Sent off a PFD letter to the lawyer handling my Penfed collection. Normally, he writes back, but he called DW at home. We never gave him our home phone, but we're not unlisted.
Offered $1200 of $2500 remaining, consider it PIF, and dismiss the lawsuit. [Court has already moved to remove it from the calendar].
Called and said client wanted full amount, and to call him.
Called, got a paralegal, "lawyer was on the phone". Started leaving my message, and about the time I said "full payment if the other written terms were agreeable", the lawyer suddenly "became available" to talk.
Acted distracted and uninterested, but clearly he was very interested over "full payment". I smiled but refrained from laughing and giggling.
I asked whether with full payment would they accept my terms in the letter. Said he'd have to review my letter, and I said, "OK, that's fine, well then I'll ..." He said, "No, I've got it right here." Didn't want me to hang up and give him time to review it. Wanted to talk there and then.
Said he doesn't type info into the CRAs, which I listed in my letter, and said to call them and ask. I said I was asking whether his client would consider, with full payment on the debt, to delete all adverse reporting per my letter.
Babbled on in a very excited tone--not a calm, composed, lawyerly manner--about how once it's on the credit reports, it's there as a "part of the record". The laughable expression from youth jumped into my head--"This is going on your permanent record."
"Offered" that his client could mark it as paid, and that "That's not a block on your credit, well, I'll leave that for you to decide whether it is." I refrained from saying, "Heh dummy, if I PIF, and your client doesn't mark it PIF, then you'll be seeing me in Federal District Court when I sue your client."
Said I knew from experience having gotten adverse reporting deleted by creditors when I requested a showing of goodwill, that I knew with certainty that creditors can and do delete information from credit reports on a regular basis.
He started backpeddling, "Well, I'm not sure, so I don't know. But call the companies listed." Said I knew with certainty that their online dispute forms contained checkboxes for "Creditor agreed to delete info".
Finally conceded he would call his client and ask whether they would delete in exchange for PIF.
Man, if I ever became independently wealthy, I'd definitely go back to college and get a degree. If I choose to become a lawyer, I could be one hot snot, consumer lawyer.
