So, I recently sent a pay-for-delete letter to take care of a utility bill that fell through the cracks, and I'm turning to this community to get some opinions. I took the majority from a sample letter I think I found on this forum. Here is the letter I sent:
"Re: Account Number xxxxx
Amount: $xx.xx
Dear Collection Manager:
With regards to the above listed account, I wish to save us both some time and effort by settling this debt. In the spirit of compromise, I am willing to pay this account IN FULL if you agree to immediate deletion of this account from any and all credit reporting agencies (Equifax, Experian and TransUnion). The purpose of this settlement is merely to have this item removed from my credit files. It is not to be construed as an acknowledgment of liability for this debt in any form.
If you agree to the terms and accept this agreement, certified funds for the amount of xxxxx will be sent to xxxx in exchange for full deletion of ALL references regarding this account from my credit files and full satisfaction of the debt. As certified funds will be used for payment, there shall be no waiting period regarding the deletion of this account from the credit reporting agencies.
Xxxx agrees to delete ALL information regarding this account from the credit reporting agencies WITHIN TEN (10) CALENDAR DAYS following receipt of payment as specified above and will not discuss the terms of this settlement with anyone, excluding your client on this account. If contacted by any third party, including credit-reporting agencies, xxxx will not acknowledge that any settlement offer was made, accepted or executed and will, in fact, deny knowledge of any such account.
If you agree to the above terms, please prepare a letter on your company letterhead explicitly agreeing to the same terms as the above settlement offer and have it signed by an authorized representative of xxxx. It will be implied that this letter shall constitute a legally binding contract, enforceable under the laws of my state.
Your response must be postmarked no later than 15 days from your receipt of this settlement offer or this offer will be withdrawn and I will request full validation of this alleged debt, as provided for by the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act."
I just received their response today, which reads as follows:
"This letter confirms the above referenced account will be updated as Paid in Full on your credit report when we receive your check, totaling xx.xxx and provided the check clears the appropriate channels. Please make check payable to XXXXXXXXX and mail it to the corporate address listed below."
Now, my first thought was, "Oh, cool, they didn't say no!". Then after reading it again, a big question came up that I'm looking for some help on.
Does "Paid in Full" mean that any negative marks will be removed? To me, I don't see that. Although I obviously want to resolve this debt, I feel like this won't have as good of an effect as it should on my credit rating if they just mark it as PIF but don't remove the negative marks. Further, if my thought is accurate and PIF doesn't take care of "baddies", am I in any position to contact them again asking for confirmation of baddie removal? I want to get this resolved as quickly as possible so any thoughts you can give would be appreciated.
