Terms and conditions entitled bank to report missed payments

Categories:

Advice & information, Privacy/confidentiality, Cards,

Summary:

In January 2026, Jim discovered several late payment entries on his credit report while applying for a tenancy. The late payments related to bank fees charged on a card he rarely used. Jim said he understood the bank charged the fees annually, not every six months, and believed the bank had agreed to remove the missed payment information from his credit report. He said the bank should remove the missed payment entries.

Published:

August 2026

Our investigation

Our review of his credit card statements and account information showed fees were charged every six months and that the amounts due were included in regular statements available through internet banking.

The bank’s records also showed Jim had missed credit card payments. The bank’s terms and conditions allowed it to charge the fees, and its privacy information explained that payment information could be shared with credit reporting agencies. We found the bank was entitled to report the missed payments because Jim had indeed missed them.

As for whether the bank had told Jim it would remove the payment information from his credit report, the records showed the bank initially said it would ask a specialist team to look into the matter. It later explained that it could only assess the information it had reported and could not control what other organisations did with that information. The bank also explained that the missed payments had occurred and could therefore be reported. We considered the bank could have explained this to Jim better, but there was no evidence to suggest it promised to remove the missed payment information from Jim’s credit report.