Background: 11/2001: Credit Store purchased old Providian C/O, gave me new Visa and TXed Providian balance to it. 12/2001: The new Visa started reporting as Bank of Hoven. This shows as a good tradeline - never late. 1/2002: Credit Store placed a Paid Collection on my TU report. They said this accurately reflects that they purchased the C/O and that I satisfied it. 1/2002: I disputed Providian account with TU as not mine (probably dad's - same name). Providian responded after 26 days and could not verify so TU deleted. 2/2002: Today, I faxed updated CR to Credit Store along with a letter stating since Providian could not verify the debt, they (Credit Store) are now reporting an invalid account on my CR (the paid collection). I instructed them to remove it. 2/2002: Today, I called to confirm they received the fax. They did but said they are ordering account documentation from Providian and that it could take 45 days for this to be completed. I immediately disputed the Credit Store tradeline with TU as not mine. QUESTION: How long do I need to wait for them to update the entry as "disputed by consumer" before hanging them on it?
UPDATE: Credit Store closed the Visa they issued me! It has a balance of 1000! They did NOTHING with the collection account they are reporting! I called them tonight and asked why the account was closed and they said "because we're investigating your claims". WHAT? I thought they had to update the account as being disputed! Can they arbitrarily close the account? I haven't paid late and didn't ask that it be closed. They told me to call back on Monday adn they may have more info for me. This explains why my score didn't budge after 3 deletions. This sucks!
tmitchell, The Credit Store is an unusual blend of a collection agency and a credit card issuer. As you know, they buy charged-off debts from original creditors and CAs and then send you an offer to fold in your old debt into a brand new VISA or MasterCard. They're counting on the idea that a credit addict won't be able to pass up a shiny new card, and for their trouble they get to collect 100% of an old debt WITH NEW INTEREST! It's a relatively innovative idea, really. Now, how this affects your situation is pretty simple. Your VISA card issued by The Credit Store really depends upon the VALIDITY of the previous debt, since it has doubled as an instrument of payment for the chargeoff. If you now claim that the debt doesn't belong to you, then of course the new VISA doesn't belong to you either. Picture this oversimplified conversation between you and The Credit Store... The Credit Store: Hi, you once owed $1500 to First National Bank VISA, but you never paid. We'd like to open a nice brand new VISA with a credit line of $2500 if you're willing to assume your old debt as your current balance. You: Ok, that sounds great. I'll do it. Send me the VISA. The Credit Store: Ok, here's your new VISA! Welcome to our program! You: That original debt WASN'T MINE -- I NEED YOU TO VALIDATE IT! The Credit Store: Yikes, sheesh, suspend that card. The guy says the original debt wasn't his! You: Oh my god! Why did you cancel my shiny new VISA? This sucks! Basically, you can't have your cake and validate it too. Doc
P.S. I don't know what is your next step, since I don't know how The Credit Store handles these situations. Have you increased the amount owed on the card? Or have you decreased your [old] balance on the card? You might stick with your story at this point: The original debt wasn't yours; you misunderstood and thought The Credit Store was issuing a new card; you're happy to pay for any newly incurred charges since the card was issued, but you didn't intend to pay on a past balance that wasn't yours; you want everyone to validate this debt to prove to you that it's yours; otherwise you want it stricken from your credit files. Now, that may be a tall order. First of all, it doesn't sound very believable. Second, you would have to be Mr. Magoo practically not to notice that your new card opened with a serious balance and that you didn't read through the materials when you applied. This looks like a really nasty situation, and I'd like to hear other people weigh in here vis-a-vis what they'd do because I'm really stumped as to where you should take it from here. Doc
Doc.... I understand that. My issue with what they did was closing the account with a balance. I told them on the phone that I didn't want the card if they couldn't validate. BUT, until their investigation is complete, they are killing me by closing the account with a balance. If the account isn't mine as you outlined in your scenario (which is accurate), it should be deleted or at the very least, closed and balance zeroed out. Actually, the account should be updated to reflect "disputed by consumer". Am I off-base?
Doc... I never intended to use the card. I reduced the balance by about $50 (first 2 payments). My goal was to pay it off and cut it up. I just wanted the $1000 CL to help with balance to CL ratios, which arent bad as they are. When I accepted their offer over the phone, I told them outright that the original debt was never validated but that I just wanted it out of my hair. I totally understood that the debt was being transferred. They pissed me off when I made my first payment ($500!) online. A week after I authorized the debit, it still had not cleared. When I called them, they said it was being presented for payment that day and that there would be a 20 day hold on the account until they were sure the funds cleared my bank - 20 days! They never said anything about 20-day hold on funds so I stopped payment and sent the minimum due in retaliation. They don't like talking on the phone with me anymore.
Well, collectors are sometimes sleazebags, and The Credit Store sounds like one that fits pretty well into that category. If they had been interested in something more than money (like being honest), they would have told you at the start something like, "Look, if you're not willing to assume ownership of this old debt 100%, don't accept our card, because card acceptance means just that. If you're going to request validation and continue to maintain that it's not yours, you can't participate in our program." Unfortunately, such humble truth-telling would clearly be beyond them. Doc
I have read that this type of practice is illegal, regarding putting the old debt on a newly issued credit card... etc. I wish I knew where I saw that.. perhaps they have a loophole, and are able to collect in this manner. Any else have read anything like this?
