Can credit repair remove charge offs? – [Answer] 2022

Answer

Often after more than 180 days with an unpaid debt, creditors write off the amount of the debt as a loss on their financial statement. This was once known as a charge-off. However, it is possible to fix or remove this mark yourself using credit repair services and expert advice.

Yes, CR can remove charge offs. The process is pretty straightforward and starts by sending a dispute letter to the credit bureaus asking them to investigate the account. If they find that there was an error in reporting, then the bureau will update or delete the account information from your file. Once this correction has been made, you’ll be able to verify this information with a new updated copy of your credit report. In most cases, once these corrections have been made any negative remarks related to a collection will also disappear from your consumer credit file.

When trying to remove charge offs using CR services, here are some tips:

1.) Do not do anything that could damage your reputation such as disputing accounts inaccurately.

2.) Provide all the essential information that may help CR services successfully dispute these negative items. The more detailed your request the better chance you’ll have in removing charge offs through credit repair.

Last but not least, make sure to follow up on the results of their disputes by ordering a new updated copy of your credit report from AnnualCreditReport.com as well as monitoring it monthly for any changes. Once an account is removed or updated with a more favorable status, then it will show up as a positive item on your consumer credit file and positively impact your FICO score accordingly.

Can credit repair services remove charge offs?

The simple answer is NO. There are some very reputable companies out there who will make a lot of promises and offer to help their clients. Credit repair can improve your credit, but it cannot remove items from your credit report that were actually charged off as accounts in default or past due status. These items will always stay on your credit report. The only time they can come off the credit report by law is if they are paid in full by you, the consumer, or if they fall beyond the seven year reporting period mandated within the FCRA (Fair Credit Reporting Act). This means every 7 years from when you first opened these accounts, these companies must be removed from your credit report. A financial company such as a bank or lending institution, who sold the debt onto a collection agency (which you are unaware of) is still required to keep that information on file for 7 years, unless it is either paid in full or settled by the new holder.

It can be very difficult to get these accounts removed from your credit report after they have been charged off and sold to a collection agency, even if you pay them off. This is because once an account has gone to collections their negative influence over your credit rating greatly increases! If you do not pay the collection company what they are asking for in their letter then most likely it will continue to show up on your credit report for another 7 years after which time it must be removed from your file. (This is assuming it wasn’t sold again after the first 7 years)

The best thing you can do to help remove collection accounts from your credit report, (while they are still on your file), is to make sure that if they request a payment in full for less than you originally charged off (charged off amount was $6,500 and they are only asking for $3,000), then try negotiating this down even more! Chances are if you call them up as soon as you get their letter or email requesting money and explain how much you owe, etc., they will work with you on any terms that fit within your budget. It would be better for them to see an initial lump sum payment or even a partial lump sum payment than no payments at all. It’s always better to try and work with them, as they are usually willing to negotiate with you if you scream and holler enough!

If after a few months of negotiating and expressing your concerns about paying what is owed, you find yourself still unable to pay the full amount due then start working on paying them something each month until you are able to get it paid off in full. Most companies would prefer that over nothing at all. Even if it takes years for you to pay the debt in full starting out by making some type of payment each month will help establish a history of repayment and encourage that collection agency not to sell your account again within those first 7 years.

If you don’t want to pay them, that’s fine too! But it will be less of a hassle for you if you at least make some type of partial monthly payment. If they end up calling and harassing you about the money owed then politely ask them to stop bothering you or even hang up on them. They cannot legally call as much as they like and try to hound someone for money (unless the state laws vary from each other). Once you tell them not to call again it is illegal for them to continue doing so, unless they get their attorney involved on their part which costs more money than it would be worth in most cases. If no money is ever paid in full by the consumer within that 7 year period then the company who is owed (in this case the collection agency) cannot legally claim that debt as theirs in any way shape or form.

If they do continue to try and collect on an old debt that has been past the 7 year credit reporting date, then you can report them to either your state attorney general office, or file a complaint with your state’s attorney general office against them. These agencies are there to help protect consumers from fraudulent activities! They will send someone out and investigate what happened in your situation. If they find out that a company continued trying to illegally collect on an account well after it was due for the 7 year credit reporting time limit, then they have the authority by law to either remove it themselves or fine that company thousands of dollars for their actions. Get them to write it in the findings section of their report that you were having this problem and ask them how best to resolve it as well. Their findings section is where they will detail what types of things happened, and are there any suggestions on how to fix these issues or make it better for you.

After 7 years of not paying your debt collectors can no longer legally call you about the money owed (within this 7 year time frame). Unfortunately, even after that time has passed, they can still come after you by sending you a summons hoping to find someone home who actually knows where “John Doe” is now living at because if he/she doesn’t show themselves then court date will be set up. If it is you, then that collection agency can sue you for up to $2500 or take your bank account that is in your name to get the rest of what was owed. If they find out where you are living within this 7 year period (and have a way of contacting you), they can try and sue you for all of what was originally owed plus court fees and whatever else their attorney decides he/she wants from your bank account.

If you want to continue trying to fight against paying something towards this old debt I say go for it! You’ll owe more than $500 by the time they finally give up trying getting anything out of you though. That’s another benefit though compared to suing someone who doesn’t show themselves at the court date. Then they can take your wages or bank account to get the money owed as well. If you ignore a summons and fail to appear in court on your behalf (because you were un-aware of any court date) then they will win by default and several things could happen that is not beneficial for you.

Can credit repair remove charge offs?

Often after more than 180 days with an unpaid debt, creditors write off the amount of the debt as a loss on their financial statement. This was once known as a charge-off. However, it is possible to fix or remove this mark yourself using credit repair services and expert advice.

Can credit repair remove negative items?

Credit repair services can help you with items such as cleaning up credit report errors and disputing inaccurate negative entries.

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