France Telecom España, owners of Orange, have been ordered to pay 10,000 euros damages to a client who was registered with two credit rating agencies after being allocated a telephone number of a previous client who had been cut off for failing to pay her bills.
The sum, awarded by a judge in Murcia, could have been much higher, some700,000 euros was claimed by the client, if evidence of “material prejudice,” such as refusal of loans or credit card facilities, had been put before the court.
The claimant had transferred her business from Movistar to Orange without any problem and had been allocated a new telephone number. However, the number belonged to a previous client who had been cut off for failing to pay her bills. As a consequence, and without the client’s knowledge, her name and DNI was entered on two credit rating registers, for 193 days and 92 days respectively.
Although the client claimed she had been refused loans and credit cards because of her erroneous entry on the credit rating registers she was unable to present any supporting evidence. However, the judge found that she had been “prejudiced” by the company´s error and made an award of 10,000 euros.
Orange are not appealing the judgment.
