Get rid of Verizon once and for all

Anonymous · ‎05-03-2018

Hello,
I am new here. I started rebuilding my credit about a year ago. I have a charge off from Verizon from 2015 from when they screwed me over very hard I told them I wasn't goting to pay and to cancel my contract. Is there a way to get this off of my credit report? It's only on my Experian.

pipeguy · ‎05-03-2018

The big cell phone providers (and big telecoms like Verizon, Comcast, etc) tend to be very aggressive in collecting what they believe is theirs. This is one reason I buy my own high-end phones and use them with no contract prepaid plans. I also believe these companies use credit reporting as a weapon for collection, as does the debt collection industry.

You didn't give any details as to the amount of the collection (if it was cell phones did you return them?). I would discuss my dispute with Verizon and yes it's hard to get to someone that can do anything about it, but it can be done. Come to an agreement and offer to pay that amount if they delete the credit reporting (aka pay for delete). You can of course sue in small claims court - in Virginia, it's for cases up to $5000 and they can't use an attorney in court (unless you are suing an attorney and he represents himself). Then you present your case to a judge and live with the results - if they don't show up then you win - if they do show up make sure you have a strong case.

IMO talk to Verizon collections and present your justification and an offer to settle for delete, it's the quickest and cleanest solution.

Anonymous · ‎05-03-2018

Thank you for the reply! I buy my phone outright and have a no contract plan through at&t ever since this experience. What happened was I had a contract with Verizon for one phone mine then I added my brother to my account and when they sent his phone it was a refurbished piece of junk with blown out speakers and the water damage was pink so it was clearly refubished. They send the next phone and the home button didn't work so we sent that one back all within one week. At that time I got my monthly bill and they charged me for both phones... I called and tried to talk to them for weeks with no refund nothing. Then I tell them I'm no longer going to use my phone and to cancel my plan so they add a cancellation fee so they say I owe them $1300 I call for a couple more weeks trying to work my way up their food chain and nothing. I haven't payed them a dime and I really don't want to. Will this disappear off of my report after some years or do I have to bend to their will? I absolutely trash talk them every time I hear someone say how great those crooks are. How can I post a screenshot on here of my credit report that shows them on it

Anonymous · ‎05-03-2018

Thank you for the reply! I buy my phone outright and have a no contract plan through at&t ever since this experience. What happened was I had a contract with Verizon for one phone mine then I added my brother to my account and when they sent his phone it was a refurbished piece of junk with blown out speakers and the water damage was pink so it was clearly refubished. They send the next phone and the home button didn't work so we sent that one back all within one week. At that time I got my monthly bill and they charged me for both phones... I called and tried to talk to them for weeks with no refund nothing. Then I tell them I'm no longer going to use my phone and to cancel my plan so they add a cancellation fee so they say I owe them $1300 I call for a couple more weeks trying to work my way up there food chain and nothing. I haven't payed them a dime and I really don't want to. Will this disappear off of my report after some years or do I have to bend to third will? I absolutely trash talk them every time I hear someone say how great those crooks are. How can I post a screenshot on here of my credit report that shows them on it. It only stated working me recently because yesterday I went to Honda to buy a xr650 and my credit scores are TU 718 EQ 711 and EX 689 and thier credit people said they cannot do anything for since that Verizon is on my report and it seems they use experian...

I wanted to get this loan in preparation for my home loan so I don't have to rent a room at my friend's house the rest of my life

pipeguy · ‎05-03-2018

If you are going to apply for a mortgage, yeah you need to take care of it. How does the $1300 break down? Equipment vs monthly data and air time? f it's all airtime and you didn't use any due to your dispute that's a point to make. As far as the equipment was it ALL returned to Verizon? If not, that could be construed as fraud since you never paid for it (still a contract dispute rather than willful theft).

What worked for me with an erroneous credit report filed by Verizon - long story but I had nothing to do with the phone or plan I just helped by helping my elderly mother get a basic plan, which she never used but she paid the bill every month until her analog phone no longer worked on their network. I filed a complaint with BBB (worthless) and another with the CFPB (basically also worthless) but then I posted a public statement on Verizon's Facebook page which resulted in an "executive" contacting me. After explaining to a real person they still wouldn't budge because they said they sent her a free digital hone to replace the analog one, I asked one question "was it ever used or connected to your network at all? They killed the collection and removed the reporting but I know I would have destroyed them in court.

You case on the other hand is "your" fault because you broke the contract without a waiver to do so. Okay, you were dissatisfied with the refurbished phone they sent, but what about the one they supplied you? You got angry over a product and billing dispute, that does not nullify the contract.

You have talking points and you have a case to negotiate with, but if you want to get a mortgage you are going to have to find a solution or settlement. As far as your scores, they are not that bad and the damage of the collection as far as scoring will ding your scores for 2-3 years, but a mortgage is a whole different matter.

Don't get mad, get even - we ALL hate our cell phone companies and big telecoms - every year they populate the most hated company listing.

Anonymous · ‎05-04-2018

Awesome, good info here and thanks for the reply. I did send all the phones back to them. As far as records go for all this and bills I have none. This all happened back in 2015 when I was just moving out of my parents' house and pretty irresponsible. I need to come up with a plea to pay to get it taken off I think

Anonymous · ‎05-05-2018

I had a Verizon account that I lost the phone in a taxi and closed in 2013, but they kept billing it, despite it being end of contract, etc. Ended up in collections and I found it on my credit report this year.

Spent 2 weeks calling them, getting supervisor call backs, etc. They would not budge. They WILL NOT Delete, even if you pay. So, I looked further, found a couple old emails asking them why they were billing a closed account and wrote a dispute letter, attached the emails and sent certified mail off to the credit bureaus. Experian deleted it almost immediately. TransUnion and Equifax are still ""investigating"" (stalling), but I expect the same results.