Goodwill letter; Please give feedback

[Anonymous]

I sent them a letter about the "missing" mail about a month ago.  I didn't send a Goodwill letter.  I just received a letter stating, "We have received notification of a disputed amount billed to you by Palais Royal."

I would like to send this letter and now also need to mention that I am not disputing a charge.

********************************************

Palais Royal

To Whom It May Concern:

I have been a Palais Royal cardholder since 19XX, and I have thoroughly enjoyed my shopping experiences with your company.  I am kindly requesting a goodwill adjustment to your reporting to the three credit agencies.  My credit reports reflect the following late payments:

1.      August 2007 (30 days late)

2.      November 2005 (30 and 60 days late)

3.      September 2005 (30 days late)

I suffered a financial adversity in April of 2005 in which I lost my job and was out of work for a short time.  However, when I did obtain another job, the pay was minimal, and I was only allowed to work on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays.

As stated in my recent correspondence to your company, I did purchase some items on May 19, 2007.  I returned all but one item on June 10, 2007, which left a balance of $34.05.  However, I did not recall that I had one item outstanding.  I received a phone call from a customer representative stating that my payment was two months late.  I was stunned to say the least.  I stated that I had not received a bill, and I stated that I would research the issue.  I went online and saw that I did in fact owe the $34.05.  I have received other people’s sensitive mail from time to time, so it is not unheard of that my bill was misplaced.

I also inquired why I had not received an email stating that I had a bill due since I had signed up for online billing.  The customer service representative stated that no emails are sent out when bills are due.  Online billing is simply available to view statements and make payments.  Most credit card companies send emails when statements are available.

I have worked diligently on improving my payment history with all creditors over the last several years.  I generously request you consider removing the negative payment reporting from my credit reports.  I am not justifying the late payments, and I sincerely hope that Palais Royal is willing to work with me on deleting the negative marks from my credit reports.

In the near future, I will be in the market for a new vehicle and a first home.  I have been a happy customer since 19XX and look forward to a continued financial relationship with Palais Royal.  Your company is outstanding, and I do recommend you to everyone.  Again, I hope that you will respectfully consider my request.  Thank you for your time and attention herein.

[Anonymous]

I would take out the paragraph about the outstanding item... also I would replace "generously" in the 5th paragraph with "humbly" (is that spelled right? it doesn't look right to me...)

Your goal here is to get the lates off, so maybe do a little more sucking up. Why did you lose your job? Give them a short, but sweet sob story. Do not place any of the blame on them because it surely will not help, just tell them it was all your fault (even if it wasn't) and go from there...

Also, if you spend alot of money with them and PIF you may want to mention that, humbly of course

[Anonymous]

I was in the fire academy & four weeks before graduation, they decided I couldn't make it.  I work for another FD now.  It would be too long a story to say why I lost my job.  Another thing, I don't spend a lot of money with them either.  I don't use that credit card too much.

[demi]

Hey, firefighters are our heroes...play it up....you changed academy's, changed position, or something. Good luck

[Anonymous]

Like demi said, redraft your GW letter and slip in a mention or two about being a firefighter. That, IMHO, will carry a lot of weight.

Friend of mine who's a cop told me, "Firefighters don't get tickets. It's unwritten law in Washington."

Another friend was wearing a Seattle FD T-shirt, got stopped several years ago for speeding, and got outta the ticket because the cop thought he was a firefighter.

Trim the word count down a bit. IMHO, GW letters should fit pretty well within the parameters for a letter to the editor. Generally that's 250 words. Try not to sound legalistic with anything, and trim out some of the details.

For example, replace the first 2 paragraphs with something like this.

I have been a Palais Royal cardholder since 19XX, and I have thoroughly enjoyed my shopping experiences with your company. I am respectfully requesting a goodwill adjustment to your reporting to the three credit agencies.

My account was late several times in 2005 and again in 2007. I lost my job as a firefighter in April of 2005, and when I found work again it was part time only.
...

Message Edited by Noah_Bodie on 12-03-2007 09:41 AM