Removing a paid collections account & a charge off

[Bostonian]

First off, this is a great site, very informative with amazing information. Thanks to all those who've helped create and manage it.

Here's my situation - I am aiming to buy a home and recently ran MyFICO scores. They are good, 712 (Equifax) & 713 (TransUnion). But I also found that those scores are held back by 2 adverse accounts (thus affecting my chances of getting the best possible terms on a mortgage).

The first is a $41.85 collections account for PG&E (California utility). I first learned of this when I received my annual free credit reports in April. At that point, unknowingly I immediately called PG&E to resolve. I was transferred to “Closing Bill Collection Unit” who arranged for me to pay the outstanding balance. I did so thinking I was doing the right thing. I was told the credit bureaus would be notified and my credit reports updated.

Per FICO, they haven't. This PG&E account still shows up on Equifax and TransUnion (and probably Experian too, which included this account on my April credit reports) as a "collections account" / "placed for collections".

The second outstanding issue is a $118 bill for San Diego Gas & Electric. This bill only showed up on my Experian report, not TransUnion or Equifax. The status reads “Paid, closed, $118 written off” … and the account history reads “Charge Off as of Jan 2008, 180 days past due as of Mar 2008”.

While I believe I am responsible for both, it’s unfortunate the way things transpired. In July 2007, I moved from Sunnyvale CA (Bay area) to San Diego. I had all my mail forwarded to the new address. But I left 2 months later and moved back to the Bay area. I had all my mail forwarded to local post office. Somehow, I missed all these utility bills during BOTH moves. Not sure how, but apparently I did.

Anyways, now I am hoping to remove them both. After reading many pages on this site (extremely helpful, great resource!!), I think I understand that the process should be something like this:

- Contact the CA for San Diego Gas & Electric to have the $118 charge-off validated, but this is a fairly recent bill so not sure if that is the best approach. But ont he flipside, I had the account for 2 months.

- Contact the CRAs to dispute the $46 collection account with PG&E. I will not give any reason, instead I’ll just dispute. Again, I paid this just last April, so not sure if it's too new.

- When I contact the CRAs, I will ‘opt out’ and also request outdated/extra personal info be removed (including any old addresses & employers)

- I will communicate everything via CMRRR.

- Note that I am now a PG&E customer again with an active account (in good standing). I first opened the account in 1994 and never had any problems ... that is until I somehow missed this $46 bill.



Here are my questions:

- Does anything think I'd have a better chance to remove the PG&E collection account by calling them directly and explaining this $46 bill was a one time thing and otherwise since 1994 I've been a great customer?
- Does anyone know if big utilities, especially PG&E and/or SDG&E, use collection agencies? It sounds like they have their own department that handles this, which may make it easier for them to validate the accounts.
- If so, would it make more sense to try using Lexington Law, Sky Blue, instead? Paying some extra $$ isn’t a big deal.
- Can I use the 1-2 punch with San Diego Gas & Electric for the $118 charge-off?


Sorry if this is a long post ... thought more info would be better than leess. Any other thoughts you may have are greatly appreciated.

Thanks.

[chane]

That might work, it's worth a try.

If they validate it, there are other steps you can take to get it removed. You will only know if you try.

If you only have 2 accounts, it's probably best to just try to do it yourself. Especially if you understand this stuff. But, hiring a good credit repair company is also an option. Those 2 both have some great techniques that we may not know of. I'm sure they do things a little bit different then we do. Everyone has their own plan of attack.

Yes, you can use the 1-2 punch.

[Bostonian]

Thanks for the help Chane.

I contacted PG&E who said they'd research my account and see if they could have the collection account removed. I just received a letter saying they have contacted all four bureaus (Equifax, Transunion, Experian and Innovis, which I never heard of). Supposedly it will take 60-90 days.

Next step will be to dispute the charge from SDG&E with a validation letter ... hopefully I'll have just as good luck.

[jhattey]

I have about 4 ca I paid off last year. I just looked at my cr and they are still on there, but were it says amount due it shows n/a but are still in the Neg. Accounts part of my cr. Is there a way to have them remove these? Thanks

[chane]

Originally Posted by jhattey

I have about 4 ca I paid off last year. I just looked at my cr and they are still on there, but were it says amount due it shows n/a but are still in the Neg. Accounts part of my cr. Is there a way to have them remove these? Thanks

jhattey, please start your own thread for new questions.

Yes, there are ways to remove the negative accounts. Start here:

Basic Step by Step Beginner's Guide to Credit Repair