Should i pay?

[Chiprox]

Hey guys and gals,

I've worked very hard rebuilding my credit over the past few years and my score is currently low to mid 700's. I recieved a letter a few days ago from a collection agengy trying to collect on a past due bill for AT&T home phone service for a total of $45.00... I know that this is in fact money that i did owe but forgot about, It's been three plus years since i've had a landline.

So my question is do i go ahead and pay it? If i don't pay and ignore their letters can it show up on my credit report as a collection after this much time?

Thanks.

[-Wade-]

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@Chiprox wrote:

Hey guys and gals,

I've worked very hard rebuilding my credit over the past few years and my score is currently low to mid 700's. I recieved a letter a few days ago from a collection agengy trying to collect on a past due bill for AT&T home phone service for a total of $45.00... I know that this is in fact money that i did owe but forgot about, It's been three plus years since i've had a landline.

So my question is do i go ahead and pay it? If i don't pay and ignore their letters can it show up on my credit report as a collection after this much time?

Thanks.

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I would go ahead and pay it . Because yes it could show up on your report if you don't. Your lucky it's not on it now...........

My 2 cents

[myjourney]

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@Chiprox wrote:

Hey guys and gals,

I've worked very hard rebuilding my credit over the past few years and my score is currently low to mid 700's. I recieved a letter a few days ago from a collection agengy trying to collect on a past due bill for AT&T home phone service for a total of $45.00... I know that this is in fact money that i did owe but forgot about, It's been three plus years since i've had a landline.

So my question is do i go ahead and pay it? If i don't pay and ignore their letters can it show up on my credit report as a collection after this much time?

Thanks.

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Does it appear on CR's?

I would offer a PFD you don't want it to show activity even tho it would be paid in full and then hit CR's as a paid collection

[Anonymous]

It can still show up on your CR given it is only 3 years old even if you paid it now.  Offer them a pay for not reporting.

[takeshi74]

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@Chiprox wrote:

If i don't pay and ignore their letters can it show up on my credit report as a collection after this much time?

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3 years isn't really "much time".  IIRC it's 7 years for items like this but I'd suggest doing your own due diligence on the matter.  Is a derog really worth saving $45 to you?  Are you sure it's not on any of your reports?

[Vegas247]

Wow...I'm kind of in the same situation. My credit is spotless on Equifax and Transunion but my Experian has a $45.00 parking ticket from 2010 and Experian says it will come off June 2017. I disputed it twice and it still remains.....I called the collection company, and they will absolutely not do a pay for delete.

I can easily pay it,but I'm scared it will drop my fico score on Experian.

1. Am I wrong to assume it will drop my fico score???

2. Also, I heard if you pay and wait a couple of months and dispute it again, the collection agency wont bother to verify it since they already got their money. Has anyone had any luck with that?

[Anonymous]

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@Vegas247 wrote:

Wow...I'm kind of in the same situation. My credit is spotless on Equifax and Transunion but my Experian has a $45.00 parking ticket from 2010 and Experian says it will come off June 2017. I disputed it twice and it still remains.....I called the collection company, and they will absolutely not do a pay for delete.

I can easily pay it,but I'm scared it will drop my fico score on Experian.

1. Am I wrong to assume it will drop my fico score???  If it hasn't updated in a while, yes it can drop your score by using a current date and making it appear newer. If it updates on a monthly basis you should not see a score drop.

2. Also, I heard if you pay and wait a couple of months and dispute it again, the collection agency wont bother to verify it since they already got their money. Has anyone had any luck with that?  You cannot dispute an accurately reporting account.  It is against the TOS of the forums.

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[Vegas247]

1. Am I wrong to assume it will drop my fico score???  If it hasn't updated in a while, yes it can drop your score by using a current date and making it appear newer. If it updates on a monthly basis you should not see a score drop.

It reports on my credit as:

DATE OPENED- Aug 11

DLA- (nothing in this part) Just a dash ----

Last Late (nothing in this part) Just a dash ---

Experian says it will fall off June 2017

[RobertEG]

The question "Should I pay?" is not limited simply to credit reporting and scoring implications.

Even after expiration of SOL and/or credit report exclusion, you would still have an unpaid, delinquent debt in your credit history.

Credit report exclusion will prevent others from becoming aware of the unpaid debt by simply pulling your CR and seeing an unpaid collection.

Thus, it may not become an issue when applying for credit where a more extensive review is not conducted.

However, if your future quest for credit ever involves an amount for which the creditor may do a more extensive review than a simple pull of your CR, such as a mortgage, you will likely be asked to disclose any unpaid, delinquent debt.  Presence of any unpaid, delinquent debt can become a real issue.

In my opinion, it is not worth the risk of potential future problems with having an unpaid, delinquent debt that is such a small amount.

[Anonymous]

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@Vegas247 wrote:

1. Am I wrong to assume it will drop my fico score???  If it hasn't updated in a while, yes it can drop your score by using a current date and making it appear newer. If it updates on a monthly basis you should not see a score drop.

It reports on my credit as:

DATE OPENED- Aug 11

DLA- (nothing in this part) Just a dash ----

Last Late (nothing in this part) Just a dash ---

Experian says it will fall off June 2017

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Where did you get your report? 

There should be somewhere that says date last reported or something like that.