Pay For Delete Letter

I paid a debt four years ago but can't prove it. How do I get a derogatory listing off of my credit report?

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Bill's Answer: Bills.com Resident Expert

If you cannot prove that you reached a settlement agreement with the creditor in 2006 and indeed paid the debt, then if you want the debt reported as paid now you will need to pay the debt again, as distasteful as that option may be. In a court of law, it is not what you believe or say, it is what you can prove.

Before I offer a recommendation, allow me to correct a misperception you expressed about the seven-year rule.

Seven-year rule

Federal law (US Code Title 15, §1681c) controls the behavior of credit reporting agencies. This law is known as the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA). Under FCRA §605 (a) and (b), an account in collection will appear on a consumer's credit report for 7½ years. The clock starts approximately 180 days after the date of first delinquency on the account. To learn when an account will be removed by the credit reporting agencies (TransUnion, Equifax, and Experian and others), add 7½ years to the date of first delinquency. Subsequent activity, such as resolving the debt, is irrelevant to the seven-year rule. However, if the debt is a tax lien, that can appear for seven years from the date of payment. A bankruptcy will appear for ten years from the date of the final order. Delinquent federal student loans can be reported indefinitely, i.e., for as long as they are delinquent.

Therefore, if you pay the debt now, the credit-report clock will not be reset.

Pay for delete letter

Consider paying the debt with a condition -- deleting the entry from your credit score. A "pay for delete" letter, which is also known as a PFD, is an agreement to pay a debt that is listed on your credit report in exchange for the creditor promising to delete the entry from your credit reports.

Some collections agents will honor these agreements -- others consider them a breach of contract they have with the credit reporting agencies and will not consider them. Some use "PFDs violate federal law" as an excuse for not accepting them, which is either a misunderstanding of the Federal Debt Collections Practices Act and Federal Credit Reporting Act or is a misstatement of the law. PFDs do not violate any federal law.

My advice: If you have the cash to settle a debt immediately you have nothing to lose in asking for a PFD. Do not be surprised if the creditor refuses to consider a PFD offer -- they are under no obligation to accept them. However, it does not hurt to ask.

I hope this information helps you Find, Save, and Learn.

Best,

Bill

bills.com

Comments (4)


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Bills.com
August 26, 2010
I suggest you write a one-page executive summary of the above and send it to your loan officer at CapWest. Explain in your summary the last two late payments were not indicative of your payment history. As a separate document, attach a detailed chronology of what caused the two late payments. If your explanation is plausible and the rest of your application is solid I do not see a major problem overcoming this blip in your history.
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Kay L.
Cane Ridge, TN  |  May 04, 2011
I know this is old but you should have suggested that he find someone else to write the summary to the bank. His writing is entirely too difficult to comprehend!!
Mike R.
August 26, 2010
I am in a situation in which the only thing holding me back from refinancing is the fact that the Bank of America reported to the bureau that I was 30 and 60 days late or more on my last two payments in which I'm would be able to refinance if the 60 day late payment would be changed by Bank of America to a 30 days or more instead in which is the fact. Prior to this we have never late payments on our mortgages for over 15 years. What happened is the fact that we refinance with CapWest mortgage company with an original closing date of November 14th but was delayed to signing and closing on December 14th 2009 and a Disbursement date of December 18th 2009 in which Servicelink was obtained by WestCap and had my Bank of America payoff wired to the Bank of America on December 25, 2009 but unfortunately they were two days late according to the Bank of America "payoff Demand Statement" which was December 23, 2009. Because of this, the Bank of America voided the wired Servicelink payment for the reason of "incorrect amount" stating the shortage being interest amount for being late with the Service link Itemized Disbursement Statement document showing that the money was wired on December 25, 2009 with the Bank of America having a void posted date of January 7, 2010 in which Servicelink then wired either the entire amount or just the shortage on January 7, 2010 with a posted date of January 7, 2010. Because of the poor advice I received from CapWest Mortgage on telling us we did have to make the November and December payment because we were suppose to close in November as well I now have a 60 day and a 30 day late payment on my credit report. I'll take responsibility for the November as I should have been smarter by making the payment once it was delayed but knowing that the payoff date was in December and Servicelink making this mistake and admitting to it in writing I no longer can take advantage in such great rates wanting to refinance dropping from a 30 year to a 15 year mortgage saving myself a ton of money in the future. After contacting Servicelink they admitted to their mistake and said they would send a letter to the Bank of America without guaranteeing anything as long as I get them a name and an address in which they will send the letter to. I tried and have had no luck in gathering this information and feel it's not my responsibility as well. My overall goal is to get the Bank of America to change the 60 day late payment to a 30 day as they were suppose to and may have received my mortgage payoff at that time making it impossible in having a 60 day or late payment on my credit report. I also had a second loan with Bank of America in which we consolidated and the Bank of America did receive their payoff with a distribution date of December 18, 2010. I'm asking what I can do to correct this problem and ASAP as this is the only thing holding us back from refinancing in which we should have already closed. Thanks
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Brianna S.
Atlanta, GA  |  March 09, 2012
Mike, I am having an incredibly similar issue, but it is holding me back from getting a loan. Did you finally remedy the situation? I'm desperate to find out what I can do before taking measures that will require more time and money. Brianna
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