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I have a charge off with MNBA (now Bank of America), it's been on my credit report for about two years. I was contacted by Portfolio Associates and then by Phillips and Cohen. I sent a debt validation letter to Phillips and Cohen and never heard anything from them. I then sent a letter to the credit bureau (only one) and it came back that the debt was mine, but they never sent me anything proving that. At any rate, I really just want to move on. I came into some money and would like to offer a settlement. I have a couple of questions...
1. Do I offer settlement to the OC or the CA?
2. How much should I offer on a $16,000 charge off? Is there a difference if I can pay a lump sum vs. a payment plan?
Thanks in advance.
The credit bureaus do not have to senf you proof that the debt is your. They look into it but to get proof you will need to ask for debt validation from the company trying to collect the debt. You will need to answer a few questions and we can help you better. First off what state are you from? Depoending on your state you may be protected from the Statute of Limitations. I am in PA and here it is 4 years. If the last payment was made over 4 years ago then they can not sue me legally and win in a debt. So we will also need to know the date of your LAST payment. You should be able to find this on your credit report. Under the listing it will have 30 days late as of...and a date.
If it is past the SOL you may not want to pursue paying off this debt because you will start the SOL time clock all over. Get back to us with this information and we can go from here. No matter what you do, of the debt is now owned by a collection agency you will not be able to get the listing from the original lender (MNBA) removed and paying the debt will not much help your score. I could go on forever sut leats start with this information to see how to handle youre problem.
I was unable to log in under my other user name, so I created a new one. Anyway...
I am also in PA. The last payment on this account was in April of 2006. I need to pay this debt because I am about to purchase a home and the lender is requiring that it be paid. I did send a letter to the company asking for debt validation, but never received it. I was under the impression I could then send that information (or lack of) to the credit bureas and they would have to remove it from my credit report as not validated. Anyway...I need to pay it, just need to know to whom I should now be dealing with. I contacted MBNA (via e-mail) and they asked me to call - I have not yet, because I've been reading conflicting information as to who I should be dealing with. Some say to never deal with the collection agency and go back to the original creditor, others say the OC no longer has anything to do with it.
So no matter who I deal with...how much should I offer?
You will be legally held responsible if they take you to court. The SOL in PA is 4 years so they have until April of 2010 to sue you. I would not pay the debt until they validate it. How long ago did you ask for debt validation? They are suppose to provide it with in 30 days pr you can dispute it and get it off your record. Sine the collection agency did not validate I would call the original lender and ask if they still own the debt. If they do this is really much better because you can make a debt settlement offer with them and ask for a pay-for-delte..which will remove the listing all together from your report. Call them and if they do not own it they will tell you to contact the debt collector. Remeber if you do get a settlement offer from them be sure to get something from them that proves you paid this debt. Sometimes they come back later and trry to recollect and you must have the documants showing that you paid. Had this happen to a relative of mine.
I asked for a debt validation letter in August 2007. I have not heard from them since.
If you have already asked for debt validation and they have not yet validated the debt within 30 days from the date of receipt of your letter, then the collection agency has lost their right to collect the debt as per the fair debt validation Act and you are no longer required to pay off the debt. But if the CA has sold off the debt to another CA by this time then you need to send a debt validation letter again to the new CA, but since the previous CA could not validate the debt, is is most likely that the new CA will also not be able to validate the debt.
Do you have the proof that you asked for debt validation? Hopefully you sent it by certified mail. If you did and they are the ones still listing the debt on your credit report you will be able to dispute the debt due to the fact they did not validate. You need to get a dispute in the process but do not send any oriinal proof. Only send a copy of the proof that you have so you will have something for your own records just in case they would try to sue or recollect this debt. They will not be able to win in court if you have proof asking for the debt validation. So if you want to get this removed you need to start disputing the debt.
I do have proof that I asked for debt validation. I did send it by certified mail. I then started disputing the debt with the credit bureau. I got back a letter that has a statement on my credit report that list that I disputed the account, but it is still there. That was in July of 2008. I was just fed up with the process.
Mary, you say the collection agency has lost its right to collect the debt - they have not sold it off to anyone else. Now my lender is requiring that I make a settlement before my mortgage loan is approved. Who do I deal with now?
so, must the pay-for delete agreement
be with the original creditor? for instance i have a few 20-80 dollar collection accounts on my report...they are listed as the collector accounts NOT with the hospital....also i have one 700 dollar collection account with the same hospital but again on my credit report it states the credit collection agency as the owner...do u think the collection agency would agree to delete all the accounts if i pay the 700 dollars...could they agree to this at all??
I think you are going to have to find out who has it, your credit report should show the last ones to have the debt or the last one that is trying to collect the debt. I would start there and see what comes out of it, if the original creditor wrote it off then they will have nothing on the debt.
Hi Jeff
The collection agency may or may not agree to remove the negative listing from your credit report. If they agree to pay for deletion agreement, then get it in writing before paying off the debt in full so that after you pay off the debt, they remove the listing from your report. If they do not agree to pay for deletion agreement, ask the collection agency to change the status of the listing to "paid as agreed" instead of "paid in full".
I agree with Mary on this point. If you come to pay for deletion agreement with the collection agency, only the CA listing will get removed from your credit report and not the original creditor listing. The CA may agree to remove the listing if you pay off the debt in full. Even if they do not agree to pay for deletion agreement, you should always take steps to pay off the debt because the creditor may sue you to the court and bring judgment against you to recover the debt and if there is a judgment in your credit report, your credit score may fall drastically.
What is the difference in getting the collection agency to list a debt as "paid as agreed" whether than "paid in full". Both to me appear to have about the same meaning but i have seen this a few times while being a member here. I am not disputing the difference I would just like to know what the difference is.
i will talk to the CA and see what they will agree to...i guess im wondering why the hospital does not have a listing on my report...only the ca...so r u saying that even if i come to a pay4delete agreement with the ca and they delete their entry the hospital could then add a new entry?? thnx again!
If the collection agency is the only one listing then you shouldn't have to worry about getting them deleted. If you ask for a pay for delete from the CA then it should clear up the listing. I have an old medical bill, actually two, and neither one has any other listing than what the collection agency has on there. Most medical places will have a collection agency as part of their business so this may be why you only see that listing. In any case if the collection agency is the only listing get that pay for delete and then it will clear it up.
credit
It just doesn't seem fair that the debt would be 'removed' from the CA and NOT from the OC. You would think it would 'clear up' BOTH of them, if the debt is paid.
Hi Jeff
Since you have not paid the hospital bills the hospital might have considered the debt as a bad debt and has either transferred the right to collect the debt to the collection agency or has sold off the debt to the CA. So the collection agency has listed it in your credit report. It is up to the original creditor to decide whether he will report the debt to the credit bureaus or not. However, if the original creditor reports the debt to the bureaus and sell the debt to the CA, it will stay in your report for seven years.
You have only the collection agency listing in your credit report and not the hospital listing. This means that if you can come to a pay for deletion agreement with the collection agency, the negative listing will be removed from your credit report. But if the OC listing was there along with the CA listing and you come to a PFD agreement with the collection agency, then only the CA listing would have been removed and not the OC (in your case the hospital) listing.
well i spoke to the ca this morning and they were pretty clear that they will not delete the entry, only mark it as paid in full...not sure what to do at this point...of course the ca stated that my score will go up once paid in full but thats not my understanding ?? any ideas :-) maybe on of these "credit repair" companies could reach some agreement?
Hi Jeff
First of all if you can made the CA agree to pay for deletion agreement and pay off the debt in full, the original creditor ie the hospital cannot make a new entry in your report. Now since you have already spoke to the CA, , first send a debt validation letter by certified mail to be sure whether the CA is authorized to collect the debt or not. If the CA can validate the debt, then only come to a repayment plan to pay it off, else not.
Now, since the CA is not willing for pay for deletion, you can ask him to change the status of the listing to "paid as agreed" instead of "paid in full". This will help you to improve your credit score.
Even if the creditor do not agree to pay for deletion agreement, you should take steps to pay off the debt if the creditor can properly validate it. You can ask the creditor to change the listing as "paid as agreed" so that your credit score improves as Anthony said. This is because if the creditor validates the debt and you do not pay it off, he can sue you to the court and bring judgment against you to recover the debt. Now if the judgment gets reflected in your credit report, your credit score may fall drastically.
credit
I'm dealing with a CA who sent me a bill for a debt....I called and asked if they could sent me a validation of the debt. I din't send them a letter, or anything. I just asked over the phone. They said they would "be more than happy to." What they sent was a copy of the ORIGINALLY bill they sent to me before. This isn't a Validation, is it?
No SD it is not proper validation. Everyone here seems to have different ideas on proper validation of debt but it has been determined a copy of the bill is not validation. What would be considered proper validation would be a copy of the ORIGINAL signed Contract and if the debt is now owned by a collection agency and not the original lender they must also show that they legally have been sold the debt and the right to collect on it. Lots of collectors try sending a copy of the bill as validation but thats because they think the are dealing with someone who doesn't know better,
credit
OIN, FIREYONE. I've learned ALOT from this forum..that's for sure. You mean a copy of the contract from the OC? Some 'Law offices' send me bills, stating this is their "Validation" from my so-called account with them.
Just sending outstanding bills is not debt validation. Debt validation will include a copy of the original signed contract between you and the original creditor and proof that the original creditor has transferred the right to the law firms to collect the debt. If they cannot provide you with these details, then you need not pay them back.
SD, this is not validation. If you want my opinion I believe that the original creditor has more than likely sold off your debt to a collection agency. I think I remember you saying it has passed through a couple collection agencies. If so chances are they do not even have the validation so if I was you I would not pay on any debt that they can not properly verify.
Settling debt with collection agency
I got a letter from a collection agency saying that they would settle for 400.00 of the orginial amount. I sent them a letter "letter proposing settlement". It pretty much states that I don't acknowledge this debt to be mine and I make the following settlement offer in conclude this matter swiftly as possible. It also states that I will pay the 400.00 in full and upon receipt of the payment the company repot this debt as to all 3 credit bureaus as "paid as agreed" and remove all references of delinquency on this account. It also says this is a restricted account and if they agree to sign and return the letter I will send the payment in by certified mail and that I will not make a payment without a written agreement. It had to be paid by the 29th I called them to see if they were going to sign and send back to me they said they haven't decided and that they will sent me payment stubs for the full amount after offering me the 400.00 settlement. They sent me the letter. So what can I do now I have the letter they sent me for the offer then I have what I need them to sign so I have a written agreement. Can I force them to validate the debt. Or should I consult an attorney about it.
Hi woobabe,
Send a debt validation (DV) letter to the collection agency (CA). You can find a sample of a DV letter in the following link Letters of Credit. Send the DV letter through certified mail with a return receipt requested. You must retain copies of the DV letter. The CA should validate the debt within 30 days after receiving your DV letter.
In case the CA is unable to validate your debt, under the Fair Credit Reporting Act, you do not owe the debt. You can dispute with the credit bureau and get the debt account removed from your credit report.
So only the original contract serves? MCM has sent me screen prints of account history on a credit card. AFNI has sent me a copy of my last statement for a Verizon bill. My state is Texas. Are these not validations either? Verizon was opened over the phone - so they wouldn't have a signed contract from me
I am trying to find out what I have to do if the collection agency does not work for original creditor anymore. I called the collection agency that is on my credit report to pay the debt, but they do not and cannot accept payments. what do I have to do to get this collection agency to update the credit report. If I pay original creditor then the collection will still show for the collection agency.
how do I take care of this?
u.k. debt soon 2 b U.S. debt
I have been paying my credit card debt in England since Nov 2005 through a collection credit plan to the actual c/card company...I called last week @ somehow the phone rep ''let slip'' that my account would expire in Nov 2011(6 years)does this mean they will abandon it or sell it to America.I live in Indiana @just found out from another website that the 6 years statute of limitations only begins after a payment is missed and not if regular payments have been made..i am not a u.s. citizen but am a green card holder..my American husband is now bankrupt from today....
reply
Hi,
Can you be more clear on what do you mean by expiration of an account?
Ok this combines some UK law which I am not familiar with. I don't think it would be legal to transfer to US debt.
Credit...
So can someone please clear this up for me: If I failed to pay a debt, it got sent to a collection agency and now both original creditor AND collection agency are on my report, paying off the collections agency in full DOES or DOES NOT mean that the original creditor will report the debt as paid too? If it DOES NOT, is the original creditor under any legal obligation at all to do so? If not, is it simply a coin toss on whether they will or not?
Collection agency stopped
Oh well. I took care of collection agency in one letter that I have found here:awakeningblog look for collection agency post
That is all what you need. They stopped bothering me and I told them in the letter that they can't resell the debt.
MAKE SURE YOU DON'T BLOW THE 30 DAY DISPUTE WINDOW...WHEN you dispute the debt, you put them on notice that you dispute part, or all of the ALLEGED DEBT. Which is true, because they are jacking you with interest, legal fees, handling their sack fees, etc. So you're disputing that until they prove their case.
So, if you send the right response letter, they are blocked and checkmated in most cases...(exception...state banks generally because they FOLLOW THE LAW).
Good luck. It worked for me every time. Peace, Love, Understanding :)
Maxym - Odd combination of posts in that blog and the sample letter you refer to is not there. Hmmmm.....
Pay to Delete
A "joint"credit card with Lowes was included in my bankruptcy this July. It is now appearing on my husbands credit report and reflecting on his credit worthiness. It is listed as Lowes/GEMB and shows as charged off, but when I called Lowes they gave me the name of Leading Edge as the collection agency now handling this. The total amount was only 520.00 and I just sent a certified letter to Leading Edge to settle if the entry can be changed to Paid, No late and remove all notations as to delinquencies. I am now wondering that if they agree to this and we pay them, will there still be an entry from Lowes/GEMB still showing a charge off on his credit reports. How should we proceed???....
ca
Sometimes, on CR's, the CA and the OC will both show on your credit report. However, (to be truthful) I don't know if BOTH are 'considered' as bad debt...since it is only one debt instead of two. I have items on my CR that are from both the CA and OC. I just don't know how the same debt is calculated. If someone can help ME with this question, I would appriciate it. :)
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Original Creditor or the Collection Agency??
Do I disput with the original creditor or the collection agency because they are both listed in my credit report and as well as the dollar amounts are listed twise and added up to the total debt. And let's say I disput the debt with either one and got it removed, do I need to go after the other one as well??
Please reply I am not sure if I am explaining it right but I have 10 original creditors and 10 collection agencies listed and my debt is only around 30K but my credit report says it is close to 60K. Please let me know what to do.
Are you sure that all these accounts don't belong to you? Send debt validation letters via CMRRR first.
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