Paying OC

[soxcited]

I have a collection account showing up in my CR. It looks like the CA is reporting, they include who OC is. So I called the OC and asked them if I can pay them directly. They said Yes, once I paid them over the phone and the check is cleared they could send me a document showing that the account is PIF. They told me I should contact the CA afterwards for removal of the entry from my CR. I was planning on paying the OC but wanted to double check with you first. Do these steps sound right? Anything I should be aware of or request from OC beforehand? Thanks.

[MarineVietVet]

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@soxcited wrote:

I have a collection account showing up in my CR. It looks like the CA is reporting, they include who OC is. So I called the OC and asked them if I can pay them directly. They said Yes, once I paid them over the phone and the check is cleared they could send me a document showing that the account is PIF. They told me I should contact the CA afterwards for removal of the entry from my CR. I was planning on paying the OC but wanted to double check with you first. Do these steps sound right? Anything I should be aware of or request from OC beforehand? Thanks.

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Did you get it in writing that the OC will notate the collection as PIF and it will be removed from your file? Just paying it off will not automatically remove it nor help your score.

From a BK years ago to:
EX - 9/09 pulled by lender 802
EQ - 7/06-663, 3/10-800
TU - 8/10-772

You can do the same thing with hard work

Credit Scoring 101
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[soxcited]

They told me that they would send me the letter indicating that the account has been paid in full after my payment is cleared. It is not CA i am dealing with, I am communicating directly with OC. They said they would not contact the CA to have the entry removed it is my responsibility. I was told once my payment is cleared they would send me a letter indicating that my accound is paid in full. Then i need to contact the CA to have the entry removed. So I should get a letter from OC before hand?

[MarineVietVet]

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@soxcited wrote:

They told me that they would send me the letter indicating that the account has been paid in full after my payment is cleared. It is not CA i am dealing with, I am communicating directly with OC. They said they would not contact the CA to have the entry removed it is my responsibility. I was told once my payment is cleared they would send me a letter indicating that my accound is paid in full. Then i need to contact the CA to have the entry removed. So I should get a letter from OC before hand?

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I meant getting the letter from the OC. Sorry for the confusion. If it's not in writing before you pay the OC and they don't come through you have no leverage. There is no reason they can't send you that letter ahead of time but many creditors won't for some reason.

From a BK years ago to:
EX - 9/09 pulled by lender 802
EQ - 7/06-663, 3/10-800
TU - 8/10-772

You can do the same thing with hard work

Credit Scoring 101
Common Abbreviations
Frequently Requested Threads
Whats In Your FICO Score

[AndySoCal]

In this case I would not pay the OC.  There is too many possibilites of things that can go wrong. One, it is the OC who the contract with the CA  It is the OC who controls the what accounts are assigned to the CA or brought back from the CA. There offer a letter would mostt likely do you little or no good  in getting the account deleted with the CA. MY concern is once the CA find outs the OC has the money that the OC will pass it back to the CA and the CA will just mark your account as paid but remove the account from your credit report. 

[RobertEG]

I agree that payment back to the OC is not a process that necessarily also results in CA deletion.

The OC reports actions on your original credtior account.

The CA reports the fact that they have been designated as a debt collector on behalf of the OC.

If you go back and pay the OC, all the OC can agree to is to update their account statuts, and maybe also to delete whatever account reporting, or their whole OC account, from your credit report.  Sure,they give you a letter saying the debt is now paid.  The OC has NO authority to delete prior CA reporting, or to promise the deletion of CA reporting.

CA reporting is separate from OC reporting. 

At that point, if you pay the OC, you have lost all PFD incentive with the CA.  Sure, you can go back to the CA, and show them the PIF letter from the OC, and ask for GW deletion.

How much GW are they willing to extend when their contract with the OC has now been terminated, and the CA has now been cut out of collection on the debt?  Maybe, if the OC specificallly asks them to delete, they might have an incentiive to to delete in order to keep good relations with the OC, with the eye on future business.  But a simple PIF letter from the OC makes no such request. 

[Anonymous]

By dealing with the OC directly the CA is no longer the owner of the debt. Therefore when you dispute the ownership of the account with the CRA's, the CA will not be able to validate and should have the account deleted. Just make sure the OC sends in writing they will delete after accounts been paid in full

[RobertEG]

mr 814 posted:

By dealing with the OC directly the CA is no longer the owner of the debt. Therefore when you dispute the ownership of the account with the CRA's, the CA will not be able to validate and should have the account deleted. Just make sure the OC sends in writing they will delete after accounts been paid in full

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I respectfully must say that I really dont understand this response, at all.

First, being a debt collector, and thus having the right to post to a consumer credit file their collection activities, does not, in any way, imply that the CA is the owner of the debt.  A CA can post to a consumer credit file, without ownership of the debt, simply as being a debt collection agent secured for collection activities by the original creditor.

Second, you can never dispute ownership of a debt with the CRAs,  That is a legal issue between the OC and the debt collector, and not a credit reporting or debt validation issue..

Third, when you ask for debt validation, that is strictly between you, the consumer, and the debt collector.  FDCPA 809(b). That is an issue of requring the CA to cease future collection activities until, and at such time, as they choose to validate.  CRAs are not a part of the DV process.

Validation does not include the need for any proof of right to ownership of the debt.  Debt validation under FDCPA 809(b) requires only the indentification of the OC, and the current amount of the debt that is being collected.  No legal proofs.  CAs dont have to own debt to report.  Just the right assigned to them to collect on behalf of the OC.

The CRAs are not a party to debt validation.  The CA can validate, without owning the debt.

Then, to somehow infer from all of this that deletions of prior credit reporting must occur as the result of any payment of a debt to the OC has no legal basis that I am aware of.

If you pay the OC, that does not require any obligation for deletion of the reporting by the CA.  You then have to GW the CA.

[Anonymous]

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@RobertEG wrote:

mr 814 posted:

By dealing with the OC directly the CA is no longer the owner of the debt. Therefore when you dispute the ownership of the account with the CRA's, the CA will not be able to validate and should have the account deleted. Just make sure the OC sends in writing they will delete after accounts been paid in full

_________________________________________________________________

I respectfully must say that I really dont understand this response, at all.

First, being a debt collector, and thus having the right to post to a consumer credit file their collection activities, does not, in any way, imply that the CA is the owner of the debt.  A CA can post to a consumer credit file, without ownership of the debt, simply as being a debt collection agent secured for collection activities by the original creditor.

Second, you can never dispute ownership of a debt with the CRAs,  That is a legal issue between the OC and the debt collector, and not a credit reporting or debt validation issue..

Third, when you ask for debt validation, that is strictly between you, the consumer, and the debt collector.  FDCPA 809(b). That is an issue of requring the CA to cease future collection activities until, and at such time, as they choose to validate.  CRAs are not a part of the DV process.

Validation does not include the need for any proof of right to ownership of the debt.  Debt validation under FDCPA 809(b) requires only the indentification of the OC, and the current amount of the debt that is being collected.  No legal proofs.  CAs dont have to own debt to report.  Just the right assigned to them to collect on behalf of the OC.

The CRAs are not a party to debt validation.  The CA can validate, without owning the debt.

Then, to somehow infer from all of this that deletions of prior credit reporting must occur as the result of any payment of a debt to the OC has no legal basis that I am aware of.

If you pay the OC, that does not require any obligation for deletion of the reporting by the CA.  You then have to GW the CA.

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I apologize, the information I provided was based off of my own experience. I had two accounts sent to collections, one was assigned and the other was purchased by CA's.  I made arrangements with the OC on the assigned account, paid a significant chunk of the debt and they reinstated my account with payment arrangements. I disputed the CA tag line thru EQ & EX as "acct was reopened with original creditor- please verify if company owns debt and verify amount owed" and both agencies deleted account. I can't say for sure what happen but I assume the dispute triggered the CA to verify the account info, recognized the debt no longer existed and removed their files.

"A CA can post to a consumer credit file, without ownership of the debt, simply as being a debt collection agent secured for collection activities by the original creditor." If the debt owed to the OC is paid in full wouldn't this eliminate the need for collection activities by the CA?

You are right, the CRA's do not handle debt validations but they must report accurate information. If in their investigation they determine the info reported to be inaccurate or unverifiable, then they'll delete it. The "FCRA 611. Procedure in case of disputed accuracy [15 U.S.C. § 1681i] under (a) Reinvestigations of Disputed Information (5) Treatment of Inaccurate or Unverifiable Information" states this. I didn't claim "Not Mines" where a simple name, account number and debt owed could verify it. I requested they verify the CA's claim to debt and amount owed.

 I did claim "Not Mine" with a CA who Purchased a debt from Columbia House to which I wasn't aware I owed. EX verified with the name, account and debt owed info and so I had to DV the CA to get this cleared up. The letter I sent stated "Please send the following information 1) An itemization of amount due 2) The name and address of current and original creditor 3) A statement addressing the dispute 4) A statement the product or services has been provided but not yet paid"  Two weeks later they sent me a letter apologizing for the error and they removed it from my report.

IDK, maybe my original statement was worded wrong, i just know after researching, this is what worked for me. Of course YMMV

[soxcited]

Hi All. So what do you think is best to handle this?

Do you think I should contact CA instead and ask for PFD?

Thanks.