Ok, I went to a workshop for --soon to be brides-- at a hotel of items in which a company was showcasing. I informed the agent (and he wrote this on my contract) not to run my credit report until May/06. \n\nGuess what? The company (in which he works for) ran it the day after I attended the workshop. Th bad thing about it is it clearly states on the application... DO NOT RUN CREDIT. WILL FAX COPY<--- the agent wrote that on the top of the application.\n\nMy question is ...do I need to file a law suit against this company? \n\nAnd, Does anyone know of a sample letter I can use to confront this company that I am filing a law suit?
133949
One credit pull should only have a slight effect on your credit score.  True this matters more if you are on the border of a score category.\n\nThe good news is that the effect should not last very long.
254071
I did a search and nothing solid turned up aside from this site:  http://www.adamswells.com/~firstpres/fpc4.htm\n\nI suggest you contact your credit card company and inquire for more details.  If they aren't able to furnish any more details  about the business that charged you I suggest you dispute the charge (you have every right to).
145027
Just my educated opinion.....\n\nCredit card company will generally come after you for debts over $1000 if they have contacts in your state.  That makes it easier for them to appear and court and sue you. Otherwise, the cost is too high.  So your $5000 debt makes you a prime target.\n\nI'm fairly certain that if they don't come after you, you can expect a collection agency to do it.  Either way, I'd say a lawsuit is a very real possiblilty.\n\nI don't think the SOL will help you.  The CA will certainly know when it expires and will step up collection efforts before that happens.\n\nSo my suggestion is to first look at your budget.  I'm sure that if you take a serious look at it, and cut out unnecessary expenses, you can find $100 a month.  You need to negotiate a payment plan with them, so don't insult them by offering $50 a month.  They are not going to wait several years to get paid, and if you don't offer something reasonable they will sue you.  Even $100 a month is will not go over well with them, but it's a start.\n\nIn the link below are a few sample letters you can use to form a negotiation letter.  Try that out and see what happens.  \n\nOne last piece of advice....it's a certainty that they have placed a negative item on your credit report.  Get them to remove this item IN WRITING before you pay them a dime.  It's my opinion that a judgement is just as bad as a default, and both will hurt your credit score.  But If they want their money, make them fix your credit.  Otherwise, you will have bad credit, plus you will be broke!  This is very important if you plan to get credit within the next few years for a car or home.  If that's not going to be an issue, the bad credit won't matter, as it will gradually improve after a few years.
493520
Hi, \n\nIs your wife being sued? Or are there just threats of a law suite. If you were being sued, you would have already received a summons to appear in court, which sounds like you have none.\n\nIf you indeed wind up going to court, you can petition the court for a settlement for Penny's on the dollar. Capitol One will try and get the whole amount and make you believe you have to pay the entire amount, but what they want and what they get are two different matters. \n\nI had an overdue account with Capitol One years ago, and they tried the same scare tactics and wanted the whole amount, I told them point blank, either accept my settlement terms, or you can go to H e - - and kiss my A - -. They wound up writing it off.  Stand up to them, there is no such thing as debtor prison, and it is nothing more than scare tactics. \n\nAfter 7 years, the smear on your credit record must by law, be removed completely. \n\nFrom the way it sounds, I would proceed immediately with filing bankruptcy. There is always a way to work out the filing fee. \n\nGood Luck, and don't take any crap from Cap 1. \n\nDarryl S.
303669
I am a mortgage specialist.  I specialize in helping people with challenging credit.  What are you calling "very bad credit?"  What are your credit scores?  The payments that you are currently making on the mortgage are not being applied to your credit file because your name is not on the mortgage.  If you are making the payments on time, then you are giving your husband's sister good credit because the payments are being applied and recorded on her credit bureau.  This situation is too complex for us to discuss here.  Please contact me at wwi_2@yahoo.com as soon as possible.
334632
Read the Fair Credit Protection Act.\n\nI've posted the portion that relates to your question.  Since you intiated the business transaction by calling them, they can technically pull your credit report.  About all you can do to prevent it is demand up front that they do not pull a report until you actually agree to do business with them. \n\nSince they have nothing in writing from you, it may be possible to pursue this.  It would be possible to this the inquiry removed from your report.  You could push it with the court, but I don't think it will go very far.\n\nGood luck
259997
If it truly isn't your debt, then you need to take the appropriate actions.  You need to notify the company in writing via certified mail that this debt is not yours.  You also need to contact the credit bureaus and follow the procedures that they have in submitting a written objection/notification.  You have to jump through the hoops, but it is better to do it now than to have a major battle on your hands once it is put on your credit report.  \n\nYou may want to have your credit report pulled as well, just to make sure that everything on it is yours.  It may be that there is a Jane A. Doe with the same DOB  when you are Jane Ann Doe. \n\nYou need to take immediate action for your own protection.
579950
I hope I am understanding this correctly.... you paid your mortgage loan off and there is documentation somewhere that there was a forclosure and a line of credit, that you knew nothing about...\n\nDid you find all this on your credit report/ is this on your credit report?  What I would do if that is the case, since the lender refuses to help you correct a mistake that was obviously made by them, is get in contact with equifax, explain the situation and dispute this information and have it cleared from you, as for proof, you have the notice where you paid off your mortgage.  \n\nIt doesn't really sound like anyone has stolen your identity or a line of credit has been opened... YET.  It seems as if there was an error when your bank reported this information.\n\nCall equifax or write a letter\n\nMail\nEquifax Information Services LLC\nP.O. Box 740256\nAtlanta, GA 30374\n\n1-800-685-1111
159743
Sorry but it is not against the law. Did you sign any paper that made it legal i.e. an i.o.u.? If you did and have chosen not to work things out with the person you owe money then they have a right to either take you to small claims court or hire a collection agency to recover their money. In either case, it would get reported to the credit bureaus. Think about it this way, if the person hadn't done that and the background check had passed then you would have never known that other people are illegally using your social security number. The person did you a favor in a weird sort of way.
397429
CarCraze --- you are wrong, sorry to say\n\nWhat you have there, my dear, is a bona fide Court Order for you to appear in court to answer to a Motion to Collect a Debt. If it is on Court paper and has a case number, call the Court to confirm the Docket Number, and find out when the hearing date is.\n\n\nYES, they do have that power.\n\nYES, That is the equivalent of a Subpoena.\n\nIf you "just let it ride", as you say, don't be surprised when you open up your paycheck and you find a good chunk of it GONE !\n\nWhat you should do:\n\nSeek legal counsel (get a lawyer) and come up with a manageable payment plan that is both satisfactory to your creditor, and workable for you.\n\nDON'T HESITATE - you will regret it.
668047
Accepting that you are going to do it. Seriously. Then you need to find a lawyer that specializes in this as you are going to have some long term negative consequences and the idea is to make things as easy as possible. Some day you will want, or need, credit again for any number of things and you should be laying the groundwork for that right now.
9253
As one attorney always told where is the foal? If this has hurt your credit, or damaged you from consideration for the new rental unit, you may have a case and my suggestion is to contact a an attorney who knows real estate law.\n\nGood luck
438483
I understand your frustration. This happened to me with a "trip" I didn't want.\nSome company charged a trip to my card and when I called to contest it they said they talked to me on the phone and I agreed to buy the trip. I said no, play the recording for me. They wouldn't. I called my credit card company and told them take it off I don't want it. I don't have any part of the "trip" in my posession. The card company took it off and two months later put it right back on. I was furious, felt like I had been robbed. I had a lawyer call them and threaten them with a law suit.\n\nSeems to me your cable company could have authorized a credit to your card instead of making you wait.  \n\nIn the future, tell them you are recording the conversation because I have had so many instances of failed promises and twisted statements I could barf. Get a recorder that hooks to the phone line and turns on when any voice is there. Radio shack has them. They take a standard cassette tape and you can pause it if it is just a friendly conversation.\n\nTry not to let this throw for a loop. It most likely was a mistake not an attempt to rip you off. They most likely process thousands of forms a day.  But imagine if your card was close to max and that put you over the limit. You would have a fee of anywhere from $19 to $29! \n\nI got fed up with the constantly increasing rates of cable and switched to satellite.\n\nGood luck ...............
436977
Lets start with discussing what a junk buyer does.  They gamble.  They are betting that for $100 they can collect $5000 from you.  Not bad for a Vegas bet.  So why would you expect them to accept $100?  That's an even money bet for them and they will obviously refuse it.\n\nIf you have any intention of negotiating a settlement, you better aim at 50% and go up from there.\n\nNow about the lawsuit.  Be aware that if you actually owe them this money, and you do sue them, they will definately countersue you.  Why not?  They have you in court and will probably win.  The best you can hope for is to win your lawsuit, win $1000, and apply that to their debt.  Sorry, facts are facts.\n\nEven worse, a smart lawyer may counter-sue you because of a frivilous lawsuit.  Be sure you have a good basis for a lawsuit before you start playing games with them.\n\n\nSo how do you file?  You need the following:\n\n1) A certified dispute letter to the credit repair agency.\n\n2) A certified letter to the creditor/collection agency demanding validation of the debt.\n\n3) A second certified letter with your intent to file a lawsuit if they do not validate the debt.\n\nIf you have this, you can now prove that they failed to follow the Fair Debt Collections Act and you can proceed with a lawsuit.  See the link below for some guidance.  But you need to search for your states court rules regarding small claims court. \n\nMany states have brochures and forms available on-line.  You must follow the filing rules exactly.
516274
You know I was gonna sign up with them, but I can tell you they are a scam. They will stretch sending those dispute letters for a long time so you have to keep paying them monthly-\n\nYou can do what they do by sending the letters and disputing your credit errors by yourself. It is very easy. I just got a judgment taken off last week. \nSign up with www.truecredit.com\n\nThen look for the errors- \nmake 3 copies of your credit report and highlight all the errors\nsend one copy of your report to each of the credit agencies(trans union, equifax,expirian)\nAlso write a head letter for each credit agency\n\nheres a sample letter(customize it to each credit agency)\n\n Credit Report Dispute Letter\n\nDate\n\nComplaint Department\nName of Company\nAddress\nCity, State, Zip Code\n\nRe: Your Name\nYour Date of Birth\nYour Social Security Number\n\nDear Sir or Madam:\n\nI am writing to dispute the following information in my credit report; I have circled the items I dispute on the attached copy of my credit report.\n\nItem 1: (identify item by name of source (i.e. \ncreditor) and type of item (i.e. credit card account, judgment, etc.) This item is (inaccurate or incomplete) because (describe what is inaccurate or incomplete and why). I am requesting that the item be removed (updated, modified, etc.) to correct the information.\n\nItem 2: (if applicable, etc.)\n\nEnclosed are copies of documents (i.e payment records, court documents, cancelled checks, etc.) which support my dispute of the above-referenced item(s). Please reinvestigate this (these) matter(s) and (delete or correct) the disputed item(s) as soon as possible.\n\nSincerely,\n\nYour name\nYour Address\n\ncc: creditor(s)\n\nEnclosures: (List what you are enclosing)\n\nMail this letter along with a copy of your printed credit report to each agency:\n\nDo not dispute any bad credit that is not listed under that agency.For example if you have a credit error with transunion and its not listed with equifax, you dont want to send a dispute letter to equifax because this will only cause the creditor to possibly make a report to equifax.\n\nSend your letters First class mail and always keep all copies of what you sent and receipts that you did in fact mail your disputes.\n\nThis way you have proof of the exact day you mailed your claim . The credit agency has 30 days to do the investigation or bye bye baby the debt gets deleted.\n\nHere is another letter for your creditors to demand proof of your debt:This was emailed to me by another yahoo board member and it is great:\nSample letter to creditors\n\nThis letter is being sent to you in response to a notice sent to me on December 16, 2005. Be advised that this is not a refusal to pay, but a notice sent pursuant to the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, 15 USC 1692g Sec. 809 (b) that your claim is disputed and validation is requested.\nThis is NOT a request for “verification” or proof of my mailing address, but a request for VALIDATION made pursuant to the above named Title and Section. I respectfully request that your offices provide me with competent evidence that I have any legal obligation to pay you.\nPlease provide me with the following:\n• What the money you say I owe is for;\n• Explain and show me how you calculated what you say I owe;\n• Provide me with copies of any papers that show I agreed to pay what you say I owe;\n• Please evidence proof of the alleged debt, including specifically the alleged contract or other instrument bearing my signature.\n• Prove the Statute of Limitations/UCC has not expired on this account\n• Show me that you are licensed to collect in my state.\n• Provide me with your license numbers and Registered Agent\n\nAt this time I will also inform you that if your offices have reported invalidated information to any of the 3 major Credit Bureau’s (Equifax, Experian or TransUnion) this action might constitute fraud under both Federal and State Laws. Due to this fact, if any negative mar
150279
You are finding out what I've been trying to warn people about for weeks now.  \n\nNever, ever, pay off an bill that is in collections unless you get IN WRITING that they will remove the negative entry from your record before you pay them a DIME!\n\nNow that they have your money, you no longer have any leverage over them.  Good luck getting them to fix your report.  Remember this....credit reporting agencies only report what the creditor tells them.  They can NOT remove it or change it.  \n\nWhat you will need to do is this.\n\n1) Send a letter to the CRA protesting the report, and tell them exactly what is wrong with it.  If it's paid off try to supply any evidence of it.\n\nThe CRA will contact the creditor to "verify" that the report is legitimate.  Remember they are not investigating anything, they are just verifing with the creditor that the information they have is correct.  \n\nIf the creditor does not change the record, and you have documented evidence that it is wrong, then move on to part 2.\n\n2) Send a "demand for validation" letter to the creditor.  They must supply you with copies of all contracts, bills, receipts, and everything used to calculate what they claim you owe. If they do not produce it, send a copy of this letter with another protest to the CRA to remove the listing.  If they don't do it, you have grounds to sue both the CRA and the creditor.\n\nIf the creditor can not supply proper evidence to prove the listing is accurate, and still will not remove it, you can sue the creditor for violations of the FCRA, and defamation of character.  \n\nRead the links below, contact me if you need more help.
301782
Lets get a few things straight, and ignore the advice of these   bill collectors....\n\n1)  Credit reporting agencies report what creditors tell them to report.\n\n2)  You can not get negative information removed from your credit report if it's "fair and accurate".\n\n3)  There is no law forcing creditors to post anything!  There is no law preventing them from editing or removing any entry that they posted.\n\nTherefore, if you pay a bill off, there is nothing preventing a creditor removing negative entries from your report, and/or posting the entry to say "paid as agreed".  \n\nNote that just placing "paid" on your account does NOT remove negative history such as delinquincy or late payments.  \n\nThis said, what you are trying to do is fix your credit report by paying the debt.  Why would you want to pay your debt and still have bad credit?   The nonsense these guys are saying about a paid off delinquincy looks better then an unpaid one is wrong and stupid!  Would you rather get kicked in the nuts or kicked in the butt!  Neither!\n\nSo what you need to do is negotiate a settlement with your creditors.  In exchange for paying off the bill, they must remove all negative entries from your history.  Make them agree to this IN WRITING before you pay them a dime.  \n\nThey are simply lying if they tell you they can't do it, or it's against the law.  I am still waiting for one of the collectors who respond here to show me any evidence or law to disprove me.  \n\nAnd yes, they will do it, I've helped several people get their credit cleaned up this way.  If the creditor wants their money, they will work with you on it.