Thread: This is bad,I know-Providian

I felt so ready-The sit. is this:
I have two accounts with Providian. One is so embarrasingly late/behind, that I hate to even write it here on this board.

Anyway I called Providian to clarify where I stand on my accounts.

Card A:
Limit: 1250, overlimit + almost 90 days behind (one partial payment recorded in the last 60 days, I think, in addition to the most recent one to = 2 partial payments in the last 60 days).

Card B:
Limit: 1000, overlimit + almost 30 days late. The rep extended my due date for this one
(ouch, this confession is painful).

I make payments online and usually if I am paying one I pay the other. Not sure why I am so uneven with A & B here. Anyway...

Apparrently, though, even partial payments do not count when things are this bad (made a small partial payment on each at the end of last week.

Now card A account is about to be closed. They said that I can cancel myself tomorrow, which they say will go on my record as such
or
they will cancel it on Friday (but then that Providian canceled would be on my record).

I know any closed account with a balance/lates is horrendous, even if I close it myself.

I only have until Wednesday (tomorow) to call and close it, even though I could still call on Thursday, (but not Friday) to pay (I confirmed this with different reps).

My cash reserve is frighteningly low and it is not an option to borrow on anything or from anyone. I work agency and just had another shift cancelled (just stating a fact, not an excuse).

If I do not have the funds in time will there ever be any hope? Yes, I realize I should/will likely need to wait to board the credit healing boat after all but if anyone has any information for me or if the Doc can tell me what type of self sabotoging illness I have please post. Gosh, friends think I have it 'all together' and I have a good job, in general, that pays well. I am astonished, myself at this "life situation," as Eckhart Tolle puts it. Okay confession over. Any words of wisdom will be like gold.

First of all cheer up, it's not the end of the world.
When you get your wits about you, do what you can to keep those account open. I think if you just cannot make the payments...then close them yourself. Geesh, I hate to say it but do you think it's too late for CCCS to interject and negotiate a way to get even with these cards? I hate to ask but if your having trouble with the cards (payments cant be all that much), hows the mortgage/rent? If that's what you are paying instead of the CC's then you are making the right decision.

Hope someone here can help you more.

SnakeMan

Do you have other credit cards or debts? The information on the 2 Providian accounts were helpful. Can you share more about your income, debts, other credit cards and if they are bad? Do you pay alot in rent? I might be able to help you out on this one. Or at worst be wrong and corrected and you will get the help you need. You need help quick!

Yes, I am paying a mortgage now (got help with the mortgage, in other words I am not alone on it by a long shot) and yes, I have other cards but need to pay them all down, quite a doozy, I am aware. So in otherwords borrowing on my home or anything else is not an option right now. How crazy is that? And I would feel very strange doing that, even if I could because my card debt, all in total, is less than $6,000. My credit lines, when available, do not add up to a heck of a lot. The mortgage is fine. Totally on time. It is relatively new and is absolutely my priority, if I had to pick straws. Thanks for writing and also for reminding me that I actually have a roof over my head! And a pretty nice roof, it is, too (:
With credit woes, been forgettring to make my mental gratitude lists, LOL.

Got the work and the cash needed to save my Providian account. By a hair. Gave them a dollar more than they demanded. I am wondering, since I have read they can be such 'hard-azzes' about reporting, if anyone has seen Providian delete their lates from the CRA's ( or not report them anymore, in which case, passivity would be okay with me) after a customer has paid on time for awhile? Any tips re: how to get this to happen? Feel like I am waking up out of a deep sleep re: the credit world. So determined now to clear the negs.

Also, does anyone know how to best get a discharged bankruptcy deleted? Read on one of the boards that if dismissed they play hard ball but if discharged they will likely delete after 7 years. The neg is nearly 10 years old. Thought about just waiting it out until the 10 year reporting limit is up.
TransUnion and Equifax are reporting this, Experian is not (not sure if they ever did). Anyone have any info re: any of the above?

bump

Originally posted by moneyelf
I am wondering, since I have read they can be such 'hard-azzes' about reporting, if anyone has seen Providian delete their lates from the CRA's ( or not report them anymore, in which case, passivity would be okay with me) after a customer has paid on time for awhile? Any tips re: how to get this to happen? Feel like I am waking up out of a deep sleep re: the credit world. So determined now to clear the negs.

I'm not sure how much help this will be, but I had a providian account that was 'closed by credit grantor' and was showing a number of lates including several 90 day lates. The account had been closed for about 3 years and paid off for about 1.5 years when I disputed it as 'never late' with all three CRA's. All three of them totally deleted the account. Like you, I had heard that they were tough to deal with, but in my experience they were one of my easier negatives to get rid of. Since it was an older account for me, I was actually hoping that they would just delete the lates, but by deleting the whole account I did get rid of the 'closed by credit grantor' status, so that was good, at least.

There is hope:)

Brett

Thanks, Brett. Maybe I will get lucky, too. Since I am keeping the account and have another card with them I think I am going to need to think carefully about my stratgey. I am not prioritizing Providian immediately re: deletes since all this was just resolved today. But believe me it is in the back of my mind to get rid of these negs, too. Gotta make my payments, work on my credit files and then start the "Providian Campaign."
Thanks again.

moneyelf, a Chapter 13 BK will go away in 7 years. A Chapter 7 will go away in 10 years. Did you call Providian and let them know the payments were mailed? If I were you I would take the time this weekend to make a plan on how to NEVER be late to any of your current creditors again. I am probably telling you something you do not already know but your current credit situation is a big factor right now. Anyways call Providian after the payments have been posted and see what you can do to clear up your current debts and lates which are real, and work something out with them. If you were Providian imagine what you would want to hear and how you could make them money. Really that is all they care about. Sure they will try to keep your score as low as possible to keep other creditors from taking their business. But more important they want to make money, just like you would if you were them. In other words if you take care of them the will take take you.

Get your current situation caught up first before you take the time to clean up your past problems. The past problems have a smaller effect on your credit report compared to your current ones. You can always take care of your current creditors at a later date at worst. All they want to know now is how much money they can make off of you and will help you out in the long run.

Don't mess with Providian though! The decisions you make now could effect your credit life up to 7 years. Of course I'm sure you already know that.