3 ms·

When you say it's exactly the wrong thing to do, I think you're being a bit dramatic. Sure, there's some risk... But, ultimately you have the most leverage in t

When you say it's exactly the wrong thing to do, I think you're being a bit dramatic. Sure, there's some risk... But, ultimately you have the most leverage in the situation. Pay off the debt with a Visa/MC. If the collection agency is going to screw you, you can screw them right back with a charge back.

erroneousfunk 11y ago
Agreed. About few years ago my credit score (which I checked semi-regularly) took a ~150 point dive, because a collection showed up on it from a $120 medical bill I had four years before. I had had an internship in another state, went to a clinic with a case of strep throat, they took my information, made a copy of my insurance card, I paid a co-pay, and I thought that was it. Unfortunately, the clinic lost (according to them) the copy of my insurance card, the address they had was entered incorrectly, and no one bothered to call me... Anyway, I called up the collections agency listed on my credit report, the guy seemed reasonable, I got his name and employee number, paid the bill on the spot, and it completely disappeared from my report the next week. It took just a few minutes on the phone -- poof! I would be careful about making sure you really owe the money in the first place. In my case, this really should have been paid by insurance four years ago, and a call to the clinic confirmed my suspicions that it was staffed by apathetic morons. The collections agency, on the other hand -- a pleasure to deal with! Much easier to just pay it and move on with my life. And, yes, there's always the "chargeback" option, although, technically, I'm not sure that would be allowed under your credit card contract. You need to pay the debt because you owe it, and showing that you can take the money back if it doesn't disappear from your report might be tricky, if push came to shove. In hindsight, I probably should have gotten something in writing, but collections agencies don't really have a motivation to be assholes for no reason -- if you pay them, they probably don't want trouble later on.
pmiller2 11y ago
It's more a matter of principle than anything. This is a serious business transaction, and you should always have a contract for such things. Even if 95% of collection agencies are perfectly reasonable, there's a good chance you'll get one that isn't at some point.
pc86 11y ago
Issuing a chargeback for a valid charge is credit card fraud.
- mrgoldenbrown 11y ago
  >If the collection agency is going to screw you, you can screw them right back with a charge back. If the agency is messing with you in some way, it's not a valid charge.
- FireBeyond 11y ago
  If you have an agreement in writing (ha, good luck), or more likely a recording (make sure to have consent) saying "If I make this payment of $x, you will flag my account as Paid As Agreed", they agree, and then either flag it "Settled" (which is an 'adverse status') or don't, then you have material grounds to argue that the charge is not valid. Note, this isn't saying anything about whether you owe or do not owe the money - that's an important distinction. You agreed to make a payment for money you owed in exchange for a positive credit record. You can debate the ethics or morality thereof (especially if you're negotiating to pay less than owed, and still have it recorded as paid in full), but it is demonstrable that you did not receive what you asked for. The fact that you owed that money is tangential.

erroneousfunk 11y ago

Agreed. About few years ago my credit score (which I checked semi-regularly) took a ~150 point dive, because a collection showed up on it from a $120 medical bill I had four years before. I had had an internship in another state, went to a clinic with a case of strep throat, they took my information, made a copy of my insurance card, I paid a co-pay, and I thought that was it. Unfortunately, the clinic lost (according to them) the copy of my insurance card, the address they had was entered incorrectly, and no one bothered to call me... Anyway, I called up the collections agency listed on my credit report, the guy seemed reasonable, I got his name and employee number, paid the bill on the spot, and it completely disappeared from my report the next week. It took just a few minutes on the phone -- poof! I would be careful about making sure you really owe the money in the first place. In my case, this really should have been paid by insurance four years ago, and a call to the clinic confirmed my suspicions that it was staffed by apathetic morons. The collections agency, on the other hand -- a pleasure to deal with! Much easier to just pay it and move on with my life. And, yes, there's always the "chargeback" option, although, technically, I'm not sure that would be allowed under your credit card contract. You need to pay the debt because you owe it, and showing that you can take the money back if it doesn't disappear from your report might be tricky, if push came to shove. In hindsight, I probably should have gotten something in writing, but collections agencies don't really have a motivation to be assholes for no reason -- if you pay them, they probably don't want trouble later on.

pmiller2 11y ago

It's more a matter of principle than anything. This is a serious business transaction, and you should always have a contract for such things. Even if 95% of collection agencies are perfectly reasonable, there's a good chance you'll get one that isn't at some point.

pc86 11y ago

Issuing a chargeback for a valid charge is credit card fraud.

mrgoldenbrown 11y ago
>If the collection agency is going to screw you, you can screw them right back with a charge back. If the agency is messing with you in some way, it's not a valid charge.
FireBeyond 11y ago
If you have an agreement in writing (ha, good luck), or more likely a recording (make sure to have consent) saying "If I make this payment of $x, you will flag my account as Paid As Agreed", they agree, and then either flag it "Settled" (which is an 'adverse status') or don't, then you have material grounds to argue that the charge is not valid. Note, this isn't saying anything about whether you owe or do not owe the money - that's an important distinction. You agreed to make a payment for money you owed in exchange for a positive credit record. You can debate the ethics or morality thereof (especially if you're negotiating to pay less than owed, and still have it recorded as paid in full), but it is demonstrable that you did not receive what you asked for. The fact that you owed that money is tangential.