Hi!
I was out of country for several months and one small hospital bill got very late. It has gone to a collection agency. I got a letter from them, saying if the account remains unpaid, it may be reported to the major credit reporting agences, and I have 30 days to dispute the validity.
I called them up and they took a large number of my info, ie soc sec. number, whther I am employed etc, I pressed the buttons saying that I am willing to pay off the loan, which is for $35.44. BUt towards the end I got mad by the amount of private info they were taking from me and did not pay.
I am now wondering about my options:
1. Pay the hospital directly and send a validation letter saying I have paid to the creditor (even though on phone I have acknowledged the bill).
2. Pay the collection. If so, what is the best way to pay them, by check, or credit card, phone or by mail?
I have only 1 week left of the 30 days so must decide soon.
Thanks so much.
Forums
make sure that the hospital has chagred off this amoutn and sent to collection and the hospital donto want to deal with this anymore
Then you cna py the collection agency and make sure to get the letter statign the payment is done in full
Thanks for your help. I did call the hospital and found out that I could pay them directly. But the operator suggested that its better that I pay the collection agency. Because though they will let the collection know I have paid my debt, my 30 days might be up before then and it would show up in my credit.
So, should I do as she says, ie call the collection and pay them by credit card?
Or pay the hospital, then take a copy of the paid receipt and mail it to the collection, maybe with a vailidation letter (certified mail)?
Thanks
Hi Nita
Did you get a validation from the CA? Are you sure they have the required paper works to collect the debt? Ask for validation as soon as possible. Unless they validate the debt how can you be sure they own the debt? Having done that try and negotiate with your CA for a 'pay-for-delete' agreement. This should also remove this debt from the credit report. Pay by check and do not forget to get a final settlement letter/receipt from them.
Hi nita,
I think you should first pull out your credit report and check whether or not the name of the CA is written against the debt. Once, you have done that send a debt validation letter to the CA asking to validate your debt. Remember to send it through a certified mail so that you get the return receipt. If they are able to validate the debt you can pay them through check. There is no harm in paying the amount to the collection agency once they have validated your debt. So, you can pay them only.
debt
OP...you said the debt was $35.44? When you called the 'system, to pay it off, was it NOT the same amount? Was it higher than that? If it was only $35.44, then I would pay it off.
Thanks everyone. I called the hospital and they confirmed the collection agency name and gave me their phone number. Next I called the collection up and they wanted my bank check over the phone, refused the credit card saying for such low amount they will not take credit card.
From reading here I know that I should not do that, and said I'll mail a money order/cashiers check. She said long as I do it by priority mail and call her back with the tracking number today, it will not show in my credit. So I guess that is what I should do now.
Thanks again.
debt
Also......the reason why it's a good idea to send a Money Order, you can keep the 'receipt' stub, on the Money Order. THIS way you can 'track' where the Money Order went and if it was cashed.
Nita, You handled this in a great menner. I just wanted to add that after you send the cashiers check I would wait a little while and follow up with a phone call and check your credit report to make sure they updated it. Sometimes the credit report will take a little longer to reflect that you paid this debt. Also please be sure to ke3ep the reciept for as long as possible. If for any reason they would come back again you need to hae proof that this debt was satisfied.
Hi Nita,
It is nice to know that you have found a remedy to your problem. Pay the CA on a priority basis but remember to keep the proof of return receipt so that you can dispute any inaccurate information regarding this issue in your credit report later.
Thanks great news Nita
Keep the payments on time and do nto apply formorecredit as of now
debt
Good job, OP!! This should update on your CR. Sometimes OC's and CA's don't want to work with people. They just want their money now....no matter what.
Pay the original debt collector with a written promise to update your credit report within 30 days to paid and request a zero balance bill from them. Then write to the collection agency to validate your debt. They will be unable to validate the debt since it is now paid off and will need to remove it from your credit report completely. Always, always, always ask for validation of debt from a collection agency. You need proof that they paid for the right to collect this money from you in the first place. In some states the collection company is only given 15 days to get you this information. In most cases it is hard for them to obtain this information from the original collector in this time frame. If you find any of this information has not been updated on your credit report you can dispute your credit report with this documentation from the debt collectors, so always get all promises in writing! I refuse to pay anyone with my credit card number or bank account number. I pay via written check only, this way there is no way for extra charges or wrong charge amounts. I hope this information helps.
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