The Fixer: car finance crisis

Have you been left out of pocket due to poor service or sharp practice? Do you have a money problem that won't go away?

It can seem impossible to get a fair result when you are battling a financial issue alone. But never fear! The AOL Money Fixer is here to help.

Dear Fixer,
I lost my job last year and missed a couple of credit card and loan payments as a result. I'm now back in full-time work and have caught up with all m arrears.

However, when I applied for a car finance deal recently, my application was rejected.

I am sure that the problem is that those missed payments are noted on my credit report. Is there any way I can get them taken off?

D Harding, Solihull

Dear Mr Harding,
The first step is to check your credit report. You can do this for free by signing up to one of the credit reference agencies' checking services and cancelling within 30 days.

Equifax, for example, offers a free 30-day trial, after which you will be charged £9.95 a month if you fail to cancel within the trial period.

Once you have your credit report, you can check it for errors as well as the missed payment notices. You can then correct any errors - by contacting the bank or company concerned.

While you cannot have accurate missed payment notices removed from your file, you can also add a "notice of correction" to explain that they were due to you losing your job.

If you have credit cards that you don't use, it may also be worth closing the accounts so that the total amount of credit available to you does not look too high to any lenders considering an application from you.

The Fixer

Whatever your financial problem, write to themoneyfixer@aim.com and The AOL Money Fixer will get on the case.

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