Credit file entries?

[Onestepatatime]

just wonder if someone can answer a question for me please,

i note on my credit file there is a search entry from one of my debt purchasers, are they allowed to do this given that they are not providing credit? All my defaults have come off my credit file, and the search doesn't give a reason for the search?
Can these searches be seen by any company who looks at my file?

[Onestepatatime]

Anybody?
is there a way to prevent them from doing such searches?

[Amethyst]

Only searches done when applying for credit would show to other creditors. This Debt purchaser search will only show to you so you know who is looking at your credit file.


Here's an answer James from Experian gave to a similar enquiry

A company must always get your permission to check your credit report. When you apply for credit you will usually consent to the lender checking your report at various stages in their relationship with you; including at the outset to help decide whether to grant credit in the first place, and then on an ongoing basis to help manage your account while ever you remain a customer. Importantly, if a debt is sold on to a debt collection firm, this consent stays with the debt. This gives the collection firm the right to access your credit report to assess your overall financial situation and to make appropriate decisions about engaging with you and collecting the outstanding balance. Now, if there is a dispute about whether you owe the money in question then the firm should look into this for you and, if they believe the debt is actually valid, provide evidence to back this up. If, however, you actually dispute any connection with the debt at all – perhaps it’s a case of mistaken identity? – you should make this clear to them and they should take prompt action to rectify the situation. If it isn’t your debt then the debt collection firm should certainly not be checking your credit report. The Financial Conduct Authority's consumer credit rules dictate how firms should act in situations like this and if you believe the guidelines have been broken you could have a case to take to the Financial Ombudsman Service. I suggest you first try to resolve the matter directly with the collection firm and, if necessary, with help from the collection trade body by the Credit Services Association. You can get advice from their website. Importantly, any footprint registered by a firm checking your credit report to collect debt should not affect credit scoring. (January 2014, updated April 2017)

[Onestepatatime]

I’m just concerned as I need to replace my van for something a little newer, so an thinking of seeing about a small loan. Didn’t want these search to effect it. ??

[Amethyst]

No, they are only visible to you so you know who's been looking at your file. Only credit application searches would show to other lenders.

[Onestepatatime]

Obviously though the debt purchaser would see if I’ve obtained credit elsewhere? That’s not so good

[Diana M]

i note on my credit file there is a search entry from one of my debt purchasers, are they allowed to do this given that they are not providing credit? All my defaults have come off my credit file, and the search doesn't give a reason for the search?
Can these searches be seen by any company who looks at my file?

Yes they can search your file and my understanding is that other creditors/lenders/debt purchasers may be able to see the search. It will remain on your file for one year or in the case of a DCA search it may be two years.

Soft searches are things like insurance quotes (comparison websites etc) or residency checks (such as the Lottery) and these are not seen by anyone else

The difference between hard and soft searches is explained here (note the bit about DCA checks) > https://www.clearscore.com/credit-sc...ect-your-score

Maybe the main question is why did the debt purchaser search your file?

They could be checking to see if your overall financial situation has improved so it may be worth their while pursuing you. Or they could be checking to see if you've moved house if they've had no response from letters to you or to be certain of your current address if they need to send a statutory notice (such as Notice of Sums in Arrears) that they're sending it to the correct address.

It could be for a number of reasons.

Di