Needing advice..

[Anonymous]

Hello all!

I have started to clear up my medical debt that has been hanging over my head since 2008. I live in Texas so it won't get erased until 2015. I'd like to have better credit before then.

I've read up on how you should send certified letters to collection agencies for correspondence rather than call them. However, the address' that they have posted on FreeCreditReport.com (where I get my credit report from) are incorrect. Or at least I think they are. I've tried sending pay to delete letters to some of the agencies and 3/5 came back saying that the PO Box that they delivered to does not exist. Did I make a mistake? Should I have called and gotten their physical address instead of relying on a PO Box?

I guess I'm stuck. I want to pay these off and I have the money to, but I don't want the bad credit to remain on my account. I'd like to have them deleted if possible and I need to send those certified letters to the collection agencies to have them deleted.

I haven't tried contacting the original debtor yet, should I? And can they delete the accounts if I pay them direct?

I'm so confused on where I should go now.. any advice?

[mauve]

The first thing you should do is get your credit reports from annualcreditreport.com  - these are direct from the CRAs and you are entitled under federal law to a free one from them once a year.  They are the most complete ones that you can get.  You will not be asked for any kind of payment info, either, unless you opt to buy the worthless scores at the CRAs' web sites.  (OK, you can get FICOs if you search hard enough on EQ's site). 

The second thing you should do is go to optoutprescreen.com to prevent CAs and the like from subscribing to your credit report.  It will cut back on stuff popping up when there's movement on your reports.

Then you should google "HIPAA letter process" and decide if that's a route you want to pursue. 

If you have enough money to pay in full and have decided to NOT go with the HIPAA process, you can DV the CAs in question.  Do this CMRRR.  You're one of the lucky Texans who get to compel the CAs to respond to a DV request, regardless of how long it's been.  If they send you a statement that you agree with, send them a PfD for the amount they said.  If they send you back an agreement to your satisfaction, pay them and wait for them to delete.  If they don't respond to the DV, they are obligated to delete - someone from Texas can tell you more about how to do that.

[MarineVietVet]

I would only add that a CA must respond to a DV request from a resident of Texas within 30 days. It's the only state like that. In all other states there is no time limit for a CA to answer a DV.

If you'd like to do some light reading here is the Texas Finance Code.

From a BK years ago to:
EX - 9/09 pulled by lender 802, EQ - 2/11-816, TU - 2/11-782

"Some people spend an entire lifetime wondering if they've made a difference. The Marines don't have that problem".

[Anonymous]

But what if the PO Box on the TransUnion Credit Report that I recieved is the same as the address I sent it to the last time certified mail came back to me as 'address does not exist'?

[mauve]

Then you have grounds to dispute the entry.  If you got it from annualcreditreport.com or TU directly, then I'd proceed: I would photocopy the returned envelope and send them a letter in the mail.  State that you cannot get validation for this item at the address listed on your report.  Ask them to provide the contact information for the reporting entity or delete the tradeline.  

[Anonymous]

That has to be Certified Mail as well, correct?

[mauve]

To the CRA?  I usually do.  I've heard that you shouldn't, but I don't remember where.