I’m a 26-year-old male, and I’ve been struggling financially for the past 3-4 years. I won’t go into too much detail, but I have about $20k in credit card debt: $8,000 on an Apple Card, $7,500 on a Chase Sapphire Preferred, and $5,000 on an Amazon card.
Around two years ago, I decided to tackle the debt and joined a debt relief program. They advised me to stop paying my credit cards and let them close so they could negotiate with the lenders. They warned me I’d get constant calls from banks and collectors, but reassured me it was part of the process.
I managed to pay off the Chase Sapphire through them, but I stopped using the program because they were taking too long to settle with Goldman Sachs (Apple Card). Meanwhile, I was getting settlement offers for less than 50% of what I owed directly via email. I paid off the Apple Card early in 2024 and plan to tackle the Amazon card after I complete a CS boot camp and find a job.
I know I’m on the right track, but the negative reports remain on my credit file (as expected). I recently read about a “pay to delete” agreement and wondered: Is it still possible to get collectors to remove closed accounts from my credit report even after settling, or am I out of luck?
Lawyer here (but not your lawyer)… The term you’re referring to is sometimes called a “tradeline deletion.” It typically happens when a creditor makes an error and the consumer sues, leading to a deletion as part of the settlement.
You can definitely request a tradeline deletion if you’re settling with a creditor, but it’s uncommon. For a creditor like Chase, it’s unlikely they’d agree. Normally, when credit card debt is settled for less than the full amount, it’s reported as “Account Closed, Paid Less Than Full Amount.” This stops new missed payments or late notes from appearing, so the negative impact will gradually decrease and eventually fall off your report, usually after seven years.
Unless you had significant leverage beyond just offering to pay, tradeline deletions are rare. If you didn’t negotiate for it during the settlement, there’s little reason for them to agree to it now. Good luck!
The phrase is also known as “tag line deletion.”
You mean the deletion of the tradeline as a whole, right? Chargebacks are not erased by the original creditors. Certain collection agencies cover the cost of deletion. But as you pointed out “if you did not negotiate for tag line deletion when you made your settlement there is no reason for them to agree to it now.”
Is all this really about “I want to pay you less than I owe but I also want this to stay off my credit report”?
It wouldn’t surprise me if they declined.
It seems that you are proposing to give them more money in exchange for their deleting the accurate information from your report. That would probably be against the FCRA. They are already avoiding it by making standard deletion settlements.
Many years ago, probably seven or eight at this point, we had a negative, but paid off tradeline with Chase. We had enrolled in their debt reduction program, which led to the account being closed and our gradual repayment of the amount. I sent a letter to their executive department requesting a little amount of goodwill because we had restored our credit and knew we intended to purchase a home in the coming years. I just gave a quick explanation of how we got into trouble with Chase, how we resolved the matter with them, and our future goals. When we applied, they even approved us for new accounts and removed the bad trade line from our credit reports.
In my experience, even after settling, you can attempt to work out a “pay to delete” arrangement with collectors. Speak with the collector and let them know how things stand. Sometimes, they might agree to remove the negative mark if you pay a bit extra. But remember that it’s not always a given. Trying it out to see if it enhances your credit report is worthwhile.