Telkom Unfairly Added a Default on my Credit Profile

I started a 12 month WiFi contract with Telkom in January 2022 and cancelled my services with them in March 2022 because the connectivity was very poor and unstable. I reported the issue to Telkom several times and didn't get any joy hence I decided to move to another ISP.

After canceling my services I called their call center to find out if I was liable to pay for the router and the lady who assisted me said yes I am liable since I had it for over a month. I asked her to send me the banking details I would need to use to pay and she advised that they would be sent via SMS and eMail. I never received the SMS or email and as a result I continued with life as normal.

I have just discovered that Telkom has added an adverse record on my credit report. I find this very unfair and an abuse of power from Telkom especially since they did not call, sms or even email me to try and get me to pay. I was under the impression that a creditor is supposed to exhaust all avenues to try and recover their money before taking such a drastic action of adding a default on my credit profile. Someone obviously did not do their job here otherwise I would have been contacted before such a drastic decision was made. Its not like I refused to pay Telkom their money but I needed to know what I owe them and how I must pay it. This information was only made known to me when they handed my account over and this is very unfair.

I would like to request that Telkom removes the adverse they have added on my credit profile within 30 days and to communicate the amount that I owe them as well as the banking details I need to use. If this is not done then I will have to escalate the matter to the National Consumer Commission for further investigation and resolution. Surely this violates my rights as a consumer according to the National Credit Act because I was given no choice in the matter. Adding an adverse on my account is a very serious matter and it prevents me from being able to be approved for any form of credit.