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How exactly could i repair bad credit which i didn't make but can't dispute?
I’m on active duty and I came home after my 15 month tour in Iraq thinking everything was just as I left them. I did not have a credit card nor did I have debts when I left. I met a girl and after a year of dating we decided to settle down. My fiancée then suggested that it would be nice to start building our credit so I applied for a credit card which got denied because of my extremely low credit score. When we checked my credit report, I have 4 derogatory accounts which were definitely not mine. I called home and found out that my dad used my name and social security number while I was away and failed to pay off debts. So I can’t dispute these accounts for fear that my dad would get in trouble.
I tried to repair my credit before the wedding without knowing what to do. So I called Allied Interstate (one of the CA) and they told me to pay off the account for a lower amount. So I did and got a receipt for it. Now that account says: Legally paid in full for less than the full balance and Election of remedy - reported by subscriber. Obviously, this didn’t help my credit score. I am still in the lower 500s.
Now that we’re married, I tried sending a goodwill letter to Allied Interstate and a PFD letter to the two other CA. These are letters we got off the net. But the 15 business day grace period is about to be over and there has still been no reply to any of these letters . The last derogatory account is from Weise Properties and it does not have a dollar value on it.
I’m really sorry for this extremely long post but I feel really lost and I don’t know where to start. My wife has no credit yet and I just wanted to fix everything for her before I get deployed again. She’s having a tough time adjusting to a new country as it is.
What should we do? Thank you very much for your help.
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| By
shortcake |
Posted on
10/04/08 Total Answers
8 |
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| Answers- |
| wake up call...what your dad did to you was FRAUD. it is illegal and you should press charges against him and sue him for damages. you shouldn't have to live with wrecked credit because of your loser father.
because if you do bring charges against him they will remove the bad accounts and it will be like it never happened. |
| Answer by :
emmabugg On Date
2008-10-04 09:34:41 |
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| First of all if you see people trying to sell websites, please report them.
Have you ever considered living without credit? I have done it. I saved up for everything I ever wanted and lived without credit for 7 years. It's tough, but I learned how to save for a car, and eventually I was able to save for a new car in cash.
I remember to get an apartment, I even had to offer an extra 3 months rent upfront.
Keep in mind you do not need credit to live. You can become your own bank.
When you go to buy a house, if you have 20% down even with a small blemish they will overlook that. Plus if your wife has good credit it will offset your bad. |
| Answer by :
Judy On Date
2008-10-04 09:39:01 |
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| You should send a Validation letter. You can find them on the net and they work pretty well. I used one and got 2 items removed from my credit report. In your letter definately demand a copy of the original signed contract. If they can't provide that, then they cannot collect on the debt. If they do provide it, you can prove that its not your signature and you don't have to tell them you know who did it. |
| Answer by :
Jeff R On Date
2008-10-04 09:48:13 |
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| First, paying derogatory items will not improve your score. The damage is already done.
You can try to negotiate pay for delete but this really only works with single entry items like cell phone or medical bills. Regularly reported items like credit cards will still show the charge off by the original creditor -- collection agencies can only remove what they report.
Second, be very careful about form letters you find on the net. Many contain really bad information and are often extremely confrontational. They are often amateur 'legalese' and will really do more harm than good. You will always get better response if you use your own words.
Did you make a settlement offer in those letters? I'm not sure where you came up with the '15 business day grace period'. If you made an offer and gave them 15 days to respond, it kinda sounds confrontational to me.
Lastly, you should report your father for ID theft. This is a criminal act. It didn't bother him to screw up your credit while you were fighting in Iraq, why should you worry about him going to jail for his crimes. If you file a police report and notify those creditors of the ID theft, your credit file would be clean. |
| Answer by :
bdancer222 On Date
2008-10-04 11:41:47 |
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| If you didn't make the bad credit, it is not your bad credit.
Experian 888-397-3742
Equifax 800-685-1111
Explain to them exactly what you said in your question to us.. |
| Answer by :
Ed Atun On Date
2008-10-04 14:53:05 |
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| I agree with bdancer. I would like to add that in order to protect yourself from anyone else using your ssn or name to obtain credit, have all three credit bureaus put a freeze on your reports. No one will be able to get credit, including you, until you unfreeze them.
Good luck. I am sorry this had to happen to you.
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| Answer by :
latebreakfast On Date
2008-10-04 15:17:21 |
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| As you have discovered, paying off a debt (or even part of it) does you no good unless the creditor agrees IN WRITING to delete the entry once paid.
I disagree with Bdancer. If the letter you send is not properly worded you will do more damage then you fix. It has been my experience that a letter that demonstrates that you understand your rights and know the law will work better then a "Gosh, will you please help me out..." letter.
Your main problem is that once the debt is paid, the creditor is not likely going to help you fix your credit. They have your money, and you now have no leverage to negotiate anything. And collection agents are simply not going to want to talk to you after this point.
But what other choice do you have? Nothing. Just send a polite message asking them to help you improve your credit by removing the negative information from your report. Explain the circumstances.
But I have yet to see this ever work. |
| Answer by :
Studly On Date
2008-10-04 16:07:20 |
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| Look here. It helped me.
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| Answer by :
Many G On Date
2008-10-06 04:36:15 |
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