Hi James

I was in pretty much the same position as you when my TD finished back in 2018.

Through Clearscore I took out a credit card, it just has a small balance, I put perhaps a week's worth of shopping or a tank of fuel for the car on it and then paid it off right away. This really helped build my score.

It will also be worth checking your credit file and making sure that any accounts that were part of the Trust Deed get closed off, it can be a little bit of a pain chasing them all down but again it really helped improve my credit score.

I would highly recommend talking to a mortgage broker, there could be companies out there willing to help yout but the rates may be higher and you may need a larger % of a deposit.

Welcome to the trust deed forum James and congratulations on completing your trust deed.

I can see that you've already received some good information from Reidzer1314.

If you haven't read it already, the following article includes plenty of information about steps you can take to rebuild your credit rating and (more importantly) your actual real-world access to credit. These are sometimes two different things because lenders don't actually use the credit score that agencies provide (they create their own scoring systems using the contents of your credit file and your credit application form):

https://www.trust-deed.co.uk/repair-your-credit-rating.html

Realistically you will probably need some time to elapse before you can get a mortgage. There's also a section about mortgages within the above article.

We've heard from plenty of people who have been able to rent privately during their trust deeds, so this should certainly be achievable for you now that you have been discharged.

Hi both,

Thanks for your advice - I'll definitely have a look at Clearscore, although I suppose I'm wary about taking out any Credit Cards as they're what got me into this mess in the first place!

Cheers,

James

Hi James,

You make a really good point. For many people the risks of obtaining a credit card will greatly exceed the potential benefits. It's definitely not a good idea for everyone.

Perhaps one of the "pre-paid" credit cards might suit you best, James? These are cards where you have to transfer the money on to them first before you can use them.
So they function more like a debit card really, but as I understand it they show on your credit record in a similar way to a credit card and can help improve your rating.

Hi Kevin,

I wasn't aware of pre-paid Credit Cards but I'll look into it.

Happy to say that I am going to view a rental property on Monday. It is through an agency, although I am waiting for a further email to confirm exactly what checks they may do as part of the application process.

Thanks again,

James

Hi James,

Best of luck with the property viewing.

We've heard from a number of people over the years that being really open and upfront about your trust deed, with the agent and/or landlord, often seems to go down pretty well with them.

Hi again,

Just logged into Clearscore, so it looks like my Credit Rating is slightly higher than before.
My question is regarding the three In Default notices currently on my account - I understand that these will remain on my CR for 6 years, but should the status be changed to "partially satisfied" or "satisfied" now?
The missed payments were all logged in late 2016/2017 when my Trust Deed began so there is no issue with backdating them, but just wondering if I need to contact the companies the debts have been passed to now that I have been discharged.
On a similar note - I have read elsewhere online that I should copy my discharge letter and send that to the three main Credit Reference Agencies - is this correct?

Thanks in advance,

James

In my case I didn’t take out any credit cards and my rating gradualist improved once my record eventually cleared, there were a few I had to challenge but they got fixed. Is still to this day don’t have any credit cards but have been successful with 0% financing for some household stuff.
Good luck!

Thanks leeper1974!

I looked at the covering letter accompanying my Form 5 again, so it says that my Trustee "will now apply for my discharge, and once the AIB approves my discharge your creditors will be notified accordingly. Your creditors will then update their records so that your credit file is updated. Any creditors appearing on this report who were included in your Trust Deed would have their debts marked as "satisfied" or written off."

Which implies that I have to wait until my Trustee is discharged (however long that takes) before any changes will be registered on my Credit Rating.

Should I be contacting my creditors directly before then with my Form 5 or is now a matter of waiting?

Thanks,

James

It is your own discharge which is important, James, so there shouldn't be any need to wait until your Trustee is discharged. I think perhaps you are right and contacting those creditors directly with your Form 5 is the way forward.

Hi Kevin,

Thanks - that's what I had thought to be honest. I'll get on that asap - happy to share my experiences on this forum if it benefits others.

James

Hi folks,

Wee Friday update:

Yesterday I contacted Bank Of Scotland (two of my active default notices) who had passed the debt onto Link Financial. I called BOS first who gave me a number for Link, so I called them to ask for an email address to send my scanned Form 5, which I sent with their reference numbers. Job done. Amusingly, the BOS person was very snippy with me for no reason - I work in customer service and I am extremely good at talking to people on the phone, so that always cracks me up 🙂

Today I contacted Tesco Bank (the third of my three default notices) who had passed that debt to Max Recovery. Unfortunately Max Recovery have an 0845 number (I'm on GiffGaff, so I would have to pay money to call it) plus another number which defaults to voicemail. Undeterred, I emailed them with my Form 5 as above, so I'll see what happens there.

Cheers - and have a nice weekend everyone.

James