First and foremost, Don't play hard ball or threaten a CA. You've got to kill them with kindness! I had a collection with West Asset from sprint for $704. I got a call from them looking to settle. I asked to speak to a supervisor who was very friendly and agreed to do a PFD for the full amount. I sent them the full amount and within 1 week I got a letter which read:
This letter certifies that West Asset Mgmt acknowledges that we have asked the three major credit bureaus to which we report (Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion), to remove any and all derogatory information regarding that above mentioned account from their records if it were to be reported. Please allow up to 30 days for the credit bureaus to delete information from their systems.
When you find the right contact, kill them with kindness. Don't threaten the CA, 99.9 % of the time you'll lose!
Starting Score {July 30,2012}: TU 586 EQ 535 EX 583 