Medical collection question

[Kbrown1022]

I called one of the collection agencies last night since I believed an account was reported in error. I guess it was a different account than I previously discussed with someone there. Anyways... the lady asks me if I want to take the account out of dispute. I said no. I want you to send the necessary documentation to the credit bureaus to validate this debt. She says she is not responding to the credit bureaus and it will remain in dispute. Really? I thought after 30 days they have to remove it since they did not validate the debt.

[RobertEG]

Did you actually file a dispute with the CRA, or did the debt collector report that you had filed a direct dispue with them, and they notified the CRA of a pending direct dispute?

Different procedures are involbed.

[Kbrown1022]

I sent a dispute to the credit bureaus.

[RobertEG]

If you filed a dispute with the CRA, then the CRA is under a statutory requirement to conclude their reinvestigation within 30 days of filing of your dispute, and mail you their Notice of Results of Reinvestigation within 5 business days thereafter. 

In conducting their reinvestigation, the CRA must forward a copy of the dispute to the furnisher of the disputed information.

That furnisher is required to respond back to the CRA before the end of the CRA;s reinvestig\tion period expires.  See FCRA 623(b)(1) for the requirement to respond, and 623(b)(2) for their statutory deadline to do so.

The final determination is then made by the CRA based on all information at their disposal.

Usually having no basis for veriying unless they receive a statement from the furnisher that they verify the accuracy, the CRA will usually make a finding that the accuracy cannot be verified.  If they make that finding, then they must delete. 

Thus, the dispute must be concluded by the CRA and notice mailed to you within 35'ish days from its filing.  Failure of the furnisher to respond is not basis for the CRA to fail to conclude the dispute.  They are left to decide based on whatver info have or dont have.

As an aside, since reponse back to the CRA is clearly a requirment of FCRA 623(b),  if they have informed you that they are willfully not complying, then you have basis for a civil action against them under FCRA 616, with possible award of punitive damages for willful noncompliance.

[Kbrown1022]

We clicked the dispute button on another paid medical collection and it now says they verified the debt. Is there a letter I can use to make them verify more than just my name and address? I am trying to get a mortgage and these stupid under $100 collections are killing me.

[RobertEG]

When did you file your dispute with the CRA?

If well past the statutory peirod for its conclusion, I would call the CRA and request a status update or mail a formal request for explantion of why you have not heard from them within the required statutory period.

You will most likely need more than clicking a button to identify your dispute, and get the CRA status of its completion.

[gdale6]

Search for HIPAA Process you can get info there on how to handle these

[Kbrown1022]

I have been searching about the HIPPA process, but these are paid collections. I also paid them to the collection agency, not the hospital. I don't see anything out there for this situation.

[SSPA87]

Are they your debts?  If they are and are under $100, why don't you just offer a PFD and just not have to worry about them anymore? 

[Kbrown1022]

They are mine. Insurance messed up and was denying claims left and right. During my dispute with insurance, the hospital threw me in collections. This was 2 years ago and I just paid them since I thought that made them go away. Boy was I stupid.