How to Remove Credit Control Corporation from Your Credit
If you forget to pay a bill, you may hear from a debt collection agency called Credit Control Corporation. It is a company appointed by the original service provider or creditor to collect your debt, whether credit card arrears or a medical bill.
It does this by employing several questionable tactics, such as bombarding you with phone calls or threatening you for payment. Dealing with a collection agency is not pleasant, and the presence of a collection entry on your credit report can be even worse.
A collection account on your credit report can damage your credit score for up to seven years, even if you pay off the debt. That’s why removing the entry as quickly as possible is important, so that creditors don’t deny you loans in the future.
What is Credit Control Corporation?
Originally founded in 1999, Credit Control Corporation, or R & B Corporation, is a medium-sized debt collection agency in Virginia. It specializes in collecting debts on behalf of commercial, utility and healthcare industries.
Is Credit Control Corp. legit?
Credit Control Corp. is a legitimate debt collection agency, but this doesn’t make it popular among customers. It currently has about 25 complaints filed with the Better Business Bureau (BBB) in the last three years.
Most complaints against Credit Control Corp. relate to inaccurate debt reporting, harassment and failure to respond to debt validation requests.
How to remove Credit Control Corp. from your credit report
Unfortunately, paying Credit Control Corp. for the debt outright is not going to help your credit score. If the entry remains on your credit report, it will continue to impact your credit rating for up to seven years.
The only way to prevent this from impacting future loans and large purchases is to remove the collection from your credit report entirely.
Here are the steps to remove Credit Control Corp. from your credit report:
- Get everything in writing
- Request a goodwill deletion
- Request debt validation
- Make a pay-for-delete agreement
Get everything in writing
The first step when dealing with any debt collection agency is to request that all communication is in writing and sent via Certified Mail. This is well within your rights as a customer, and Credit Control Corp. should comply with your request. Here is the agency’s contact information:
Mailing address:
PO Box 120570
Newport News, VA 23612-0570
Phone: 757-873-3332, 877-277-6336 (medical accounts) or 877-570-0050 (cable accounts)
Many people dealing with debt collectors are unaware of their rights under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) and the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA). The FDCPA is federal legislation preventing abuse from debt collectors, which allows customers to keep their dignity throughout the process.
A clause in the FDCPA states that customers can request how debt collectors communicate with them. This means you can specify that Credit Control Corp. communicates with you through U.S. Mail.
When Credit Control Corp. calls you, request that it sends all correspondence via post. Communicating in writing stops an agency from contacting you too often. It also prevents it from using abusive language and making false promises over the phone.
If the person on the phone starts to argue with you, tell them that they are in violation of the FDCPA and hang up. If the agency fails to comply with your request, refuse to speak with them until they do.
Request a goodwill deletion
If you have already paid the balance of your debt through the agency’s payment portal or by other means, you may be able to secure a goodwill deletion. A goodwill deletion is when a debt collection agency deletes an entry from your credit report.
Securing a goodwill deletion will probably work if you have paid the debt and have an otherwise clean credit report. If the agency sees this as a one-off incident, it is more likely to remove the entry from your credit report.
To request a goodwill deletion, write a letter to Credit Control Corp. explaining your situation. Tell it why you were late on payments and that you would like the entry removed.
A common reason for requesting a goodwill deletion is that you are trying to buy a house or car and need a loan. Make sure that you are honest and polite in your letter. Credit Control Corp. is more likely to grant you a goodwill deletion if you are apologetic and sincere than if you are angry and entitled.
Request debt validation
If you fail to get a goodwill deletion on your debt, your next step is to request debt validation. Through this, you may be able to get the entry deleted due to inaccurate or incomplete information.
Under the FDCPA, you have a right to request that Credit Control Corp. verifies the information of your debt to confirm that it belongs to you. This process can identify if any information doesn’t line up when it comes to your debt. If any information is false or incomplete, you can request that the three major credit bureaus delete the entry entirely.
You can ask Credit Control Corp. to verify your debt through a debt validation request letter. This letter asks it to confirm the details of your debt, such as the name, amount and date of debt acquisition.
It is important that you send this letter within 30 days of the first contact with Credit Control Corp. If you don’t, it may not respond to your request. If you are unsure how to write a debt validation request letter, use an online template.
Request a pay-for-delete agreement
If all else fails, you may be able to make a pay-for-delete agreement with Credit Control Corp. A pay-for-delete agreement is when you agree to pay a portion of your debt. In exchange, the agency will stop reporting the debt to major credit bureaus. This is an unlikely option, but worth a try if nothing else works.
First, you will need to negotiate with Credit Control Corp. Tell it that you will pay half the debt in exchange for an entry deletion. Then, negotiate until you reach an agreement.
Once you work out a deal, ensure you get a final written agreement from the agency. This is where it’s important to communicate in writing. If it acknowledges the deal over the phone but refuses to confirm it in writing, it’s unlikely to comply with the arrangement.
After you receive the agreement in writing, make your first payment, and check your credit report after 30 days. You should see that Credit Control Corp. has deleted the entry from your credit report. If not, contact the agency and remind it of your arrangement.
Dealing with Credit Control Corporation
Removing Credit Control Corp. from your credit report isn’t a pleasant process, but it is certainly worth your effort. By attending to it early, you can prevent a significant impact on your credit report for years to come.
Some people prefer to hire a professional to handle the process rather than deal with Credit Control Corp. themselves. That is where credit repair companies come into play. Credit repair companies help people remove inaccurate, unverified, incomplete or fraudulent entries from their credit report.
Credit Saint is an excellent credit repair company that comes highly recommended. Be sure to get in touch when seeking help to remove a Credit Control Corp. entry.
Repair companies go through the hassle so that you don’t have to.
Update: This article has been updated to reflect current BBB complaints against Credit Control Corp. Unverifiable information has been removed and current contact information for Credit Control Corp. has been updated.
Disclaimer: This story was originally published on August 7, 2020, on BetterCreditBlog.org. To find the most relevant information concerning collections or credit card inquiries, please visit: https://money.com/how-to-remove-collections-from-credit-report/ or https://money.com/get-items-removed-from-credit-report/