I cosigned for a credit card with an ex girlfriend and she never paid the bill. theres a $435 balance on the account with an R9 showing on my credit report. I was never contacted or had any clue she even owed money and i am now stuck with this. everything else is perfect but this one thing prevented me from getting a loan. what is my best option for fixing this to allow me to get a line of credit? can i pay it off and then take her to small claims court to get my money back?
Is the entry on your CR by the credit card co. or by a collection agency? Even if YOU pay it in full now it will be reflected on your CR for 7 years.
That would only work with collection agencies - not with hardassed original creditors. Their goal is to keep your credit rating in the toilet.
I think the best rule to go by is never cosign anything for anybody no matter how much you love them. Love is one thing, business is something else. That can be a tough decision to have to uphold sometimes but it is actually best for both people.
Yes and no. Paying it off won't change the R9, but it should, hopefully, keep them from coming after you and putting a collection account on your report as well. Not bad, but not as good as you might have liked. Small claims court? Well, it probably wouldn't be worth the hassle. If you can't call her up and get her to send you some money, then taking her to court probably won't change her mind. If I were her and wanted to offer a defense against paying, I'd just say, "You voluntarily co-signed the loan saying you agreed to be responsible for the debt. By paying the debt, you were just honoring your obligation. I owe you nothing." So there you are, out the money and beaten down in court. My advice. Pay it and move on or ignore it and move on. Either way, move on. Consider it a tuition payment in the university of the real world.
HBC "wrote off" the account in july 2008 and it has not been sent to collections yet. how long should it take for collections to try and get the money if they even send it to collections? this pay to delete thing would be cool. if they understood the situation they might actually do this for me. they stated they tried contacting me multiple times which would have been at my parents house and nobody had any clue she even owed money because nobody called or sent mail in my name. im thinking that information coupled with my perfect credit on all my other cards and me paying the full amount might persuade them. this is the only joint account i have and its the only one that has problems...go figure. what really ticked me off is i have $70-80k in home equity and yet they still wouldnt give me a $10k loan???
I think accounting rules direct them to write off bad debts so it doesn't look like they are making more money than they can reasonably be expected to collect. That doesn't mean the obligation went away. "Write off" is just an accounting maneuver It's worth asking, but don't get your hopes up. The odds are long that they'll do it. Of course, the odds are zero if you don't ask, so there's no harm in trying. That sucks, indeed.
HSBC won't delete it but, they will mark it as being in dispute. Takes it out of the calculation of your score. You need to dispute it through the credit reporting agencies in order to achieve this. I'd also advise you to at least settle it. One it will zero out the balance and two, they won't sell it. HSBC is notorious for this and a debt purchaser tradeline will tank your scores.
HBC from likr best buy? they suck big time..beware.... we had a card from best buy ..good thing? nope payed what was due each month on time every time. payed if off in full according to the no-english person on the phone.......... come to find out it was posted 2 days later by him cause it to have 2 days of interest applied to account we didnt know bout ...well we though it was paid in full 60 days later getting a update report of cr.. it showed over 60 day late on credit card... called ..haised hell...proved we paid on 1 day full and wasposted another day thier fault... no good screwed us big time. freaking shame we depend on other people for our credit scores. EVER WONDER IF THEY GO INTO THIER OWN AND FIX THINGS?
ive been searching on the net like crazy and it appears that writing a letter is my first option which may work. im hoping HBC will help me out when they see that i am a cosigner accepting responsibility for someone elses actions. the ex put something on the card worth $128 and now with interest its at $435...they made their money now hopefully they will leave me alone. it has not been sent to collections yet... here is a letter i was going to send in. who do i mail this to, HBC? what changes should i make? ********************************** Dear Collection Manager: RE: Scott ************ Account Number 800263****/2920**** It has come to my attention through the credit bureaus that you claim I owe a debt to your agency. I can save us both some effort and time by settling this debt. Below is my offer. It is not a renewed promise to pay nor does it constitute any agreement unless you sign and return it. Note, I have not agreed yet that this debt is mine and have the option to seek further proof from your agency of this debt. Suffice to say, you hold all the rights to report the debt to the credit bureaus as you see fit and you can change that listing at any time as the source reporting the debt. I am sure you are aware of my right to dispute this debt and request full proof of the obligation. Paying this unverified debt to you means little to me if we cannot mutually agree that you will report the debt as mentioned below. I am aware of what a paid collection would represent for me, which is not favorable. That being said, I have concurred through the bureaus that you have the absolute right to report this debt as you see fit or not report it at all. Please do not quote to me that you are unable to change the listing or I will be forced to cease and desist our communication and request full lengthy verification of the debt. I will pay your company the amount of $435.00 as payment in full. Upon receipt of the above payment, your company has agreed to remove this account from all three of my credit bureau reports. You also agree to accept payment as being in full and to never transfer any possible balance to another entity. If you concur with these terms please acknowledge with your signature and return it to me. You agree the terms herein are confidential and you have the authority to make such decisions. No payment will be made without written confirmation. Upon receipt of this signed acknowledgment, I will immediately mail you funds priority mail. This is not a renewed promise to pay but rather a restricted offer only. If no terms can be met, no new arrangements will be made and the offer will be void. Name of Creditor: GE Money HBC Account Number: 800263****/2920**** Signature of Company Officer : Date: Sincerely,
