@Anonymous wrote:Good morning folks, I had a late pay on my Kohls account back in January/February. I'm a Respiratory Therapist and was exposed to COVID at work by a doctor. I was on quarantine, stressed beyond words and the late happened. I tried to resolve this by calling customer service at Kohls without any success. I also tried the 3 Credit Bureaus by disputing it, also no success. Any other options that you guys might recommend? I've never had 1 single late payment. Any advice/help is welcomed. Thank you.
I'm so sorry to hear of your COVID-19! It sounds like you were assymptomatic at least and quaranteened as a precaution? Either way, I hope you're well and healthy. In the grand scheme of things, that is what is most important right now!
Also, I want to extend a sincere thank you to yourself and all the other medical personnnel who are dealing on the front lines with the coronavirus! We appreciate and recognize your service and personal sacrifice to help others!
Now back to the issue at hand. I know it seems significant now but it's probably not as big of a deal as we make it out to be. I've been there, done that, got the t-shirt. Life moves on and you will recover from it. I'm assuming this is a single 30-day late from the description? If so, that is a pretty minor derogatory item. Lates affect you much more if they are 60-90 days or more late, if there are multiples of them, or if they go to collections also. So a single 30-day late that you paid has a limited effect. Also, late payments have a much more limited impact on scores as they age. After 2 years and especially 4 years, it's a pretty minor ding, as long as there aren't more added to it.
First, I'm assuming you didn't have autopay enabled on this account? If so, it's time to do that. I don't like authorizing a Pay-in-Full but I DO have auto pay for the minimum payment due set up on all my accounts. It's usually easy to do and a great protection even if you normally pay your bills in full manually.
Second, you've done the right thing by pleading your case with customer service. That's the first step. Sometimes, if you HUCA (Hang up - Call again) or elevate to a supervisor, you may have more success. Especially considering the circumstances, I would think many lenders would try to work with you.
Third, you could put it in writing. "Goodwill" letters can often be effective, especially if you accept some blame, explain the circumstances, and ask for removal in a polite way. There are examples on various websites that help you with the wording. Letters can have a more favorable impact that making a phone call sometimes. I have had success with this.
Fourth, be persistent. If you really want it removed, sometimes it takes some effort to achieve your goal. You just need to speak (or write to) the right person at the right time once. You can continue to call or write letters as long as the item is still being reported.
Fifth, you have a right to put a statement in your credit file. It won't increase your credit score. And it may not even be seen unless a manual review of your file is done. However, you can do it and at least it might make you feel a little better, knowing you did all you could do. I would think under the extenuating circumstances that it could have a favorable impact.
I have had luck removing a 30-day late from my report and I've also had to wait the full seven years for one to fall off. They do normally fall off after the full seven years.
Good luck and let us know what we can do to help and support you with this issue.
