MBOMBELA – The Credit Bureau takes note of your credit record. A continuous downward spiral in this regard may leave you blacklisted.
This may be incurred by failing to pay your accounts on time or at all. If a civil judgement is obtained against you for unpaid debt, you will also be blacklisted.
Your future will be deeply impacted by your credit record. Those who are blacklisted find themselves unable to buy assets on credit. Obtaining a loan from the bank will become almost impossible. Should you be granted a loan, you will be penalised greatly when the deposit and interest payable is negotiated.
A bad credit record is reflected on the records of a blacklisted person for up to five years. Where the debt has been settled, your credit record will in some cases reflect that you had outstanding debt that was settled, which entry may be removed after two years.
Naturally, the ideal dictates that we pay our bills on time. This is the only means of avoiding a bad credit record and, of course, being blacklisted. However, after missing a payment or two, many people tend to ignore the situation, which only makes it worse. A wise approach would be to contact your credit provider and to make an arrangement to settle your debt and to ensure that the credit bureau’s records are updated accordingly.
Your credit provider may hand the collection of your indebted amount over to attorneys or debt collectors. The legal procedure of debt collection is then regulated by the courts, where judgement will be granted against you if payment of the debt is not arranged.
Once you have complied with the judgement, the judgement may be rescinded, after which it will remain on your credit record for five years as a “rescinded judgement”.
Judgements that have not been complied with, remain on your credit record for five years but the credit provider may hold you to the terms thereof for 30 jears after judgement has been passed.
How to apply for the rescission of a judgement and clear the judgement against your name:
Firstly, a credit report must be obtained from the credit bureau. If you are indebted towards a creditor, be sure to come in contact with the cretitor or his legal representative to ascertain the balance of the judgement debt due. After the debt has been paid, request written confirmation thereof as well as a letter from the creditor (who will also be referred to as the plaintiff) consenting to the rescission.
With this in your posession, an affidavit must be compiled that will accompany your application for the rescission of the judgement.
The application, affidavit, confirmation of the debt being settled as well as the creditor’s consent to the rescission of judgement is presented to the magistrate, who may grant the order.
The credit bureau should then proceed to update their records accordingly.
