o2 Debt

[Anonymous]

Hi, went to apply for a mortgage, done a credit check before going through a lengthy process, only to my shock found an outstanding balance of £8 on my account from 2009, no idea what or how, anyone any idea how to pay/clear this debt. I didnt receive any warnings, letters, emails stating i had this debt on my account and now i have a black mark against my credit! Absolutely disgusted, especially as its only £8!

[MI5]

Have a search on the forum for similar stories.
The problem arises when you cancel the direct debit before the final bill is produced.
You will need to call CS but I doubt there is anything you can do about it now.
The only good news is that the default only lasts 6 years so it should be cleared this year.

[Anonymous]

Another one.

@Anonymous we have had a few of these. I will make certain assumptions here based on previous experience but please disregard any that are not specific to you.

So I assume you had an o2 contract which ended in 2009. Maybe you changed network etc. I would assume you cancelled your direct debit as a result of such change thinking that it was all settled.

Sadly when the final bill is issued some customers either weren't aware of the final balance (unlikely as o2 both emailed and posted them - well that is what o2 say anyway). Or the customer chose to ignore it thinking well it is such a small balance they won't chase it.

So o2 then claim to make several attempts to contact the debtor, usually by email as it is free. If no payment is received them o2 update credit files.

You are able to pay this by contacting o on 0344 809 0202 and paying by debit card. O2 will then update the credit file to state it has been paid but they will almost certainly not remove it from your file as it is (according to o2) a true reflection of the situation.

It should not stop your application for a mortgage if that is the only issue if you can show you weren't aware of it and have now paid it. But it might take a bit of time to action.

My advice would be to pay it, get a copy of the receipt so you can show your mortgage company and then all should in theory be fine.

If however there are other issues on your credit file then that is another story.

Hope this helps

[Anonymous]

Disappointed more than anything if i had of known about it id have paid as its such a small amount. Im hoping they even change it to a late payment and hopefully doesnt effect my chances of getting a mortgage too much! After googling it it seems like a regular occurance, is £8 more than likely a charge for cancelling the DD other than an outstanding balance? Find it a strange amount other than anything, thanks for your help

[Anonymous]

@Anonymous 

I get the impression this sort of thing happens quite a lot and I have seen advice in other threads that customers should not be too quick to cancel Direct Debits (at least until they are sure the O2 contract is fully paid etc).

The advice given by the Direct Debit website at here is to contact your bank BUT ...."We also recommend you notify the organisation concerned, you could do this by sending them a copy of the letter you send to your bank."  If done at the correct time that ought to prevent any possibility of a DD being refused with the usual consequences for Credit Reports etc.  The DD website says "Money shouldn't be collected from your account after you have cancelled and under the Scheme rules, an organisation would have to obtain your authority to reinstate a cancelled Instruction.

May I be bold enough to suggest that when responding to any further posts of this nature customers be advised that it is better not to cancel DDs too soon, but if they feel it has to be done then they should not forget to inform O2 as well their Bank?

[Anonymous]

i possibly did im not entirely sure what I've done.. Regret it now though! Going to go to o2 shop later to see if they can provide me with my account number and mobile number from back then to make things easier to try and clear this debt once and for all.

[Anonymous]

@Anonymous if you phone o2 customer service on 0344 809 0202 they will find you on the system and the issue will be resolved in minutes. This isn't really a store thing.

Your name and address at the time is all they will need.

[Anonymous]

@Anonymous

Very valid points there squire. The narrative from Direct Debit is designed to cover all eventualities but of course that can't ever happen.

What Direct Debit are referring to is that once the dd instruction has been cancelled no further payments should be taken. What it DOESN'T do though is confirm that the debt owed to the originator (in this case o2) has been paid. Direct Debit wouldn't know that. Only o2. And o2 can't take the payment until it is due.

It is therefore imperative when cancelling the direct debit instruction that the debt has been paid in full.

[Anonymous]

Thanks @Anonymous i contacted customer services they provided me with the mobike number and account number linked with account, also said there wasnt any outstanding balances on the account so just a waiting game now to see what the outcome is of the email i sent because apparently thats the only way you can clear the debt (creditfilereferrals@o2.com) 10days for them to reply so ill post the outcome here when i get it. Thanks again

[Anonymous]

Like I said before, assuming this is the only issue @Anonymous then as soon as it is paid it shouldn't impact your mortgage.