Your entire problem is establishing the true DOFD on the OC account. It is not one of obtaining lame DV by the CA.
The CRA cannot, under FCRA 605(c), continue to include in any credit report they issue any collection that has passed 7 1/2 years from the DOFD on the OC account. When the CA reported, and what they reported, does not reset this single date-certain, So CA postings are meaningless except for the reported DOFD.
The CA has reported a DOFD of 1/2005. If you terminated your account with the OC back in 2001, and they claim it was delinquent at that time, there is no way that you can have a DOFD in 2005.
You determine your DOFD, based not on what the OC or CA reports, but based on your own account records. Hopefully, you still have records on the OC account.
If not, is the OC reporting of prior derogs still in your current, or past CRs? You can use them to reconstruct your DOFD.
If you cant do either of these, you are at a disadvantage, and need to pulll out the bigger guns.
Once you think you know what your DOFD should be, the next step is to look at any discrepancy in your date with the one included in your CR Never accept a DOFD listed in your CR as the gospel. Why? Becausse you have no idea of how it got there, who reported it, and if it was reported accurately.
DOFD gets into your CR in multiple, and murky ways. The goal is to get it into your CR at the earliest possible time., which is when the first delinquency occurs with the OC. To that end, each OC, when doing monthly reporting on an open account, is asked to update by providing the date of current, first delinquency as an update to field code 25, the "FCRA Compliance Date/DOFD." It is not required reporting, and thus is no always done.
The FCRA recognizes this possiblity. Once a CA is posted, the CRA must know the DOFD upon which to calcualte the 7 1/2 expiration of its continuance in your CR.
If they dont have this due to prior reporting by the OC, they must get it somehow. That is what FCRA 623(a)(5) is all about. It requires each CA to report to the CRA, within 90-days of posting a collection, the DOFD on the OC account. But that is often difficult for the CA to do, because they are not the OC, usallyy dont have adequate records to determine the true DOFD. So read FCRA 623(a)(5)(B), which sets out some guidlelines for them to use in making a good faith reporting of the murky DOFD. But many CAs will just throw out the date of their collection activity as the reported DOFD under 623(a)(5). That is illegal reaging, if intentionally and knowingly inaccurate. Hard to prove. The CRA can only use the garbage sent in, and thus have no alternative other than to throw garbage out in your CR.
If you want to get your legal ducks in a row, you have the right to obtain the DOFD reported by the CA, and thus the date that the CRA is relying on.
Suggested letter to each CRA:
(Identify the OC and CA )
"This is a request under FCRA 609(a) for items of information in my consumer file. It is NOT a dispute of anything.
"I request, specifically, the "FCRA Compliance Date/Date of First Delinency last reported by the above-named original creditor to my credit file. This should be recorded in the base segment, field code 25, of the oriiginal creditor account with you.
"In addition, due to the posting of a collection by the above-named debt collector, they were requried, under FCRA 623(a)(5)(A) to have reported to you the date of commencement of any delinquencies on the original creditor account for which they are seeking debt collection. I thus request information on when the collection agency complied with this requirement (or a statement by you that they did not comply), along with the date of coimmencement of first delinqency that they provided.
"I understand that this request requries payment of a fee to you under FCRA 612(f) in the current amount of $10.50. Enclosed is my check in that amount to cover the required fee."
