Someone explain this to me please.

Five years ago my ex husband filed bankruptcy. He was bad about filling out every credit card application and signing my name (one reason for the divorce). When we were getting divorced I obtained a credit report so that all of the cards could be closed and my name removed. He filed bankruptcy 8 years after the divorce and thats when I found out one of the cards with my name still existed. My credit rating immediately took a nose dive although at the time I had a never defaulted on a loan, never missed a payment. Up until then my rating was very high. After doing all I could with credit reporting agencies I contacted a lawyer and tried to get something done to restore my good credit. He said there was probably nothing to do and that I should be relieved that they weren't asking me to pay the debt. Now I have a terrible credit score and have done nothing to deserve it (except the mistake I made in marrying my ex husband). I am waiting out my sentence still paying my bills on time.

Five years after the destruction of my credit score I just received (todays mail) a notice from ATT Universal card (citibank) that I am in default so my interest rate is now 30.570% (this notice came with the "Congratulations you have been upgraded to a Platinum account" letter). I have had this card for 15 years and never missed a payment. I called and they said that back in January they had a meeting and determined that I was a bad risk. Don't they look at their own records? I thought that even after bankruptcy you could rebuild your credit. I didn't file bankruptcy so apparently I can't even do that. For the past 5 years I have had an excellent record with them at a higher than most interest rate. I am paying off the card completely and closing the account (which I used for my business purchases). I soon will have no credit cards or loans left to "rebuild" the score I never damaged in the first place. How many years of 30% do I have to do to get over this? I can't get a cell phone account or many other things that my business needs without going through my current husbands name. I am so angry and frustrated - what good does it do to try to keep up good credit when it doesn't seem to matter?

[Jeremy]

I'm sorry to hear about your situation. Unfortunately I don't think I really have the expertise to assist you with this one. I would try another lawyer to get a second opinion. I find it difficult to beleive there is nothing you can do.

I think I can answer the question as to why you received the letter from citibank. Many banks have been issuing new policies around something known as Universal Default. This basically means if you fail to pay off any one credit card, the interest rates on ALL your credit cards can and will go up. This is something fairly new so most likely CitiBank just got around to enforcing their policy on you.

Thanks for your reply. They tell me its my credit score that did it. No late payments, not too much owed. I would think it would not be in the credit card companies best interest to make it impossible to pay off the loan with excessive interest rates - driving many people into bankruptcy or real default.

Thanks again

I am so sorry that this thing hapen to you. But i don't know how to help you .
Have a good luck!

The more opinions you get the more you will understand the situation you are in. I havent got the expertise in this area but that is what i would do.

Lisa, while I can't explain the "why" behind the credit companies, I can provide a bit of insight or suggestions which might benefit you in your situation.
You should locate your divorce decree and highlight the date. Send a copy of this to all of the major credit reporting companies along with a demand for them to remove all false information from your credit history. Be certain you get a fresh copy from each company and specifically state and demonstrate to them which accounts are wrongly reported etc.
They may or may not remove the wrong information but they must give you an answer as to why or an explanation as to why it is on there. After which, you should contact them again and insist they notate your complaint and the refusal to remove the information so that each time a new creditor takes a look at your report they will know that you dispute this information.
Then, it will be up to them whether or not to believe it.
At minimum, this will provide an early explanation for the information and it should be taken into account and you receive the benefit of the doubt.
I know this helped me in the past when I had an identity theft situation so hopefully it will work for you equally well.

Lisa wrote:

Quote:

Default Someone explain this to me please.
Five years ago my ex husband filed bankruptcy. He was bad about filling out every credit card application and signing my name (one reason for the divorce). When we were getting divorced I obtained a credit report so that all of the cards could be closed and my name removed. He filed bankruptcy 8 years after the divorce and thats when I found out one of the cards with my name still existed. My credit rating immediately took a nose dive although at the time I had a never defaulted on a loan, never missed a payment. Up until then my rating was very high. After doing all I could with credit reporting agencies I contacted a lawyer and tried to get something done to restore my good credit. He said there was probably nothing to do and that I should be relieved that they weren't asking me to pay the debt. Now I have a terrible credit score and have done nothing to deserve it (except the mistake I made in marrying my ex husband). I am waiting out my sentence still paying my bills on time.

Hi,

It’s really very bad condition. But I have no idea regarding this. Hope the above replies help you.


God Bless you

That is some great advice from everyone.