How do I make sure my credit reports are correct after settling with an Original Creditor?
“How do I make sure my credit reports are correct after settling with an Original Creditor?”
Let’s say that you were sued for $5,000, and you agree to pay $3,000 to settle the case.
Then, after you pay the money and the case is settled with prejudice, you check your credit reports and see that you owe $5,000.
What?!?!
That simply isn’t true, because you settled with the original creditor. You owe nothing so your credit report should say “zero balance”.
Sometimes your credit report will say that you owe $2,000 because you paid $3,000, which isn’t true either.
You owe the original creditor nothing because you settled with them. The debt is resolved. It is over. Finished.
My suggestion is, if you’ve settled with the original creditor and paid them, you should dispute your credit reports.
Tell SageStream, Equifax, Experian, TransUnion, etc. that you don’t owe this original creditor anything, and to fix your reports.
Here is a sample letter to send by certified mail — keeping a signed copy
[Send this to all credit reporting agencies who are reporting — use their dispute address]
Dear Credit Reporting Agencies,
You are reporting an account from [NAME OF ORIGINAL CREDITOR] with a balance of approximately [AMOUNT OF BALANCE].
Please investigate this as I do not owe this company any money. [NAME OF ORIGINAL CREDITOR] knows I owe nothing.
If you will not show this as a zero balance, then please delete.
I need for my credit report to be accurate so thank you for doing this.
So you’ll know this is really me disputing this, I’m enclosing a copy of my driver’s license and [UTILITY BILL/BANK STATEMENT/INSURANCE STATEMENT/ETC].
I look forward to you fixing my credit report on this account.
Thank you very much.
[YOUR NAME]
[YOUR ADDRESS]
[YOUR DOB]
[LAST 4 OF YOUR SOCIALSOCIAL]
Enclosures – Driver’s license and [UTILITY BILL/BANK STATEMENT/INSURANCE STATEMENT/ETC]
So what happens after they investigate?
Typically, the creditor and the reporting agencies will fix this, and your credit report will be accurate.
However, what if they don’t fix your credit reports?
Sue them under the FCRA (Fair Credit Reporting Act).
Because they’re telling the world that you owe them money when you actually owe them nothing.
That’s false credit reporting.
You gave them a chance to fix your credit reports by going to the credit reporting agency to dispute the debt.
They reach out to the original creditor and ask what they should do, and the original creditors tell them to keep that false information on your credit report.
That’s false credit reporting.
So you sue them for money damages.
In addition, at least this is what we do, we make them take the old debt off of our credit reports.
Hope this has been helpful to you.
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Thanks for reading, and have a great day!