Debt collections and credit score- please give advice!

amother

Fri, Aug 13 2021, 11:26 am

I forgot to pay a medical bill and it went to collections. I panicked and didn't know what to do and did not pay it and now my credit score has gone down significantly. It was just reported to the credit bureau last month.
Has anyone experienced this?
Is it possible to get it removed from my credit report if I pay it? If so how do I go about this???
So anxious.

amother

Freesia

Fri, Aug 13 2021, 12:07 pm

Are you sure it went down from that? We often forget to pay our medical bills because we have a high deductible plan and lots comes in mail. We have never had any on our credit score... I dnt think they go on anymore

amother

Fri, Aug 13 2021, 12:50 pm

amother [ Freesia ] wrote:

Yes I am sure. I asked my mortgage broker. He said that it was from an unpaid debt and gave me the debt collector number. It is from a hospital bill. I know that 100%

amother

Fri, Aug 13 2021, 12:53 pm

As an update I just called the debt collection agency. They told me that if I pay it in full now they will report it to the credit bureau that I have paid and it will be removed from my report and my score will go back up within 30-60 days.

From doing research online I'm finding articles that say that it not true and it will stay on there for 7 years. Does anyone know about this?

amother

Smokey

Fri, Aug 13 2021, 12:56 pm

medical bills will affect your score!! I had it on my report.
I let my husband deal with this stuff, but if you just pay them they wont remove it afterwards, no matter how nice u will ask them, they just dont care once they got their payment!
removing from report should be a condition on the payment, and it should be on a written document form them! otherwise u will be in trouble!
lots of luck!

amother

Fri, Aug 13 2021, 4:32 pm

amother [ Smokey ] wrote:

So weird. How long ago did this happen to you? The person who I spoke to said that after I pay it they will report to the credit agencies that it has been paid and it will be removed. But from research online it looks like it will only be marked as "paid" and not really cleared from my credit report. Does that sound correct? I also did ask about having it in writing that it will be removed and she said that they will only give me a receipt of payment no letter saying it will be removed. That I have to contact the credit agencies to verify it has been removed around a month or two after paying.

I have no idea what to do Sad

nicole81

Fri, Aug 13 2021, 4:49 pm

amother [ OP ] wrote:

Yes, paying it will not remove it. Your score will go up from the collection no longer being active, but the record of the collection will still be on your credit report.

Call them up again and tell them you want them to *remove* the collection account from your report. This is something they can do. Debt collectors will say anything to get you to pay, so make sure you get in writing that they will delete the account from all 3 credit bureaus upon payment. Or tell them you'll pay after they remove it. FYI, banks and agencies can remove items from your report right away, and you'll see it immediately. There's no waiting period.

amother

Phlox

Sun, Aug 15 2021, 5:29 am

OP- Yes, paying a collection WILL remove it from your credit score.
When you pay the bill, ask for a receipt from the debt collection agency that confirms the bill is paid in full. Confirm that they will report the paid bill to all the major credit reporting agencies. (FICO, Experian etc)

In addition to the above, you can log into your credit and report the collection as “paid”. The agency will then start an investigation, find out that this is correct and remove it from your negative delinquency.

And YES- your score will 100% go back up after it is successfully removed. No one can see this collection after it has been removed - your score is wiped clean.

The 7 years thing is completely unrelated to this. Hard credit pills (for example when you apply for a loan from the bank, or lease a new car they do a hard credit pull) stay on your account for 7 years. You don’t want too many of these “hard pulls” as it shows you are desperately searching for someone to lend you $. Not a good sign for a potential lender.

All of these factors make up your credit score, each contributing a specific percentage. Any more questions feel free to ask! I’ve been working on this for years. Good luck!

amother

Phlox

Sun, Aug 15 2021, 5:33 am

qwerty4 wrote:

Medical collections do not affect your score.

They most definitely do. The more delinquencies you have on your account the lower your score will be. All these factors contribute a percentage to your score- payment history, credit inquires, credit history and yup- collections, liens and lawsuits.

amother

Fuchsia

Sun, Aug 15 2021, 8:44 am

Call and ask to settle it. Then you'll get a paid in full letter. Within 90 days it should be removed from your report. If you want it removed sooner, as soon as it's paid and you have the letter (10-15 days) call the three credit bureaus and say it's not being reported correctly. Will be removed within 30 days. It's easy. Someone I know does this professionally, with bigger more complicated accounts obviously

Amarante

Sun, Aug 15 2021, 10:55 am

Medical collections impact your credit score.

However some doctors may not report the bills or sell them to a credit collection agency whereas a bank or credit card company will report even late payments and they will appear on your record.

You are entitled to one free credit score for each of the two agencies annually so you can check.

I have no experience with collection agencies except from what I have read the people calling you are completely unscrupulous and will tell you anything to get a payment because that is how they make their money.

evi

Sun, Aug 15 2021, 11:54 am

My own experience:
I once got a medical collections and stupidly paid the original company instead of the debt collections. I then had to go through lots of calls to tell the collections agency I paid it. Even after that it stayed on my credit score because the collections agency had no incentive to take it off.

What I should have done: called the collections agency, and got on a recording of my own, or in writing some agreement that if I paid it they would remove it from the credit bureau records. Then paid it. I am not sure what the laws are now- it is possible they anyway have to take it off once you pay it - but better to have that agreement as well so that you are doubly safeguarded. I think it is common practice not to report a collections if you pay the collection agency within 30 days of getting the notice, but sounds like it's already past that for you and anyway I wouldn't rely on that over getting their agreement to take it off.