Collection account - help plzz

Submitted by y_sasi on Fri, 08/20/2010 - 20:18
Forums

Hello Every one,

Before we jump in to my question, let me give you guys a quick 101 on my case. I had to leave the country last year due to some visa issues and due to that I had to voluntarily surrender my car to the creditor (credit union) and also because of the no job situation fallen back on AMEX green card payments.

These two accounts are with collections.

Amex Green Card - I jumped on the payment plan with the collection agency and paid off more than 70%. when I have requested PFD letter the collection agency said Amex policy doesn't allow it. They said I can continue making payments and pay every thing in full and once paid in full I could possible dispute that on my credit history. Can you please advice?

Credit Union Car loan - the account has been with the collection agency since last January and they haven't contacted me once since last 3 months for payment. Today I called them up and asked if they could give me a PFD letter so I could start working on the payments and the agent told he will only send me a letter to my address with the amount I owe to the bank and to which address I need to start sending the payments to. He said he will not be able to give me a PFD letter :(.
what should I do? Should I start making the payments? or should I ask them to provide me the details on settlement amount?

Appreciate your help.

Hi y_sasi,

Welcome to this community :)

They said I can continue making payments and pay every thing in full and once paid in full I could possible dispute that on my credit history. Can you please advice?

Yes, disputing is a possible option. However, you can also try removing the negative through Goodwill letter to Amex. Goodwill letter is a simple request to remove the negatives from the credit report based on your goodwill.

what should I do? Should I start making the payments? or should I ask them to provide me the details on settlement amount?

Yes, you should first get the details on the settlement, and then request them to give you a written agreement on the settlement. After this you can send a written "Pay for delete" (PFD) request. See what happens. However, if the collection agency don't agree to PFD, after the payments just check if the account status has got updated to "Paid". The negative impact will lessen with time, and the creditors will get to see your "Paid" status.

Always remember to send all kinds of letters through certified mail, requesting a return receipt.

Thanks,

Aaron

Mon, 08/23/2010 - 06:38 Permalink