How to Get Rid of 30 day lates on your credit report

We all know that bad debts, defaulted loans, foreclosures, and repossessions can hurt a credit report. What many people fail to realize, however, is how much a few 30 day lates can injure their credit score. If you'd like to improve your credit score one of the easiest ways to begin is to work to remove the 30 (or 60) day lates.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

1. Make sure your payments are on time. If the 30 day late was an isolated incident the company will be a lot more likely to work with you on removing it.

2. Call them. There was probably a good reason you paid late. Did the bill just not arrive in the mail? Did you move and some of your mail wasn't forwarded? Explain to the customer service representative what caused your 30 day late. If it is an isolated incident, point out that this has never happened before and you would very much like to have it removed.

3. Stay calm. You may hear "We don't do that", but remember...they need YOU. You are the customer. Let them know you have no problem paying the fees, but that a matter of circumstance in which no one is at fault is going to damage your good credit rating and they have the power to remedy the situation for a good customer. Stay steadfast. The nicer you are, the more likely a rep is to want to work with you.

4. Go after a different rep. If all else fails, call again. The odds of being connected to the same representative are slim to none and it should only take a few calls to get a rep that genuinely wants to help the customers.

5. Ask for a supervisor. This is commonly referred to as a "supe call". Be nice about it. When the supervisor gets on the line, let him or her know that you aren't upset or angry with the company but that you need help rectifying a situation that was beyond your control and beyond the control of the company.

6. If none of these methods work call customer service again and tell them that a 30 day late has ended up on your report via error. You want the address and contact information of the person in charge of the department that handles credit report errors. Write to the name they give you, repeatedly if you must, and send all correspondence Certified Return Receipt Requested.

7. You last effort should be to call the company and ask to cancel your service. You will be immediately transferred to customer retention. The customer retention department will want to know why you want to cancel. Tell them that you had a 30 day late appear on your credit report and although you always pay on time no one was willing to work with you to rectify the situation. You may be surprised how quickly that late mark disappears when you threaten to cancel your service.

Tips & Warnings

• Throughout your work to get the 30 day late removed, continue to make your payments on time and early if possible.
• Agree to pay the late fees associated with paying late (even if it is in error) provided the late mark is removed.
• Don't ever be rude. No customer service representative really wants to help someone who is being rude. They will find a smug way to tell you "no".

[TxGal]

on 7/29/2009 Great tips.