Do 'PAY FOR DELETE' letters to collection companies actually work ??

Question

How do I go about writing one ? I want to pay off my whole debt at a collections agency. . How do I go about getting it off my record ?? How do I write a pay for delete letter? Does it work ?

Answer 1

Yes it does work.

The problem is getting the collection agency to do it.  Many of them have a policy of not doing it.  

However, I think it's a huge mistake if the consumer pays off a debt without getting such an agreement.

When you became delinquent, the creditor gave you a choice.  Pay your debt, or have your credit ruined for 7 years.

Why on earth would you want to pay this debt twice?

Answer 2

Pay for Delete letters do actually work. I have had success with two of them. However, sometimes it takes several attempts to get the right person to open your letter and then sometimes they do not respond at all. It all depends on if the collection agency. If you will go to a website called MyFico.com and search the forums there you will find sample Pay For Delete (PFD) letters and the letters are already written for you all you have to do is pretty much fill in the blanks to tailor your own situation. I am not promoting the website here or anything, but, it has helped me a lot with collections. You will be pleased with all the info on there. Give it a try. Go to the site I mentioned...then click the fico forums tab and the the general credit issues tab and do a search for PFD letter or probably just read the questions on the first page and you will find something pertaining to it. If you have any questions you can email me and I will be glad to help you as I was and still am in the same boat.

Answer 3

Basically what you have to do is get the company to send you a letter stating they will remove it from your credit report when you pay in full BEFORE you pay them. Make sure they put the balance on there as well. That way after you pay it, you send your cancelled check and the letter from the company to the credit bureaus to get it removed.

Answer 4

Sometimes it works.  The older the debt the more likely it will work.  You should first try to dispute your collections with the credit reporting agencies.  There is a great method at http://www.creditforums.org/f13/got-my-r... that i used and had numerous negatives removed from my credit report.  This method gives you the best opportunity to get the collections removed because it is hard for them to verify specifics.   Try that first (send everything cerified mail) then as a last resort try the pay for delete.