paying debt collector

[Greyd]

I've always wondered...can you pay the company you owe money to to get rid of a debt/collection? Or do you have to pay the collection agency that is seeking payment? Anyone know how it works? Because the original company you owe money to has a "cheaper" debt to pay.

 

[deadlyapp]

I've always wondered...can you pay the company you owe money to to get rid of a debt/collection? Or do you have to pay the collection agency that is seeking payment? Anyone know how it works? Because the original company you owe money to has a "cheaper" debt to pay.

Gotta pay the collector. The company sells the debt to a collection agency.

I think.

 

[boomhower]

Gotta pay the collector. The company sells the debt to a collection agency.

I think.

Generally, yes. Sometimes they can recall it from the CO but generally it isn't worth their time and effort.

 

[lord_emperor]

You always have the right to pay the party to which you originally owe the money

 

[MagnusTheBrewer]

It depends whether your debt has been 'sold' or not. If it has, you longer owe the money to the original company because they sold that account receivable to another company.

 

[alrocky]

I've always wondered...can you pay the company you owe money to to get rid of a debt/collection? ... Because the original company you owe money to has a "cheaper" debt to pay.

You'd be a fool to pay anywhere the original amount since the original creditor sold it to the Debt Collector for dimes on the dollar. If you're asking because you have such debt, you'd better do more research before thinking about talking to the D.C. or paying back the debt.

 

[Mike Gayner]

Pay your debts, deadbeat.

 

[sportage]

You can also tell collections you only deal with the original company. Not collections.

BTW, paying off a collection can raise your credit score considerably, even though the original debt went into collections. At some point everyone will need their credit score on their side.
And a little further info... if you did a bankruptcy in the past, more likely than not the company(s) included are still reporting the debt as a charge-off. Always check your credit report(s) and fix incorrect info, especially bad entries coded wrong.

A charge-off shows up as very bad. If it was actually included in any type of bankruptcy, it should not say charged-off. It should code as "included in BK" or "wage earners plan" (on chapter 13's).
Included in bankruptcy coding should neither help nor hurt your score.
Companies like to report items as charge-off just to piss you off. And it is also illegal for them to do so. But they still do... often.

It’s all about credit scores in today’s world. Everyone should keep a score above 700, and check the reason if your score is below 700. More than likely it is a coding error. And it’s up to you to find/fix that.
If a company is reporting false negative info, like listing a bankruptcy item as charged-off, and they will not correct it, sue them. You can easily win in court. They know that.

My sister runs her own part time credit repair business, and it is amazing how purposely nasty banks and credit card companies are, especially if you ever included them in a bankruptcy. And stay away from credit counselors where you pay them to make arrangements in your behalf to creditors. They show on your credit report and do much more long term credit damage than actually doing a bankruptcy, or making arrangements directly with creditors on your own.

All my sister is doing is helping people find credit errors on their reports, and correcting them to improve credit scores. She has already helped several people fix their credit report errors, raised their scores, and they then could get approved for home loans.
It really works. And most people will not bother to take action on their own, or they don't know how to go about it correctly.

 

[Ms. DICKINSON]

Debt collector is much easier than the original lender. My uncle owes more than $10K for multiple cards. Few years ago he stopped paying and the loan was sent to collection. They kept bugging him and no action from him, then started to ask for just fraction of the total amount, quarter for a dollar. Still he ain't paying shit and they can't do anything about it.

 

[Mike Gayner]

Debt collector is much easier than the original lender. My uncle owes more than $10K for multiple cards. Few years ago he stopped paying and the loan was sent to collection. They kept bugging him and no action from him, then started to ask for just fraction of the total amount, quarter for a dollar. Still he ain't paying shit and they can't do anything about it.

Your uncle is a deadbeat loser helping raise the cost of credit for everyone else.

 

[tcsenter]

Your uncle is a deadbeat loser helping raise the cost of credit for everyone else.

So am I. The debt collectors call me and I go "HAHAHAHAHA" and hang the phone up. They call back and I do it again. Eventually, they just give up.

 

[RelaxTheMind]

credit card companies and even banks rape people who are "just getting by". or even people that didnt have enough for a rainy day.

ex. tire blows out and u hit someone > u pay ur deductible > u pay late fees for some stuff > maybe u were short 10 cents and got $75 in overdraft fees at bank... etc

random stuff like that happens all the time.

 

[zCypher]

snip

Sadly, this is true. Sad because the companies do such practice and sad because people are too ignorant or lazy to do anything about it or even check in the first place.

In my case, I was surprised to find that even the credit reporting agency Equifax was not on the ball after being sent several registered letters. Took quite some time just to fix a couple mistakes.

Having said that, you need to research the law in your area. In some cases, you can get rid of collectors in certain ways. In other cases, collectors keep harassing you regardless of the validity of the debt. In yet other cases, one collection agency will simply "sell the debt" to another agency and it continues like this over and over.

IMO the best course of action is to calculate what you feel is the correct amount that you owe in all fairness, and come to an agreement with whoever is currently holding the debt.

BEFORE paying:

- Verify with the original company that the debt is clear with them. IF not, then you should be able to pay them directly instead...
- Verify the collection agency is licensed to collect in your area and is legit
- Negotiate until both parties agree on the amount.

I've had bad experiences with phone companies and ended up getting some bills that made me go WTF; regardless they sent it to collections. In the end, I only paid a portion of it and the case is closed. I still ended up paying more than I thought I should, but a lot less than they were originally asking for. All my registered letters to the original company were completely ignored.

 

[sourceninja]

This is why I've decided to go 'no credit'.

I think the whole credit system is fucked up and I'm currently in the process of paying off all of my credit cards, car loans, and house. Once that is done I will not be buying anything on credit again.

It's either cash or I don't really need it.

 

[edro]

Pay your debts, deadbeat.

but...but...but... I really really really needed that new car.
All of my friends and family think I am financially sound and successful because of it!

 

[SandEagle]

Debt collector is much easier than the original lender. My uncle owes more than $10K for multiple cards. Few years ago he stopped paying and the loan was sent to collection. They kept bugging him and no action from him, then started to ask for just fraction of the total amount, quarter for a dollar. Still he ain't paying shit and they can't do anything about it.

wow that's great. I have 20k in CC debt. I think I will stop paying it too. thanks!

 

[Homerboy]

Debt collector is much easier than the original lender. My uncle owes more than $10K for multiple cards. Few years ago he stopped paying and the loan was sent to collection. They kept bugging him and no action from him, then started to ask for just fraction of the total amount, quarter for a dollar. Still he ain't paying shit and they can't do anything about it.

ORLY?

Ilove these threads in AT... so much fud.

 

[dainthomas]

wow that's great. I have 20k in CC debt. I think I will stop paying it too. thanks!

You know, I've never really liked paying bills. I don't think I'm gonna do that, either. - Peter Gibbons