Default, Judgement, Sequestration.

These are important terms and are directly related to your credit report.

Default

When you miss debt repayments the credit provider will report this to the various credit bureaus who will mark this as a default.

A default will remain on your report for as long as the account is in arrears. This greatly affects your ability to get future credit as it shows that you cannot repay your debt.

Judgement

Should your account remain in default the credit provider can then take legal action in the form of a judgement. A judgement can lead to a court case and should the court rule in favour of the credit provider, this judgement will reflect on your credit report along with the case number.

The court will typically provide you with monthly repayment amounts and the account will remain in judgement until the account is paid up.

Once the account is paid up you need to obtain a paid up letter from the credit provider, present it in court, and ask the court to remove the judgement from your credit report.

Sequestration

When you are insolvent, meaning you cannot repay your debt, you are placed under sequestration. In this instance, your assets can be sold in order to repay your debts.

Sequestrations will reflect for a minimum of 5 years and maximum of 10 years on your credit report.