Why Chat Help! Did I prevent myself from being able to use your guide?

[austint94]

Hello everyone! This post is especially focused towards wondering if I am able to use Why Chat's guide.

 

So I am a 21 year old college student who is relatively new to the credit world. I will lay out my issue/concern as explicitly as possible to avoid any confusion.

 

I went last week to apply for a Wells Fargo Cash Back College Credit Card and was shockingly denied for "derrogatory public record, or collections filed" since, to my knowledge, I had essentially no credit history or reason for denial....or so I thought. That night, I immediately run my credit report from all 3 bureaus (using annualcreditreport.com) and see the reason. All three bureaus show one relatively small student federal loan that is in good standing with payments deferred until after graduation. HOWEVER, TransUnion and Equifax show an account with a balance of $122.00 (original creditor was a hospital) that went into collections with Collection Agency #1 as of November, 2014. (using arbitrary identifiers for simplicity). The open balance on the report was last updated in February, 2015. I am still under my parent's insurance and they pay all of my medical bills, but this one simply got overlooked and forgotten about. However, it is a legitimate charge.

 

The next day, I call collection agency #1, and they tell me they no longer are responsible for my account because it was handed over to a different collection agency. So, I had to call the hospital (original creditor) for them to tell me that Collection Agency #2 now has my account and that the balance can either be paid off through the hospital or Collection Agency #2. So, I call Collection Agency #2 and pay off the balance. They tell me why will send me a letter verifying the account's satisfaction as well as notify Credit Bureaus per their protocol.

 

The next is where I'm afraid I shot myself in the foot since I did all of this before coming to this site. To be proactive, I then contacted TransUnion and Equifax to start disputes. I told both bureaus that Collection Agency #1 no longer had my account, that it was moved to Collection Agency #2 as of May, 2015, and that I paid off the balance. I also told them I would fax in the confirmation letter of the account's satisfaction once I receive it in the mail, which I have not yet.

 

What I want to know is can I still follow your guide even though I started these disputes already? I even told TransUnion and Equifax the name of Collection Agency #2. Since Collection Agency #1 was the only one identified on the credit report, could it now be taken off since there's no longer a relationship with my account balance that was in question? I know that I may have muddied the waters with my proactive initiative, but I hope this all makes sense.

 

What do you recommend be my next step in this process? My ultimate goal is to get approved for a simple college credit card to build credit, and this is unfortunately an issue that needs to be resolved before that happens. Of note, I have not applied for any other credit cards besides the Wells Fargo one mentioned.

 

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR TIME IN HELPING, I REALLY APPRECIATE IT!

[Why Chat]

OK,

 

Well you made a BIG mistake paying the CA. They were obviously NOT in a current business relationship with the OC, rather they were JDBs ( junk debt buyers).

 

How did you pay them?? If you did it with a direct payment from your checking account I suggest you monitor your account very carefully.

 

Meanwhile, Opt out and IF you have moved, try to get old addresses deleted.

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

 

If the account remains on your reports, send each CRA where it is reporting the initial dispute letter:

http://whychat.5u.com/hipaadisp.html

 

from the HIPAA letter program

http://www.whychat.5u.com/GUIDE%20HIPAA%20PROGRAM.html

 

If it is no longer on any of your reports-- you dodged a bullet!!

If it is reporting as a paid collection, send the initial dispute letter.

If it is still reporting with a balance due, send the initial dispute letter-- DO NOT inform the CRAs that it was PAID, a paid collection is just as bad, if not WORSE than an unpaid one because it is still derogatory, but NEWER.

[austint94]

Thank you so much for the quick reply and advice!

 

Yeah I know I should have done more research on the topic before taking action, I just instinctively wanted to pay off the balance ASAP. I did pay with my bank account debit card with an approved one time payment. I will monitor it closely.

 

One last question? Should I do anything with the current disputes I filed? Should I wait to start your letter processes until after the conclusion of my disputes? Or should I go ahead and start that? Just some advice on timing would be greatly appreciated.

 

Thanks for all of your help again and for taking the time to share your ways with everyone!