If you have read this blog for a while, you will remember a tutorial that chronicled my trip to an ER and the subsequent games they tried to play with the charges. I finally got around to disputing the claim (I had ordered a new batch of my free credit reports a few months before) they sent to a collection agency a few weeks ago. This is that tale.
Procedure
I try and limit my input of banking info or social security info from wifi connections. I keep a land line and ISP for these transactions. Using the dial up method was slow and it seemed like some of the companies were hiding places (ie under "collections" even if it said "no negatives" on the home page) where these charges could remain, so, I started using the 800 numbers and found that method more useful and timely. The three companies you need to contact are Trans Union, Experian and Equifax.
Experian (800-509-8495) was the last to complete their investigation. I was alerted today. I called them and requested a report because they hid the collection info online, so, I called to clarify what I saw and ended up submitting a verbal request. They took around four weeks. They sent a credit report to my house after the call. They sent the investigation result via the mail as well.
Equifax was contacted (by me) via their web site. They were the second to complete an investigation. They took around three weeks. They contacted me via email and I had to log in to get the info. They never sent any paper correspondence. That may be what you lose if you do it via a website. I had to request an updated credit report if I wanted to confirm it was off.
Trans Union (800-916-8800) was the first to respond. They cleared it up two days later. They sent written notification and another free, clean credit report. They even notified the other companies, so, perhaps one request is all you need to do. I spoke to a very helpful gentleman here.
I should add that they all sent printed notices that a fraud alert was put on my account and that the investigations had begun.
The Argument I Made:
I basically explained that the charge was based on misrepresentation. They represented that the charges I paid were all inclusive. That turned out to be an untruth.
Conclusion:
I was shocked at how easy it was to get this negative credit transaction off my credit report. I was really only trying to get my side of the story on the credit report. It used to be that it was next to impossible to get these reporting companies to amend your report. The opposite was true in this case. They didn't ask for evidence. They didn't stone wall me. The operators picked up in a timely manner. And of course they decided in my favor. The only "game" that you seem to have to watch out for is where they may hide certain negative information about you. Who knows it still may be there in an area they only show entities requesting my credit history. You can only do so much. I'll see if my credit score goes up.
You may ask why you would bother to do this if you aren't going to need a loan, etc. It is my understanding that almost everyone from insurance companies to prospective employers are combing through your credit history and judging you on it. That means no job, higher insurance premiums, higher credit card rates, higher auto loan rates, higher mortgage rates, etc. You don't want to be forced into settling with many of these collection agencies. You may have refused to pay because they were disputable and it was a matter of principle. Use this process to make sure you aren't penalized by the system. At worst, you get a fresh set of free credit reports.
*I encourage you to reread my auto insurance tutorial. Progressive is a bait and switch operation.
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