Most effective method to dispute a 100 dollar collection from the state of Ohio for child support?

[Anonymous]

I think this is 100% ridiculous.  My monthly child support obligation is literally 100 dollars.  The first month the billing statement went to a different address so I was a month late paying the first payment.  Paid on time every single month.  Six months in OHIO dept of human services literally puts a collection account on my Equifax.  Instant 60 point drop on my report.  I've noticed they say on there that I was 120 days late as the worse delinquincy.  Which is one million percent incorrect.  Easily proved on my end.  

They are not a creditor which I think is obsurd for them to put a collection account on a CONSUMER credit report.  

What is my best method without contacting an attorney to dispute and get removed?  I'm literally ready to purchase a home and this is holding me back.  Equifax is 682 with this on there now.  It's gonna cost me huge on interest for that score drop the bank said. 

Thanks

[Brian_Earl_Spilner]

They already said they wouldn't remove it?

[Anonymous]

Correct. Already contacted them and they said there’s nothing they can do.

[Remedios]

Hi and welcome to the forums

If you already contacted them, dispute with CRA via certified mail. Send copies showing all your payments and any other supporting evidence if you're certain reporting is wrong.
If EQ does not correct it, next step would be complaint to CFPB.

[Anonymous]

So are you disputing the presence/validity of the collection itself, or the fact that it references being 120 days late when you were in fact only 30 days late (I believe)?  It's extremely rare for a 30 day late payment to go right to a collection, so that seems a bit off.  If it were in fact 120+ days late that would make more sense.  If you talk to whoever you make the $100/mo payment to, on their end do they have you as 30 days late or 120 days late?

[Remedios]

OP, if you never caught up, the reporting is correct.
When you paid that $100.00 that was late, another payment would have been already due.
If you're lagging one payment behind, that means you've been late this whole time.
If you caught up immediately, that's a grounds for dispute on anything past that 30 day late.

[FlaDude]

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@Remedios wrote:
OP, if you never caught up, the reporting is correct.
When you paid that $100.00 that was late, another payment would have been already due.
If you're lagging one payment behind, that means you've been late this whole time.
If you caught up immediately, that's a grounds for dispute on anything past that 30 day late.

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Wouldn't that be a series of 30 day lates rather than a 120? Hopefully moot if the OP caught up in month 2, but that's a little unclear.

[Remedios]

That's what I'm trying to get at, if they are incorrectly reporting string of delinquencies by adding 30 days vs going with 30 days in every month.
I can see where it would appear that way, though.

[Anonymous]

I would think that if someone is late on a payment, the next payment they made would be applied to the outstanding balance owed first... basically taking care of the late payment but then resulting in now being 30 days late again on the following payment.  I would therefore think of the account as being perpetually 30 days late until the time an extra payment is made.  But, that's just my train of thought and I don't know if this particular lender or any lender handles it that way.

[Anonymous]

I get that train of thought. But I think in this case, and probably most, the account will continue to accumulate lates until it is brought current.

So month one $100 was owed and not paid, from that due date the days start counting as late. Month two $200 was owed to get the account brought back to current, but only $100 was paid so it's now 30 days late. Month three again $200 owed and $100 paid, account hasn't been current now for 60 days. And so on...

I guess one other thing might be how they view applying the payment (if they make a distinction about it at all). Let's say they missed Jan payment. It's now Feb, they owe for 2 months, send payment for 1 month. Does this get applied to Jan or Feb balance first? Depending on how payment was applied when Mar rolls around they could owe for Jan/Mar, or Feb/Mar. This would make a difference if it's seen as a series of 30 day lates, or a cumulative late.