Not upheld: Credit file / adverse marker disputes complaint against Godiva Mortgages Limited

Decision detail

Summary

Mr and Mrs R complained that Godiva Mortgages Limited placed adverse markers on their credit files after they missed three mortgage payments (May-July 2024) on their Buy To Let mortgage. They claimed they had notified Godiva of their house move in April/May 2024 and did not receive payment reminder letters, and that they were unaware of the consequences of the adverse credit reporting. The ombudsman found that Mr R did not provide his new address until August 2024, was aware of the arrears position by July 2024, and had been clearly informed in April about payment obligations. The ombudsman concluded that Godiva acted fairly in reporting the accurate account conduct to credit reference agencies as required by its legal obligations, and declined to require removal of the markers despite the significant impact on Mr and Mrs R's ability to remortgage.

The Ombudsman's reasoning

The ombudsman found that Mr R was aware of the mortgage position throughout the period. On 30 April, Mr R was clearly told how to maintain payments and chose not to reinstate his direct debit, instead committing to make a manual payment. It was clear from the April and July calls that Godiva did not hold Mr R's new address, so Godiva did not err in writing to the address it held. Mr R did not provide his new address until 5 August. Godiva was under a legal obligation to report accurately to credit reference agencies, and the adverse markers were an accurate reflection of the account conduct. The ombudsman acknowledged the difficult circumstances but concluded that requiring Godiva to remove accurate reporting would be unfair and would breach Godiva's legal obligations.

How this compares

Source

Read the original decision on the Financial Ombudsman Service website