How to proceed with Joint Medical Collection

[gsxrmike]

How should I go about disputing medical collection accounts that are listed as Joint on both my wife and my CR's? Do I send the HIPAA dispute letter to each CRA, listing all account numbers on that CR, for both my wife and I or separate? I'm assuming that it would need to be separate.

 

For example:

 

My Report

EX - 2 accounts, listed as Joint

TU - 2 accounts, listed as Joint

 

Her Report

Same as above

 

I send 1 letter to EX with both acct #'s, 1 letter to TU with both acct #'s, she does the EXACT same thing, just in her name.

 

Correct?

[Why Chat]

How should I go about disputing medical collection accounts that are listed as Joint on both my wife and my CR's? Do I send the HIPAA dispute letter to each CRA, listing all account numbers on that CR, for both my wife and I or separate? I'm assuming that it would need to be separate.

 

For example:

 

My Report

EX - 2 accounts, listed as Joint

TU - 2 accounts, listed as Joint

 

Her Report

Same as above

 

I send 1 letter to EX with both acct #'s, 1 letter to TU with both acct #'s, she does the EXACT same thing, just in her name.

 

Correct?

Follow all the initial steps for both of you FIRST before disputing:

http://www.whychat.5u.com/GUIDEBOOK.html

 

You MUST dispute each of your reports separately, even if the same account is listed on both your reports, you can NOT dispute both reports to a CRA in one envelope.

[gsxrmike]

Thanks Why Chat! I already followed your directions and deleted the old addresses/names/phone numbers/employment information from both of our reports, with all three agencies.

 

Appreciate the info on the way forward, will send separate letters for each person. Here we go...

[gsxrmike]

I sent the letters off to the CRA's today, CM, no RRR, on stationary, hand written address on the envelope. I have read the directions in your guide, but I'm confused about what step in the process I pay the OC, or if I even pay at all. Can you please explain that part to me? Thanks again!

[Why Chat]

I sent the letters off to the CRA's today, CM, no RRR, on stationary, hand written address on the envelope. I have read the directions in your guide, but I'm confused about what step in the process I pay the OC, or if I even pay at all. Can you please explain that part to me? Thanks again!

It is easy, IF an account is totally deleted from all credit reports, then you pay nothing to the OC, or anyone at all. ( If you wish you can make a contribution to one of the charities linked at the bottom of my website)

 

If an account is NOT deleted from one or more reports, then you send the follow up medical DV to the reporting CA and then a follow up dispute to the CRA(s)

 

If the reporting CA responds TO YOUR INITIAL DISPUTE TO THE CRAs with a complete and accurate account statement that matches YOUR records, that is PROOF that they are in a CURRENT BUSINESS RELATIONSHIP with the OC and you can THEN pay the OC with the HIPAA letter insert "a" knowing that you will be able to avoid a "paid" collection on your reports.

[gsxrmike]

Well, two of the collections from my wife's CR's were deleted by TU. One of those was listed as joint with my CR, but it's still showing on mine. EX hasn't done anything, and I haven't received any written correspondance from either yet. I'm hoping to get these removed in the next 30ish days so that I can app for a mortgage. Fingers crossed!

[Why Chat]

Well, two of the collections from my wife's CR's were deleted by TU. One of those was listed as joint with my CR, but it's still showing on mine. EX hasn't done anything, and I haven't received any written correspondance from either yet. I'm hoping to get these removed in the next 30ish days so that I can app for a mortgage. Fingers crossed!

The next step, as soon as you receive a response from ALL the CRAs where the collections were reporting, is to send the medical DV to each reporting CA, and then send the CRA(s) the follow up dispute.

http://www.whychat.5u.com/ltrcavalhipaa.html

http://www.whychat.5u.com/ltrcavalhipaa.html#DISPUTE

 

Make sure you are keeping separate files for each CRA and separate files for you and your wife as you can NOT "merge" any of your disputes or follow up DVs

[gsxrmike]

Thanks Why Chat, will do, I have everything separated out for both her and I. So what do I do if the CRA's don't respond within 30 days? Is it 30 calendar days or 30 business days? What if TU were to remove the joint account from her report, but not on mine? Thanks again for everything!

[Why Chat]

Thanks Why Chat, will do, I have everything separated out for both her and I. So what do I do if the CRA's don't respond within 30 days? Is it 30 calendar days or 30 business days? What if TU were to remove the joint account from her report, but not on mine? Thanks again for everything!

Please don't look for problems in advance. It is hard enough to deal with problems as they arise without looking for problems in a crystal ball. Come back to this post with whatever results you get and you will get help.

[gsxrmike]

Please don't look for problems in advance. It is hard enough to deal with problems as they arise without looking for problems in a crystal ball. Come back to this post with whatever results you get and you will get help.

 

Thanks Why Chat, here's what I have so far:

 

Received two notices from TU for my wife that they deleted both of the accounts from her report. She's now clean on TU. Neither TU or EX are showing anything about a dispute when I check my report via the "back door" method. I figure that I'll just have to wait it out awhile longer.

 

I do have a question about disputing an account that was supposed to be removed (non-medical), but is still listed on my EX report. Should I wait until all of the medical disputes are finished before I dispute the other TL? I have a letter from the CA saying that they requested the TL be deleted on 12-31-12, but it's still showing up. Thanks again!

[gsxrmike]

One more thing that I forgot to add. I received notices from all three CRA's that I now have a fraud alert placed on my reports. I didn't request this, but I'm assuming that it either came out of the opt-out process or from the previous disputes. Does this have any impact on the HIPAA letters that I sent?

[Why Chat]

One more thing that I forgot to add. I received notices from all three CRA's that I now have a fraud alert placed on my reports. I didn't request this, but I'm assuming that it either came out of the opt-out process or from the previous disputes. Does this have any impact on the HIPAA letters that I sent?

Yes it is normal, and yes it has an impact on your disputes, IT HELPS!!

 

I do have a question about disputing an account that was supposed to be removed (non-medical), but is still listed on my EX report. Should I wait until all of the medical disputes are finished before I dispute the other TL? I have a letter from the CA saying that they requested the TL be deleted on 12-31-12, but it's still showing up. Thanks again!

 

What was the REASON they said they would delete?? Did you pay them??

[gsxrmike]

Yes it is normal, and yes it has an impact on your disputes, IT HELPS!!

 

Good to know, I've read on here that the F/A makes it difficult to get removals and some have contacted the CRA's and requested it be removed.

 

What was the REASON they said they would delete?? Did you pay them??

 

Yeah, it was for a parking ticket with the city of San Diego from years ago. It was paid when I registered a vehicle at DMV a year after. They didn't have my correct address on file, so I never received notice. I sent to proof to the city of my correct address, and they sent a letter saying they would delete on 12-31-12. Should I give it another month and then dispute after the medical disputes are finished?

 

On another note, I just checked USPS website and all the HIPAA dispute letters I sent to the CRA's were delivered via CM (not RRR) on 12-24-12. Does this mean they have until 1-24-13 to respond? Like I said earlier, my wife got the TU items deleted from her TU report, but still waiting on my TU and EX for both of us.

[Why Chat]

Yes it is normal, and yes it has an impact on your disputes, IT HELPS!!

 

Good to know, I've read on here that the F/A makes it difficult to get removals and some have contacted the CRA's and requested it be removed.

 

What was the REASON they said they would delete?? Did you pay them??

 

Yeah, it was for a parking ticket with the city of San Diego from years ago. It was paid when I registered a vehicle at DMV a year after. They didn't have my correct address on file, so I never received notice. I sent to proof to the city of my correct address, and they sent a letter saying they would delete on 12-31-12. Should I give it another month and then dispute after the medical disputes are finished?Wait until you are sure that your old address is off your reports before disputing. Governmental debts are difficult to remove. It MIGHT be removed, or it might be marked as a paid collection

 

On another note, I just checked USPS website and all the HIPAA dispute letters I sent to the CRA's were delivered via CM (not RRR) on 12-24-12. Does this mean they have until 1-24-13 to respond? Like I said earlier, my wife got the TU items deleted from her TU report, but still waiting on my TU and EX for both of us.

[gsxrmike]

Wait until you are sure that your old address is off your reports before disputing. Governmental debts are difficult to remove. It MIGHT be removed, or it might be marked as a paid collection Yeah, that address is off my report and it's already listed as a paid collection. Should I wait until the HIPAA dispute process is finished before I dispute or go for it now?

Not sure if you saw my other question in the above post, but I checked the USPS website and all the HIPAA dispute letters I sent to the CRA's were delivered via CM (not RRR) on 12-24-12. Does this mean they have until 1-24-13 to respond?

 

Thanks again!

[Why Chat]

Wait until you are sure that your old address is off your reports before disputing. Governmental debts are difficult to remove. It MIGHT be removed, or it might be marked as a paid collection Yeah, that address is off my report and it's already listed as a paid collection. Should I wait until the HIPAA dispute process is finished before I dispute or go for it now? WAIT

Not sure if you saw my other question in the above post, but I checked the USPS website and all the HIPAA dispute letters I sent to the CRA's were delivered via CM (not RRR) on 12-24-12. Does this mean they have until 1-24-13 to respond? Yes

 

Thanks again!

Edited January 6, 2013 by Why Chat

[gsxrmike]

Status update:

 

1) The item that I wanted to dispute that was supposed to be removed fell off my CR two days ago. Glad that I waited like you said and didn't dispute it right away

2) Checked this morning and TU deleted one of the medical accounts, but not the other. EX shows both accounts still. Neither CR has comments that show anything about disputing the info. They've still got 13 days left, so we'll see what happens...

[gsxrmike]

UPDATE

 

EX sent two letters, one to me and one to my wife. They read as follows:

 

My letter says "We received a suspicious request regarding your personal credit information that we have determined was not sent by you. This could be deemed as deceptive or fraudulent use of your information. We have not taken any action on this request. Any future requests made in this manner will not be processed and will not receive a response". It then goes on to say that suspicious letters are taken seriously and that Experian security personnel will forward copies of the letters to law enforcement officials. It then says if I believe information in my report is inaccurate that I can call the number listed on my Experian report.

 

My wife's letter, in a nutshell, says that when you dispute an item they have 30 days to request validation from the furnisher of the TL, that if the furnisher doesn't respond Experian can either update the TL as information requested or delete the TL. It doesn't give any answer to the TL's being validated by the CA, just explains the process for the validation of disputes.

 

TU hasn't sent me anything yet, but they did delete one of the accounts from my report.

 

As stated earlier, TU already deleted my wife's disputes and sent a letter.

 

What to do next? Thanks!

Edited January 14, 2013 by gsxrmike

[Why Chat]

UPDATE

 

EX sent two letters, one to me and one to my wife. They read as follows:

 

My letter says "We received a suspicious request regarding your personal credit information that we have determined was not sent by you. This could be deemed as deceptive or fraudulent use of your information. We have not taken any action on this request. Any future requests made in this manner will not be processed and will not receive a response". It then goes on to say that suspicious letters are taken seriously and that Experian security personnel will forward copies of the letters to law enforcement officials. It then says if I believe information in my report is inaccurate that I can call the number listed on my Experian report.

 

My wife's letter, in a nutshell, says that when you dispute an item they have 30 days to request validation from the furnisher of the TL, that if the furnisher doesn't respond Experian can either update the TL as information requested or delete the TL. It doesn't give any answer to the TL's being validated by the CA, just explains the process for the validation of disputes.

 

TU hasn't sent me anything yet, but they did delete one of the accounts from my report.

 

As stated earlier, TU already deleted my wife's disputes and sent a letter.

 

What to do next? Thanks!

You respond to the CRA who said "suspicious request " by sending a short letter with proof of your identity, a copy of your drivers license, a copy of your SS card and a recent original utility bill. State that you are responding to their letter ( enclose a copy) and request that they immediately properly investigate your legitimate dispute.

 

As to your wife's or your other disputes that were "verified", send the reporting CAs the medical DV

http://www.whychat.5u.com/ltrcavalhipaa.html

and then re-dispute with the follow up dispute

http://www.whychat.5u.com/ltrcavalhipaa.html#DISPUTE

[gsxrmike]

I sent Experian a reply via CMRR with all the info you suggested, so waiting for info from them.

 

I received a response from TU today, with one of the accounts deleted, the other being verified, so I sent the CA the medical DV letter via CMRR. My wife sent the CA the medical DV letter via CMRR for her accounts.

 

Question is, do I wait until the CA replies before I proceed with re-disputing with the CRA's?

[gsxrmike]

Why Chat, do I send the CRA's the follow up dispute after I get the green RR card from the dispute letters I sent to the CA or do I have to wait 30 days for the CA to respond?

[Why Chat]

Why Chat, do I send the CRA's the follow up dispute after I get the green RR card from the dispute letters I sent to the CA or do I have to wait 30 days for the CA to respond?

As soon as you have proof of receipt, either green card if it went to a street address or PO printout if it went to a PO box

[gsxrmike]

Well the CA sent a reply to my wife for her accounts. It was sent regular mail, no CM or RR. They included account numbers and a description of the service from the OC, which lists the patient, date, service provided, Dr. name, and clinic. They also provided a summary of payments and adjustments that shows how much was paid by insurance, what the balance remaining was, and interest that has accumulated to date. They did not provide her with the following:

 

1) Anything that states their assigment of the debt or agreement between them and the OC.

2) Agreement that bears the signature of the alleged debtor agreeing to pay the debt.

 

They stated that they acknowledge receipt of her request to cease and desist in their attempts to contact her for collection of the debt and that further communications for attempting to collect the debt would be limited to only those actions permitted by law.

 

Questions:

 

1) What do I do in this scenario since they failed to provide all of the items in the DV letter?

2) I already sent the follow-up letter to the CRA after receipt of the signed RR from the DV letter. Should I just let that take its course before I proceed?

 

Still nothing for me. EX FINALLY updated saying they're re-investigating (checked backdoor). I have yet to receive anything from the CA for the DV letter I sent them after verifying my account on TU.

 

Thanks again Why Chat!

[Why Chat]

Wait until you receive a response from the re-dispute on your wife's account.

 

It is more than likely that they will not verify as they stated that they would accede to the cease and desist and verification is NOT "an action permitted by law".

[gsxrmike]

Wait until you receive a response from the re-dispute on your wife's account.

 

It is more than likely that they will not verify as they stated that they would accede to the cease and desist and verification is NOT "an action permitted by law".

 

Okay, sounds good.

 

I got my reply from the CA in the mail today. They said the same thing, didn't provide anything that shows they were assigned the debt by the OC, didn't provide anything that shows where I signed agreeing to pay the debt, and said they acknowledge my request to C&D and would limit further communications about the debt to only those actions permitted by law.

 

I also received a response from EX today regarding the re-dispute letter that I sent. They said the following:

 

"If you question the results of our dispute process, then you may want to contact the furnisher of information directly or review the original information in the public record. Please refer to your original personal credit report for the furnisher or public records office name, address, and phone number (if available).

 

According to the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), a national consumer credit reporting agency's role in the dispute process is to review the accuracy and completeness of any disputed item which may include contacting the source of the disputed information and informing them of all relevant information regarding the consumer's dispute. If the issue is not resolved, the consumer credit reporting agency must offer to include a consumer statement on the personal credit report.

 

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (the government agency charged with enforcement of the FCRA) does not require that the consumer credit reporting company obtain documentation such as the actual signed sales slips, signature cards, contracts, etc.; nor does it require that consumer credit reporting agencies act as a mediators or negotiators in account disputes.

 

Sincerely,

 

Experian"

 

Is that their response? What a Geronimo way of beating around the bush.