REMOVAL OF CHARGE-OFF ACCOUNT

[nycsimone]

I had a charge-off on a credit card back at the end of 2006.

The first delinquency was reported as of 12/2006 on Equifax and TransUnion (which is correct. On Experian it was also reported as 12/2006 until about 1 year ago when it was changed to 06/2007 which is when the account was charged-off.

Equifax and TransUnion just removed this from my CR on Nov 1st. Experian shows no info reported on this debt from 12/2006 until 06/2007 when it shows the account charged-off. But they're also using that date as the date of first delinquency. I disputed this account about 2 years ago when i was trying to clean my CR so it won't let me dispute it again.

I don't have any of the documents from 7 years ago on this debt and i've called this credit card company and asked them to either mail me or email me this info but I haven't heard back from them.

What options do I have other than just waiting another 7-8 months for Experian to remove this from my CR?

[DaBears]

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@nycsimone wrote:

I had a charge-off on a credit card back at the end of 2006.

The first delinquency was reported as of 12/2006 on Equifax and TransUnion (which is correct. On Experian it was also reported as 12/2006 until about 1 year ago when it was changed to 06/2007 which is when the account was charged-off.

Equifax and TransUnion just removed this from my CR on Nov 1st. Experian shows no info reported on this debt from 12/2006 until 06/2007 when it shows the account charged-off. But they're also using that date as the date of first delinquency. I disputed this account about 2 years ago when i was trying to clean my CR so it won't let me dispute it again.

I don't have any of the documents from 7 years ago on this debt and i've called this credit card company and asked them to either mail me or email me this info but I haven't heard back from them.

What options do I have other than just waiting another 7-8 months for Experian to remove this from my CR?

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Hi nycsimone and welcome to the forums. You can send the OC a Direct Dispute questioning the DoFD as to why it was changed to the charge off date/month. 

DaBears

[nycsimone]

Ok...do you by any chance a link to a sample letter for a direct dispute? Also, is the original creditor required by law to respond to me?

[DaBears]

Yes, by law the have 30 days to respond to you directly. Here is the link.

http://ficoforums.myfico.com/t5/Rebuilding-Your-Credit/Direct-dispute/td-p/2309095

DaBears

[907grown]

You can also call them and speak to a real person and they can initiate a new dispute for you. I recently did this because I had paid off a bunch of collections and the CA Updated the accounts to zero balance, but they still showed as collections and not as paid collections. I spoke to a very nice gentleman and within 10 min the dispute was initiated, within 5 days, they were all updated as paid.
This seemed like the fastest route to go, but it is always a good thing to have paper trails when disputing.

[nycsimone]

I did call them directly. This was a credit card from a credit union. So I called and spoke to a real person at the main branch. I told her I needed information as to the original date of delinquency and she said she needed to go into the archives in the back and get the information and she would email it to me. She took down my information and everything...but I never heard back. This was 2 weeks ago.

[guiness56]

The issue would be with EX and not the OC.  Have you tried contacting EX directly and asking them why it was changed?

Do you have copies of old CR showing the original DoFD?

[RobertEG]

The definition of what is referred to as DOFD, stated in FCRA 623(a)(5), should mandate their correction.

The DOFD must be the date of commencement of delinquency on the account that preceded their act of charging off the debt.

To be a DOFD, they would have to have taken a charge-off on a debt that initially became delinquent that same month.

The first delinquency is based on the facts of the account, not upon whether they reported it.

Next to impossible under any acceptable definition, such as that used by the IRS, that the period of delinquency must be of such period that it supports a holding that the debt has now become uncollectible. Usually 120+ days.

[nycsimone]

I finally got around to sending a letter to my original creditor. I sent it FedEx with signature confirmation due to arrive on Dec 2nd (exactly 7 years from DoFD).

I included with my letter a copy of my Equifax and Experian credit report that showed this debt (only that...no other info included). Equifax already removed this from my credit report but I used one from about 1 month ago which showed a DoFD of 12/2006 and then a copy of my Experian report which showed a DoFD of 06/2007...but no data from them from 12/2006 until it shows a charge-off on 06/2007. I also reminded them that a D0FD is the date the account originally became delinquent and not when the account was charged off. I provided a mailing address, email address, and a phone number for them to contact me.

I guess they have 30 days now right?

Also, the original creditor is a credit union with 2 branches in a small town...relatively small institution. The debt was a $3,000 debt on a credit card. How should I expect them to respond and with what probable outcome? I didn't directly send to them any proof that I was delinquent on this debt on 12/2006 other than the Equifax report which does show it.

If they refuse to change it, do I ask for proof or is it much more likely that they'll just change it since it's been so long and it's past the SoL anyways?

Thanks.

[RobertEG]

They are requred to conduct a reasonable investigation of the accuracy of the disputed informatioh, and based on that investigation, must either make a determination that what was reported is accurate, or correct to overcome any inaccuracy.

If they do verify the accuracy as reported, no, they are not required to document or prove its accuracy.  If you disagree with their determination, there is no formal process for appealing their finding.  The dispute is terminated.  A dispute process does not provide for legal review of contested facts and a finding as to who is correct.

While I find it near impossible to verify that they charged-off a debt the same day it first became delinquent, your recourse would then be to pursue the matter outside of the dispute process.  If you have clear documentation of an earlier DOFD, then you could send a formal complaint to the CFPB for clear violation of FCRA 623(a)(5).

Otherwise, you would most likely need to bring civil action in order to get a third party reviw of the contested facts.

By the time either of those processes wends to conclusion, the issue would most likely have become moot, as more than 7/180 would have expired since their asserted date of first delinquency, and thus exclusion would already have occured.