+1. While a late is a late, it did occur so it is not inacccurate. Just because there is "no data" reporting, it will not  factor as negative. It just means that that file did not recieve or update information for that period. Thus, neither positively or negatively. You do not say what else is in your report, however generally speaking, deleting an entire trade line often hurts your AAOA. .According to a couple of my loan officers, a late payment or two after 4 years are mostly overlooked although they still report for seven years. I went from 8k to 25k on one credit card in the last four days with a 90 day late reporting about three years ago. That 90 day late was of course preceeded by a 60 day late and two 30 day lates, totalling four lates in a row. My account showed an additional late four years ago on a different account. IMHU, from tracking my Fico Score changes, it appears on my account that the lates have damaged most up to four years as I am now in the upper seven hundreds with the simulator showing over 800 in less than eighteen months.. Of course YMMV, best wishes for success!