Incorrect defaults severely impacting our lives and Three has failed to act for three months

[Leaving3Soon]

In January, my fiancé and I had an offer accepted on our first home. Shortly after, we discovered that Three had incorrectly applied defaults to his credit file for October, November, and December of last year.

In November, Three notified him of issues with their payment system but assured customers not to worry. Others have also reported false defaults on their credit files and posted this in the forum.

In January, upon discovering the defaults, my fiancé contacted Three. They confirmed all payments were made on time via direct debit and stated they would rectify the errors with the credit agencies.

By March, no changes had occurred. Three claimed corrections were sent on January 22nd. On March 7th, we filed disputes with all credit agencies. By April 7th, only October’s default was corrected.

Today, Three altered their statement, now claiming corrections were sent on January 8th. They continue to refuse written admission of a mistake, citing “privacy concerns.” All three credit agencies confirm only October was addressed, indicating Three failed to correct November and December.

Due to these inaccuracies, we’ve faced mortgage rejections, incurred higher interest rates, and are now liable for an additional £6,250 in Stamp Duty even though we’ve ready to exchange since early March. Our wedding is next month, and we’re at risk of losing our home purchase, facing potential homelessness, and substantial legal costs.

We demand immediate correction of all inaccuracies on my fiancé’s credit file. This situation has caused immense stress during what should be a joyful time. If unresolved promptly, we will pursue legal action for the damages incurred.

[Leaving3Soon]

UPDATE

We had a call from our seller today that they’re now considering putting the house back on the market. What should be an exciting time, getting married and buying our first home, has been completely ruined by Three.

We reported the false defaults to Three on January 7th. They confirmed these were added in error and said updates would be sent to the credit agencies and should reflect within 30 days. It’s now been over 100 days, and nothing has been fully corrected. We’ve been told conflicting stories, that the updates were sent on January 8th, then January 22nd. Either way, it’s long past the point we should’ve seen changes.

Looking through the forum, this is clearly not a one-off. Others received the same “payment issue” text in November and were hit with false defaults. Another user raised their case in December and still hadn’t seen updates by March. Why is this being allowed to continue?

[PeteG]

Hey there. 

It's disappointing to hear you've been having issues getting this sorted out. The information on the credit report should be an accurate reflection of how the account has been handled, so it's a bit worrying that it has errors on it. 

You mentioned you were emailing and calling the team. The support team don't have an email for general correspondence, which email address did you speak to the team on? Also, when you were on the phone, was it with the front line team? (normally reached on 333). 

Pete. 

[Leaving3Soon]

Thanks for responding.

We’ve contacted proofs@3mail.com, 0800 033 8019 (complaints), and 333 multiple times since January. Three confirmed over the phone that October, November and December payments were made on time, yet only October has been corrected. All three CRAs say they’ve only received updates for October, despite Three claiming to have sent full corrections on January 8th, January 22nd, and again in March after we raised disputes.

We’ve repeatedly asked for written confirmation that:

• Corrections were sent
• Which months were included
• That Three accepts this was a mistake

The email team refuses to provide it, while the phone team insists full corrections were sent, yet the records show otherwise.

Three is now breaching my fiancé’s rights and breaking the law by:

• UK GDPR Article 16 – not rectifying inaccurate data
• UK GDPR Article 5(1)(d) – failing to keep personal data accurate
• FCA Principles 6 & 7 – not treating customers fairly or clearly
• Consumer Duty – allowing foreseeable and avoidable harm
• Data Protection Act 2018, Section 171(1) – providing false or misleading data to CRAs

We were ready to exchange in March. Because of this, we now must pay an extra £6,250 in stamp duty, face losing the property as soon as next week, and risk losing solicitor fees and potentially owing the seller compensation.

We don’t have 30 more days or however many more days Three “decides” they need. No further investigation is needed as Three as confirmed over the phone payments were made, and on time. 

Three has the power to instruct all credit agencies to apply these corrections instantly, and they should exercise that now.

[Paddiewack]

Look guys most of us on here as you probably know are customers like you;this isn’t customer service and this forum and the people on it have no access to your account. On face value this is an awful situation and I don’t want you thinking that posting on here will be the cure of all ills. If I was in the situation you describe I’d make a complaint on the form located on the Three homepage. I’ll also tag a forum moderator who are Three staff and may be able to use internal contacts to help resolve this. But please bear in mind that as it’s Easter a moderator is unlikely to pick things up until Tuesday. I genuinely wish you well and @JonathanB,are you able to assist at all?

Again I wish you well and hope all is resolved in time for your wedding.🤞

[Leaving3Soon]

Hi Paddie, I’m well aware it’s Easter bank holiday. Three have been completely uncooperative when calling and emailing them. Today they’ve decided, regardless of their acknowledgment that they’ve sent incorrect data to the credit agencies, they will no longer do anything and have closed the case. Some companies only respond to public shame. This is truly a last resort. 

[Paddiewack]

I get that; I really do! I’m just trying to help. I wouldn’t want to be in your situation.

Again I wish you well.