topic Re: My score dropped in Rebuilding Your Credit

My score dropped

Anonymous — Tue, 26 Jul 2011 16:23:28 GMT

filed a dispute to the CRA for a couple hospital bills as per the HIPAA process and my score dropped 12 points just for EQ listing it as a dispute. I did a search but nothing came up about this. Is the drop normal?

Re: My score dropped

Anonymous — Tue, 26 Jul 2011 17:43:44 GMT

Are the bills listed under "collections" on the credit report? It is my understanding that a dispute for a collection does not affect the score, only if it is an original creditor.

Is there something else that changed as well?

Re: My score dropped

Anonymous — Tue, 26 Jul 2011 18:43:10 GMT

They are the collection agency for the original creditor but they are not listed under collection agency.

Re: My score dropped

Anonymous — Tue, 26 Jul 2011 19:57:18 GMT

That doesn't seem right to me.

Re: My score dropped

cf2701 — Tue, 26 Jul 2011 22:45:04 GMT

This is the first I have read about a dispute dropping your FICO score? Would you mind explaining this to me? I am very interested as to why that is and what conditions???

Thanks in advance!

Re: My score dropped

kjm79 — Tue, 26 Jul 2011 22:58:06 GMT

A dispute can drop your score. For example, if you dispute the oldest account on your report, that account is kind of "invisible" for scoring purposes. And while the account is invisible, it is no longer your oldest account and your length of history and AAoA dropped. Another example could be you dispute an account with a cl of $30,000. While disputed you lose this available limit and that could wreak havoc on your UTIL.

I don't think I've heard or read that disputing collections can lower your score, hopefully someone else can add to that.

Re: My score dropped

Anonymous — Tue, 26 Jul 2011 23:13:01 GMT

These are medical bills with a hospital that was assigned to the internal collection agency. They're not listed under collections for whatever reason and they both were written off by the hospital (after they went to collections) because I was approved for their good will program. Maybe they moved the accounts to list under collections as they should have been. These were two of newer accounts on my credit report. This has me confused because the information is the same from what was previously reported on myFico so I'm stumped.

Re: My score dropped

Anonymous — Tue, 26 Jul 2011 23:19:49 GMT

Myfico lists this: This score decrease may be caused by these 4 new reasons: You have a public record or collection in addition to a serious delinquency on your credit report. You have multiple accounts showing missed payments or derogatory descriptions. You have a recent public record or collection on your credit report. You’ve recently missed a payment or the date of your most recent missed payment is unknown.

Re: My score dropped

llecs — Tue, 26 Jul 2011 23:29:33 GMT

To the OP, a dispute has no impact on your FICO if that dispute was with a CA or PR. Since this was a medical CA, a dispute wouldn't have resulted in a loss due to that specific TL. Now if other items were disputed, like within an OC account, then that's different. Also, once verified or updated, sometimes the CA can update in a way that could possibly hurt. It depends on what changes. OP, I would check for other items that could have changed, like a baddie updating, change in CC util, dropped accounts, added accounts, etc.

@kjm79 wrote:
A dispute can drop your score. For example, if you dispute the oldest account on your report, that account is kind of "invisible" for scoring purposes. And while the account is invisible, it is no longer your oldest account and your length of history and AAoA dropped. Another example could be you dispute an account with a cl of $30,000. While disputed you lose this available limit and that could wreak havoc on your UTIL.

I don't think I've heard or read that disputing collections can lower your score, hopefully someone else can add to that.

Close. A dispute only removes certain aspects of an OC account, like the payment history, but will continue to score the OC's length of history, your mix of credit, your AAoA, scoring bucket, etc.

Re: My score dropped

kjm79 — Tue, 26 Jul 2011 23:32:50 GMT

@llecs wrote:

Close. A dispute only removes certain aspects of an OC account, like the payment history, but will continue to score the OC's length of history, your mix of credit, your AAoA, scoring bucket, etc.

Oh! That's good to know. Thanks for the clarification.

Re: My score dropped

Anonymous — Tue, 26 Jul 2011 23:40:43 GMT

Should I just order another score watch report to compare?

Re: My score dropped

Anonymous — Tue, 26 Jul 2011 23:53:31 GMT

I found the culprit after ordering a new score watch report. Arrow is now reporting as an account and not as a collection agency. Now my past due amount went from $143 to about $3,100.

Re: My score dropped

llecs — Tue, 26 Jul 2011 23:58:27 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
I found the culprit after ordering a new score watch report. Arrow is now reporting as an account and not as a collection agency. Now my past due amount went from $143 to about $3,100.

That's a big leap. Are they saying you owe more?

Re: My score dropped

Anonymous — Wed, 27 Jul 2011 03:28:20 GMT

Okay,I finally figured out what happened. I started the DV process about two weeks ago. Arrow signed the CMRRR on last Thursday and has not DVed yet but in the mean time they started reporting to EQ as a factoring company. This moved it from a collection account to a credit account. Not only is it reporting as 120+ days past due, it's reporting as I'm using 100 percent of my available credit. That's why my score watch said

You have a public record or collection in addition to a serious delinquency on your credit report.
You have multiple accounts showing missed payments or derogatory descriptions.
You have a recent public record or collection on your credit report.
You’ve recently missed a payment or the date of your most recent missed payment is unknown.

Now this cannot be legal. First to update after receiving the DV CMRRR and then updating incorrect information to the CRA. I've read that factoring companies only buy debt that's in good standing and CA/JDB buy the debt that has been written off. Is there something that I'm missing?

Re: My score dropped

Booner72 — Wed, 27 Jul 2011 03:33:46 GMT

@llecs wrote:
To the OP, a dispute has no impact on your FICO if that dispute was with a CA or PR. Since this was a medical CA, a dispute wouldn't have resulted in a loss due to that specific TL. Now if other items were disputed, like within an OC account, then that's different. Also, once verified or updated, sometimes the CA can update in a way that could possibly hurt. It depends on what changes. OP, I would check for other items that could have changed, like a baddie updating, change in CC util, dropped accounts, added accounts, etc.

@kjm79 wrote:
A dispute can drop your score. For example, if you dispute the oldest account on your report, that account is kind of "invisible" for scoring purposes. And while the account is invisible, it is no longer your oldest account and your length of history and AAoA dropped. Another example could be you dispute an account with a cl of $30,000. While disputed you lose this available limit and that could wreak havoc on your UTIL.

I don't think I've heard or read that disputing collections can lower your score, hopefully someone else can add to that.

Close. A dispute only removes certain aspects of an OC account, like the payment history, but will continue to score the OC's length of history, your mix of credit, your AAoA, scoring bucket, etc.

llecs: I disputed a collection agency that has 8 or 9 medical collections. I disputed to get the balance to report as zero as I paid them. *(Stupid thing I did but I was a fico-virgin then). Anyway, I lost a point. And there was no other change. The score dropped and FICO report said it was because of the change from "professional credit service".

Re: My score dropped

llecs — Wed, 27 Jul 2011 03:47:33 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
Okay,I finally figured out what happened. I started the DV process about two weeks ago. Arrow signed the CMRRR on last Thursday and has not DVed yet but in the mean time they started reporting to EQ as a factoring company. This moved it from a collection account to a credit account. Not only is it reporting as 120+ days past due, it's reporting as I'm using 100 percent of my available credit. That's why my score watch said

You have a public record or collection in addition to a serious delinquency on your credit report.
You have multiple accounts showing missed payments or derogatory descriptions.
You have a recent public record or collection on your credit report.
You’ve recently missed a payment or the date of your most recent missed payment is unknown.
Now this cannot be legal. First to update after receiving the DV CMRRR and then updating incorrect information to the CRA. I've read that factoring companies only buy debt that's in good standing and CA/JDB buy the debt that has been written off. Is there something that I'm missing?

I'd take SW alerts with a grain of salt. I once got an alert that my FICO score increased 20 points because I added an inquiry. We all know that adding inquiries does not improve your score. However, I had a baddie drop that SW wouldn't have picked up on that led to the increase.

Per utilization, again you may want to confirm that. CAs don't factor into util. However, def. worth a second check to see how your FICO report reads it. IIRC, if you didn't want to look at a new FICO report, EQ correctly calculates util via their services.

I can't speak to the legality. I don't know if it is intentional or if the CRAs make them report that way. FICO reads it as a CA no matter where it reports and ignores the late (so as long as it reads it as a CA). Factoring companies are the same as CAs as pointed out, and treat them just like any CA. Arrow is a CA anyway.

But I can't get over that balance change. Worth a second and third look.

Re: My score dropped

llecs — Wed, 27 Jul 2011 03:49:42 GMT

Booner72 wrote:

llecs: I disputed a collection agency that has 8 or 9 medical collections. I disputed to get the balance to report as zero as I paid them. *(Stupid thing I did but I was a fico-virgin then). Anyway, I lost a point. And there was no other change. The score dropped and FICO report said it was because of the change from "professional credit service".

I'm not familiar with that. Do you recall where that comment was at?

Re: My score dropped

Anonymous — Wed, 27 Jul 2011 04:03:10 GMT

llecs, I meant my past due balances went to $3100. CA accounts aren't figured into the past due balances are they?

Re: My score dropped

llecs — Wed, 27 Jul 2011 04:09:23 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
llecs, I meant my past due balances went to $3100. CA accounts aren't figured into the past due balances are they?

Ah...got it. I thought Arrow decided your new balance should be $3100.

No, FICO scores it as a CA. The balance could increase by $10,000, and the score would stay the same. Again, though, look to 100% confirm that it isn't listed in your utilization on your FICO report. I did see and confirm one example in here of an MCM account, a CA no less, that factored into the poster's util.

Re: My score dropped

Anonymous — Wed, 27 Jul 2011 04:12:11 GMT