Collections

Yeah, that’s pretty much it - does the fact that the collection agency has the debt effect my score, or does that only happen if they report it to the credit agencies?

Thanks for any help and advice!

It really depends on what type of debt it is, let’s say it’s something small like a doctor’s bill that has been turned over to a collection agency. At the point its turned over, no it doesn’t affect your score right away and you still have a chance to keep it from being reported on your credit.
But, if its something like a car note or something that was financed the original creditor would have reported the lateness to the credit bureaus before they actually closed the account and turned it over to the credit agency resulting in late payments to show up from the original creditor and then the collections entry to your credit report, now you have a double whammy situation.
Try to work with the collections agency before they report to the bureau.

I have a ticket i cant afford to pay for and my license was suspended and now they sent it to the collection agency. I have a part time job and am a full time student and when i need to go somewhere i have to ask for a ride. But since now the collection agency has to deal with it can i get my license back without paying my debt.

No, now you will have the cost of the ticket, collection agency fees, court cost, and reinstatement fees from the DMV before you can get your license back. Buy comfortable shoes.

I contacted a the law office handling my collection reported on my credit report to try to settle because I need to satisfy my debts before buying a house. I noticed on my credit report that the collection agency pulled my credit the day I contacted them. Is this legal for them to view my credit report? If not, what legal actions can I take against them?

Yes it is, any time someone is trying to collect on a debt they have the right to pull your credit.

Most likely they are looking for you current address or employer so they can contact you.

Even if the dept has not been paid? Can a collection agency sell a dept older than seven years and expect to get paid?

It doesn’t matter how old the debt is. The seven year limit is measured from the time the account was determined to be delinquent. If you have a five year car loan and stop paying after four years, it would be delinquent after four years and three months. So the seven years starts then, not when you went into debt to buy the car.

I finished my payments to a collection agency. How long should I keep all the bills and letters stating my overdue balances? Or should I just burn them?

I would keep those records for 7 years. If you had a collection account it will remain on your credit file for 7 years from the date of first delinquency in most cases. You should want to keep those records just in case something is changed or updated in your credit file even years down the road. Tuck those papers away just in case you need them or if you are anxious to burn them, burn them at the 7 years from first delinquency point…

PS - I don’t know if you went this route or not, but in the future offer "pay for delete" agreements with collection agencies. Basically, this is when you offer to pay in full or settle the account for less and in return the collection agency will delete all negative info from all credit reporting agencies. This is a benefit for you as you’re not stuck with the negative account and they get their money…

The source I left below goes into more detail about this as well as other helpful credit info.

Hope this helps & best of luck

I am trying to pay money off to a collection agency because I want the debt off of my credit report. However the collection agency will not answer their phone it always goes to an answering machine. I have left at least 20 messages and they still have not gotten back to me even though I have said I want to pay my debt in full! Is there anyway other way I can go about getting the debt off my credit report?

Paying off a collection account will not remove it from your credit report. The information will be reported for 7 years from date of first delinquency.

If the collection account is an old medical account or utility account, then you might can negotiate a "pay for delete agreement" but that is up to the debt collector if they want to agree to the agreement or not.

Never talk to a debt collector over the phone, do all communication in writing.

I filed Bankruptcy in 2006. I just got a copy of my credit report and noticed that a local collection agency is till reporting a debt that I filed bankruptcy against. It says last reported 04/09. Are they allowed to do this? If not who do I call or report this to?

your bad debit will follow you for 7-10 yrs…so yes they can. If you want to deal with reporting companies, call, they have 1-800 numbers. (in your local phone book and online.)

I moved out of an apartment before my lease was up in March 2000. Just two weeks ago, a collection agency started writing and calling me on this account (in February I bought a new car). When they said why they were calling, I stated I wasn’t going to disuss the situation with them and hung up. It’s been 7 years. Why are they calling now, do they have any ground to stand on, and does my answering the phone restart the 7 years?
I wasn’t sure if me answering the phone and actually speaking with them would count as activity. It is NOT on my credit report.
And does the 7 years start from the time I moved out or the time the collection agency bought the account?

The only way the 7 year clock restarts, is when you make a payment. Every time a payment is made, you restart the date of last activity.

A collection agency has acquired the debt of my daughter who lives in Texas and has threatened my daughter that if she doesn’t pay a large amount up front they will garnish her paycheck from where she works. Can they do this? Is this legal?

It depends.

According to the Associate Dean for the Houston Law Center, there are only a few exceptions to the general rule that there is no garnishment of paychecks in Texas:

Wage garnishment is permitted for child support, certain federal taxes and government backed student loans.

My wife recently got a new cell phone and new number. On the first day of having the new number she got a call from a collection agency asking for "Tara"(not my wife’s name). She politely explained to them she had just gotten that cell phone number and was not the person they are looking for. They have continued calling at least once a day since then. What can we do to stop this?

Ask the person for their name and the name of the company that their calling from and phone number. Then tell them that they have the wrong number and that they’ve called 10 to 12 times a day which is harassment and your calling your lawyer and the attorney general office and press charges on them.
I did this to a collection company and they stopped calling right away, they do not need harassment charges on them.