@Sheridan wrote:
If a collection still within SOL, it is better to go ahead and PIF and try to get deleted. If SOL has passed, paying the balance does not really improve the score and it could actually make the score worse? I read on one of the posts about waking old debts could possibly put you in a position of being sued. I have a tendency to overthink things and now I'm unsure of what my first step should be. I sent one PFD letter and the only response was that once payment was made, the information will be reported to the collection agency. The account is about 4 years old and a small amount ($138) so I was positive they would agree to delete. Now I don't know what to do. Please help!!!
Paying in full a CA (or anything else as far as that goes), inside or outside SOL, won't result in a deletion unless you get a PFD request accepted.
Whether or not SOL has passed, paying the balance on a CA will have no positive improvement to your FICO score. In rare instances, they could update in a way to cause the score to drop, but it isn't that common.
Taking action on any unpaid, baddie TL inside SOL will usually increase collection activity, and that includes being sued.
The only time you ever need to worry about SOL is if you do not have the ability to PIF any given debt if you are inside SOL. That's why we recommend waiting until SOL expired or you have the ability to PIF if you had to. That way, if they reject a PFD offer (or respond to a DV or respond to a dispute), and decide to sue instead, you can always PIF before the court date and avoid a judgment. I'm sure $138 isn't an issue and likely nobody would waste their time on that anyway, so sending a PFD wouldn't hurt anything. BTW, be sure to DV first. There's always the chance they sold the debt to someone else and you wouldn't want to mail a PFD to the wrong CA.
