Every household nowadays has immense amounts of debt on their name, whether it is a credit card bill or a mortgage payment, but many people have debts that they can’t pay every month.
If this happens, some of your debts could go into the hands of a debt collector, where you need to be extremely careful and continue paying your debts without any delay.
And according to Capitalrecovery, approximately 28% of Americans have at least one debt in collections. If you do not want your account to go into collection then you need to be very careful.
You need to reach an agreement with the debt collector either to lower the amount by paying it in altogether or reducing the monthly payments by reducing the interest rate or reducing the capital that you owe.
Whichever way you go, there are ways to pay off your debt in collections.
Key Takeaways
- If you are not too late with your payments, then you should talk to your creditor once.
- You should talk to your lawyer if it is too late.
- You can choose to work with a credit counseling company when you are still in the early phases of your debt collection.
- Letting go of your debts in the hands of a debt collector is really bad for your finances.
How to Pay off Debt in Collections?
Here is a step-by-step guide using which you can pay off your debt in collections:
1. Reach out to your Creditor
If you are not too late with your payments and your debt is not sold to a debt collection company by the creditor, your best option and probably the most efficient one is to go and talk to your creditor to solve a way before your creditor sells your debt.
It is easier to deal with the creditor and make a deal with them.
Contact your creditor and talk about the possibilities that they and you might agree on about paying your debt in an easier way.
2. Try to secure a Deal
Once you contact your creditor (or debt collection company, if the creditor sold it), the point there is to try to work out a payment plan deal.
After all, both sides’ primary goal is to get rid of the debt. That is why you are free to offer them a deal where you can pay without any problems.
This could be a deal where you pay the entire amount, but the amount is lower than the original amount you owe.
It could also be a monthly payment plan where you can afford to pay that monthly fee.
3. Work With a Lawyer
If things go south and you are too late to talk to your creditor or debt collection company, and they are now threatening to sue you, the best course of action at this point is to go to a lawyer and let the lawyer handle your case if it goes to the court.
Once you hire a lawyer, all communication between your lawyer and creditor will go through between them.
4. Credit Counseling Company to the rescue
When you are still in the early phases of your debt collection and court is not in the way, working with a credit counseling company could work better as they could advise you what to do and how to do it. 1
Tips From Reddit Users
How to pay off collections?
by in personalfinance
Paying Off Collections to Increase Your Credit Score
Common Types Of Debts That Can Go Into Collections
The most common types of debts that often go into collections are:
- Credit card debt
- Student debt
- Medical debt
- Personal loans
- Other debts
How Long Does a Collection Agency Wait Before Reporting Your Debt to the Credit Bureau?
Collection agencies are required to wait for 31 days before reporting the debt to a credit bureau.
If you, however, pay the delinquent bill before those 31 days are finished, then you can avoid ruining your credit score and credit report.
In the case of medical debt, collection agencies wait for 180 days before reporting it to the credit bureau.
Effective Ways to Deal With Debt Collectors
Debt collectors are really annoying to deal with. They pester you so much and make your life a living hell.
But here are some rights that you should know of as it will help you in dealing with debt collectors:
- As per the law, a debt collector cannot contact you before 8 a.m. or after 9 p.m. However, they can also before and after these hours if you give them permission to do so.
- Under the Fair Debt Collections Practices Act, a debt collector cannot use deceptive means, can’t be abusive with you, or use unfair means to collect money from you.
- Debt collectors are also not allowed to contact you at your workplace if you are not allowed to take calls in your workplace.
- They are also not allowed to call your friends or relatives except their spouse more than once.
You can file a complaint to the federal Consumer Financial Protection Bureau against a debt collector if you see them doing any of the above-mentioned things. 2
By How Many Points Can a Collection Drop Your Credit Score?
Collections can drop your credit score to a very good extent, but how low it will drop depends on how healthy your existing credit score is.
For example: if you have a good credit score, then collection can drop it by 40 points or more.
And if your credit score is already low, then another collection in your account won’t drop your credit score that much. 3
The Verdict
Letting one or more than one of your debts go to the hands of a debt collector is a dangerous business because if you neglect it, it could hurt your personal finance records extremely hard.
Instead of ignoring the letters and the calls from your creditor, try to talk to them and work out a deal or seek professional assistance from credit counseling companies or a lawyer if suing is on the table.
FAQ’s
Do You Need to Notify the three Credit Bureaus of Paid Collections?
No, you do not need to notify the three credit bureaus after you have paid off or settled your debt in collections.
This is because the debt collector is supposed to do the same.
How does paying off my debt in collection affect my credit score?
Collection of your debt can lower your credit score but paying off the debt in the collection may or may not improve your credit score.
Paid-off collections under the new credit scoring models can bump off up credit scores, while older credit scoring models may not. 4
When does a debt go into collection?
Your debt may go into collections if you have not make the payment towards your debt on time.
Usually, a creditor will write off your debt in collections after 90-180 days of non-repayment from your side. 5
Traci is a highly experienced debt resolution expert with over 8 years of expertise in helping people become debt-free through various debt relief programs. As a former employee of a well-known debt relief company, she possesses exceptional knowledge and skills to take care of debt-related issues.
When not writing about debt, Traci can be found conducting in-depth research on the latest developments in the industry to ensure that she stays up-to-date with the latest trends and strategies.
ARTICLE SOURCES
The National Planning Cycles is committed to producing high-quality content that follows industry standards. We do this by using primary sources, such as white papers and government data alongside original reporting from reputable publishers that were appropriate for the accuracy of information while still being unbiased. We have an editorial policy that includes verifiable facts with due credit given where applicable.
- https://www.experian.com/blogs/ask-experian/how-to-pay-off-debt-collections/[↩]
- https://www.ramseysolutions.com/debt/how-to-pay-off-collections[↩]
- https://www.stilt.com/blog/2021/06/how-many-points-will-my-credit-score-increase-when-i-pay-off-collections/#:~:text=Posted%20by%20Frank%20Gogol%20in,with%20a%20good%20credit%20score.[↩]
- https://www.equifax.com/personal/education/credit/score/why-credit-scores-may-drop-after-paying-off-debt/#:~:text=It’s%20possible%20that%20you%20could,or%20your%20credit%20utilization%20ratio.[↩]
- https://www.cbsnews.com/news/debt-collections-credit-reports/#:~:text=Having%20debt%20in%20collections%20means,account%20to%20a%20collections%20agency.[↩]
- https://www.equifax.com/personal/education/credit/score/why-credit-scores-may-drop-after-paying-off-debt/#:~:text=It's%20possible%20that%20you%20could,or%20your%20credit%20utilization%20ratio.[↩]
- https://www.cbsnews.com/news/debt-collections-credit-reports/#:~:text=Having%20debt%20in%20collections%20means,account%20to%20a%20collections%20agency.[↩]