How to Fix Your Credit, Fast
When it comes to fixing bad credit and collections, you have a very important right as outlined in the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act: The right to have a collection account “validated.”
This process, as outlined in the FDCPA, is quite different from the “verification” process referred to above. When a credit bureau asks a creditor to “verify” information, the investigation that follows can be pretty cursory. The creditor reviews its records and any information supplied by the consumer and then decides whether it (the creditor) was right or wrong.
Conversely, when a collection agency is asked about validating a debt, the process is a much more involved one. In such a situation, it is up to the collector to prove that a debt is your responsibility. This is what can make the entire process very involved. Additionally, the collector will be required to stop all collections activity until they are able to provide the necessary evidence. In the event the collection agency is unable to validate the debt, it must stop all collections and reporting action.
Note that your right to validation applies specifically to collection agencies, not to the original creditor. Collection agency records are presumed to be less reliable than those kept by the original creditors. Collectors are often guilty of going after the wrong people or misstating the amounts owed; the validation process is meant to protect consumers from those practices.
In order to properly validate a debt, a collector is required to present documentation gained from the original creditor that displays you really do owe the amount specified. As you can see, this allows validation to be a truly helpful method of cleaning up problems with your credit report. In some instances, credit agencies may not even have all the necessary forms to validate the debt owed. This is common when a collection account has moved from collector to collector. Sometimes, all the creditor will have is a simple computer printout to provide evidence of a claim. However, the FTC has made it abundantly clear that merely providing itemization accounts is not sufficient proof for the validation of a debt.
It is also interesting to note that the validation process not only can eliminate collection accounts that belong to someone else, they can eliminate your own debt accounts. To some, this may prove to be a surprising statement but it really makes a great deal of sense. How can it be true if the information presented on your collections account is accurate?
In rare instances, it is possible to use the validation process as a means of removing accurate information from your credit report. This is mostly the case with old collections information. Some may say this is not a fair method but it is a legitimate one. Basically, you request validation on an old debt and if the debtor cannot provide the needed information, then it may be removed due to lack of validation. Again, this is only successfully achieved in rare instances but it can be done.
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Once debts are assigned to collection agencies it at times becomes easier to eliminate via the verificaion method described in this post. The older the debt the greater the success rate in having them removed. One problem I was made aware of by working with a very excellent credit repair agency http://www.thecreditbar.com was that even when collection agencies don’t produce proof of the debt, the credit bureaus still send back letters saying it’s verified. One valuable tip I learned from the experts at TheCreditBar is that you must challenge the bureaus to produce the verifying proof in writing and most times they will realize you called their bluff.
Once debts are assigned to collection agencies it at times becomes easier to eliminate via the verificaion method described in this post. The older the debt the greater the success rate in having them removed. One problem I was made aware of by working with a very excellent credit repair agency http://www.thecreditbar.com was that even when collection agencies don’t produce proof of the debt, the credit bureaus still send back letters saying it’s verified. One valuable tip I learned from the experts at TheCreditBar is that you must challenge the bureaus to produce the verifying proof in writing and most times they will realize you called their bluff.