammer, contact your bank or financial institution immediately.
    -Money laundering is a criminal offence: do not agree to transfer money for someone else.

    For more information, or for people who need help restoring a credit rating following identity theft contact MyCRA Credit Repairs tollfree 1300 617 218 or visit the website www.mycra.com.au.

    Image: renjith krishnan/ FreeDigitalPhotos.net

     

  • Australians are reigning in their debts and focusing on home ownership

    Recent information from the Australian Bureau of Statistics reveals that Australians are putting the focus back on to borrowing for home ownership. Figures show owner occupied housing has stabilised and slightly increased, but that people are borrowing less for other personal reasons and investing less.

    Here are key figures from the ABS Lending Finance report from June.

    JUNE KEY FIGURES

    May 2011 Jun 2011 May 2011 to Jun 2011
    $m $m % change
    TREND ESTIMATES
    Housing finance for owner occupation(a) 13 752 13 882 0.9
    Personal finance 6 852 6 891 0.6
    Commercial finance 30 544 30 443 -0.3
    Lease finance 401 394 -1.7
    SEASONALLY ADJUSTED ESTIMATES
    Housing finance for owner occupation(a) 14 131 14 127 0.0
    Personal finance 7 050 6 993 -0.8
    Commercial finance 31 984 29 897 -6.5
    Lease finance 403 374 -7.2
    (a) Excludes alterations and additions

     

    With personal finance declining, this may be a reflection that more people than ever are using credit wisely. Perhaps less people are caught in the cycle of borrowing too much for non-appreciating goods.

    With the focus back on to owner-occupied housing – it will be beneficial for people to ensure their credit file accurately reflects their ability to repay debt. Especially considering lenders are still making it fairly tough for people to secure a loan.

    If people have defaults, writs or Judgments on their credit file, generally they are denied access to a home loan in the current market, regardless of their savings record or wage. This can be devastating. Adverse listings remain on the credit file for 5 years – so something a person experienced 4 years ago can still have a major impact on them today.

    Often people only find out about their bad credit rating when they have emotionally, legally and financially committed to a house contract. Typically all the approvals are set to go, and it is not until the credit check that it is revealed that their credit record contains defaults, meaning their home loan is declined.

    If only they had known that under current legislation in Australia, they could conduct a FREE credit file check with each credit reporting agency once a year! They could have done this prior to looking for a home, and would have been alerted to the adverse listings, and been able to deal with any inconsistencies before the matter was urgent.

    If people find listings on their credit file which are incorrect, contain errors within the listing, or are unjust and simply shouldn’t be there they do have the right to have them removed. The problem is this process can be time consuming – and borrowers can often lose the house they have under contract.

    Many clients say “fixing my bad credit is the most difficult thing I have ever tried to do.” This is because the onus is on the credit file holder to prove the inaccuracy of the listing, and negotiate its removal. Many creditors saying that they will only mark the listing as paid and will not remove the default. But this is not enough to ensure finance approval in most cases.

    But people should know, that with the right tools there is a good chance their credit file can be completely cleared.

    So what can house hunters do to improve their chances of loan approval?

    Apart from save like mad and have a good steady income…

    (1) Obtain a copy of their credit file

    (2) Check for any inaccuracies

    (3) If there are errors, negotiate with creditors to remove the default/s, or contact a credit repair company for default removal

    (4) Apply for a home loan with a clear credit rating and be provided the choice of a selection of home loans at the best interest rate on offer today.

    Contact MyCRA Credit Repairs for information on credit repair.

    Image: jscreationzs / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

  • Online identity fraud numbers doubled in four years

    The Sydney Morning Herald recently reported one in 10 Australians who use the internet have lost money to online identity fraud over the past year, with those losses reported to total $1.286 billion. The story, titled ‘Online ID fraud losses explode to $1.3bn a year’ featured a survey of 2510 Australians conducted in June by Galaxy Research, for Authentification Service company VeriSign.

    Identity crime is getting quite a lot of attention in Australia lately, with Channel 10’s 7pm Project running a story on identity theft this week. The Government also recently reported survey results on identity theft which reveal 1 in 6 Australians may be affected or know someone who has been affected by identity theft or misuse.

    If the VeriSign Online Fraud Barometer figures are an accurate reflection of identity fraud numbers in Australia – the figures have massively jumped from figures reported by the Australian Bureau of Statistics in its Personal Fraud Survey conducted in 2007. This survey (conducted with over 16,000 Australians) found just over 800,000 people have been victims of personal fraud, with combined losses of $977 million. These figures were across the board for fraud, including but not exclusive to internet use.

    The 2007 ABS figures represented 5% of the population. This new survey demonstrates a doubling in identity theft numbers for the internet alone to 10% of the population in just 4 years.

    This escalation in identity fraud numbers would be a direct result of an increase in internet use.

    Figures from 2008-9 from the ABS on the use of internet in Australian households showed 72% of households had access to a computer. It will be interesting to see what statistics on household internet use will arise from the 2011 Australian Census.

    People are increasingly conducting their social lives, their finances and their business on the internet. So, the freeing of information leads to increased opportunity for criminals.

    The government’s scamwatch website has extensive information on current scams that are plaguing the internet. There are so many forms of scams to be wary of out there, it is frightening.

    Cyber security consultant Alastair MacGibbon, former head of the AFP’s High Tech Crimes unit, broke it down into four main ways people could have their credentials compromised online:

    1. Entering details such as credit card and banking information into a website that is run by crooks.

    2. Handing card details over to a legitimate site but they are then stolen from the site itself through a security flaw.

    3. Man in the middle attacks, where a legitimate site is infected by malware and credit card details are stolen from users as the transaction is underway.

    4. Having a virus planted on your own computer which sucks up credit card details and passwords and sends them to criminals.

    What is not known from the recent figures is how many of those identity fraud victims have had the crime impact their credit rating.

    Typically, when fraudsters take out credit in someone else’s name, the victim is not aware of the fraud immediately. Any kind of credit account (from mortgages and credit cards through to mobile phone accounts) which remains unpaid past 60 days can be listed as a default by creditors on the victim’s credit rating.

    So the fraudster could abuse someone’s good name all over town and it is not until the victim applies for credit and is refused, that they learn about the identity theft and subsequent fraud.

    Credit rating defaults remain on credit files in this country for 5 years. The effect of people having a black mark on their credit rating is generally an inability to obtain credit. Most of the major banks refuse credit to people who have defaults, or even too many credit enquiries, so it is really essential to keep a clean credit record.

    It is actually quite difficult to go about removing defaults from credit files, regardless of the source. Most creditors will tell people listings are only marked as paid if they have been paid and remain there for the required 5 years. But by law in Australia, if a listing contains inconsistencies the credit file holder has the right to negotiate their amendment or removal.

    To clear their good name, the identity theft victim needs to prove to creditors they did not initiate the credit – which can be difficult. Not only are victims generally required to produce police reports, but large amounts of documentary evidence to substantiate to creditors the case of identity theft.

    So as they say,prevention is always better than the cure.

    The Government’s Stay Smart Online website recommends Australians follow these 8 top tips for increasing their resistance to identity fraud, and avoiding the loss to their bank balance and potentially their good name:

    1. Install and renew your security software and set it to scan regularly.

    2. Turn on automatic updates on all your software, including your operating system and other applications.

    3. Think carefully before you click on links or attachments, particularly in emails and on social networking sites.

    4. Regularly adjust your privacy settings on social networking sites.

    5. Report or talk to someone about anything online that makes you feel uncomfortable or threatened – download the government’s Cybersafety Help Button.

    6. Stop and think before you post any photos or financial or personal information about yourself, your friends or family.

    7. Use strong passwords and change them at least twice a year.

    8. Talk within your family about good online safety.

    For people who already suspect they have had their good credit rating compromised due to identity theft, MyCRA Credit Repairs can possibly assist in removing defaults from their credit file. Call us on this toll-free number 1300 667 218, or visit our website for more information www.mycra.com.au .

    Image: photostock / FreeDigitalPhotos.net