Help! Disputed a duplicate CA and the OC re-appeared!!!

[mAndrew1980]

In 2004 I defaulted on my utility bill in the amount of $2,200.00. The OC sold it to a CA in 2007, who sold it to another CA in 2010. I've been paying the current CA since 2010 and currently owe $275.00 (I've paid off over $1,900.00).

Anyways the OC fell off in November. The duplicate CA (the first one) remained on TU and EQ, inaccurately reporting an owed balance of $2,200.00. On Monday I disputed this duplicate CA on both TU and EQ and they were removed while under investigation.

This morning I logged on to my USAA reports and found out the OC re-appeared on TU. I believe certain debts, such as utility bills, can stay on credit reports in Illinois for 10 years. I'm not sure how to check this? But what should I do? Can I dispute this as well? It's terribly frustrating to dispute the duplicate CA and have the OC re-appear after having already fallen off.

[mAndrew1980]

Wow I'm really upset about this. Can't find anything about utility collections being able to stay on for 10 years in Illinois. I might dispute this as well. FRUSTRATION setting in. Just don't see how this could have happened?

[casmith1980]

Maybe I just need some more schooling on this, but I thought that everything BUT BKs have to be removed after 7-7.5 years after DOFD (10 yrs for BK).

I hope RobertEG or another person with more knowledge chimes in soon.

I'm sorry you have to go through this Andrew   Keeping my fingers crossed it removes shortly.

[mAndrew1980]

Yeah I can't find anything in state laws allowing this to stay longer than 7 years. I'm inclined to dispute it but I'll wait till some other MyFico'ers chime in.

[llecs]

Prior to the passage of the FCRA, states were creating their own rules with regards to reporting, like NY's 5-yr rule on paid baddies. However, I'm fairly certain that the FCRA states that state-law can't superceed federal law whereby something could report longer.

The FCRA says that it can stay for 7-7.5 years as a baddie. If in 2004, you could just barely be inside that CRTP. What's the DOFD listed on your CR or the drop off date?

[mAndrew1980]

My TU report had the fall off date listed as November 2011. It did fall off in November like it was supposed to. I might have to spend the $15 or so and pull my TU report again to find out the dofd.

[mAndrew1980]

Ahhh, according to my USAA reports the only listed date is October 2004 as "date opened." Pretty sure I didn't even make a single payment, which as I understand it, would make my dofd November 2004 because it would have reached 30 days late status at that point. No additional payments were made after that so I never got caught up and re-set the clock. Assuming the dofd was 11/2004, so they could still technically report until May of 2012 (7.5 years).

However, I have been paying the new owner of the debt (the current CA) so would paying off the CA re-set the clock on the OC even if they don't own the debt anymore? The OC lists my balance with them as $0 but still lists the account as "open" even though it says closed by utility co.

Now I'm really confused.

[llecs]

That CRTP clock won't reset. It'll fall off soon.

[RobertEG]

The FCRA establishes a national maximum credit report inclusion period that cannot be extended by any state statute.

Since the FCRA only sets maximum periods, any state can enact a shorter period and still be consistent with the FCRA.  But they cannot extend the period.