I've been doing credit repair for a number of months now to great effect. I managed to get my student loans removed from my credit reports to my glee, but of course they were still not paid (they've been in default for years and years) and were subsequently referred to another collection agency. This made me concerned that they would be re-reported and re-inserted into my credit reports, and probably not as easy to dislodge a 2nd time. So, I sent a "cease contact" letter to the collection agency and contacted the lender. Using a similar strategy to some of the other repair techniques I previously employed, I wrote up a settlement letter and sent a restrictively endorsed check to seal the deal. They cashed the check. Now- as I understand it, this creates a legally binding agreement with my lender, as a check is a legal document. Do I now have this matter well in hand, or do they have a way to rebutt against this despite the fact that they cashed a check that was connected to an agreement? I've received nothing in writing from them after one month.
My wife is going through something similar on her own loans. She sent a restrictively endorsed check with a settlement letter, which they cashed. She followed through with her part of the agreement and paid a lump sum, also using a restrictively endorsed instrument, which they also cashed. The collection agency, however, is still insisting that the loan is not paid, even though they cashed two restrictively endorsed instruments. I know that collection agencies lie and intimidate to accomplish their goals, and I have no doubt that they'd resort to lying about this so that they don't have to admit to the lender that they were had and it was their own fault. Again, do they have even a leg to stand on here? Or has she won?
Thanks for your feedback!