At TPN we have a consistent message; place quality tenants to limit the risk of non-payment, damage to property or worse a “squatting” tenant. To this end TPN collects tenant rental payment profile data and adverse / default listings.
I find it doubtful any landlord would willing
or knowingly place a delinquent tenant without weighing up their options in
terms of double or triple deposits, sureties, co-signatories or requiring a
signed debit order.
Unfortunately, it has come to light that delinquent tenants are holding property managers and landlords to ransom; demanding that adverse information is removed from the credit bureaus or they refuse to vacate the property. This type of behaviour is not limited to tenants per se and has resulted in a credit industry-wide directive:
The Credit Bureau Association (CBA), of which
TPN is a member, issued a policy directive which is now in force:
“It was
resolved by the legal and compliance committee of the CBA that adverse consumer
credit information supplied by non Credit Provider Association members shall be
displayed for the maximum period from the date of event, as prescribed for the
said categories of consumer credit information, in terms of regulation 17 of
the General Regulations Issued in terms of the National Credit Act No.34 of
2005 (NCA); effective from 1 June 2011.”
National Credit Act
Regulation 17 (1)
Categories of Consumer Credit Information
|
Description
|
Maximum period
|
Adverse
classification of consumer behaviour
|
Subjective
classifications of consumer behaviour [Examples: “late payer”, “absconded”,
“damage to property”]
|
1 year
|
Adverse
classification of enforcement action
|
Classification
related to enforcement action taken by the credit provider [Examples: “handed
over”, “bad debt written off”, evicted”]
|
2 year
|
National Credit Act
Section 70(2)(d)
A registered credit
bureau must-
…
(d)
retain any consumer credit information reported to it for the prescribed
period, irrespective of whether that information reflects positively or
negatively on the consumer;
Conclusion
TPN members are able to load Adverse Listings
(defaults) against their customer’s (tenant’s) credit profiles on both the TPN
and TransUnion databases. Prior to loading these default listings the TPN
member is legally required to give the consumer 20 business days’ notice of
intention to list.
Should the consumer settle the debt prior to
the 1 or 2 year retention period; the TPN member must update the consumer’s
default record to “Account settled in full”.
TPN and TransUnion will no longer accept a request to delete defaults unless the default details are factually inaccurate, duplicated or relate to fraud.
2 Comments
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