Everyone pays bills like loans or credit cards, while some only pay for cell phones and electricity. Whatever they are for, bills need to be paid. If you don’t, creditors will make an effort to get what they are owed. One of the biggest moves is reporting that you have failed to pay to the credit scoring agencies.
Opposite to what a lot of consumers believe, paying off any account that has gone to collections won’t improve your credit score. The negative marks can be on your credit reports for seven years, and your score will not improve until it is removed. Today, there are many collection service companies, and we will discuss one of them and its effect on your credit score.
What Is Franklin Collection Service?
FCS or Franklin Collection Service is a legitimate third-party debt collection agency. It is based in Tupelo, Mississippi, founded in 198o but incorporated in 1988. It is commonly seen in your credit report as a collections account.
Franklin Collection Service usually collects on behalf of telecommunication industries, healthcare, financial services, student loans, and many more. It uses a variety of collection systems like skip-tracing. This means they are using digital information from different data sources to get contact information for a consumer who changed their information.
What Is A Collection Agency?
Collection agencies are companies used by creditors and lenders to collect funds from accounts that are in default or past due. Mostly, lenders will hire a collection agency after it failed to collect its receivables multiple times. A creditor may outsource the collection activity to a third-party agency or have an internal department handle the job.
Collection agencies are working closely with lenders and credit bureaus to attempt to retrieve delinquent funds. When a borrower fails to settle its loan payment or defaults on its debts, the lender will report this negligence to a credit bureau. This will not only ruin the borrower’s credit history, but the debt will also be turned over to a collection agency within three to six months.
How Does Franklin Collection Service Affect My Credit Score?
Collection agencies definitely have a negative effect on your credit score. The most recent two years of your credit report is where you should be concerned. This means the older the collection is, the lesser it hurts you. But, it will still remain on your report for seven years after the date of delinquency.
Once an account is sent to collections, your credit score drops but depends on other factors. Most people also noticed that the higher your score, the more it can drop. A 90-day delinquent account can take 50 points from a person with excellent credit and only 10 points for people who are already in the lowest line.
How To Remove Collections From Your Credit Report?
The first thing you want to do is to make sure that the collection company demanding your payment has the legal rights to collect your debt. One overdue account can be sold many times and has to be properly documented. A debtor can verify the person’s legitimacy by sending a debt validation letter to the concerned agency.
Until the debt is confirmed, the agency cannot collect or contact you regarding the debt. In case it cannot be validated, you have the option to write to three credit bureaus requesting them to take off the collection from your credit report.
For cases when a debt was successfully validated, you have few options. One is by paying off the debt in full and closing the collection. This is attainable if you have the resources to do so. Another one is sending a letter to the collection agency asking to pay a lesser than the initial amount to close the collection.
Can Franklin Collection Service Affect My Other Accounts?
According to the CARD Act signed by President Obama in 2009, the practice of “universal default” will be limited. This means that any lender that you have made on-time payments cannot raise your interest rate or charge any penalties and additional fees once you go default with another lender.
However, other lenders and banks still have the option to close your account or lower your credit limit once they are convinced you have become less creditworthy. This can happen as soon as one of your existing debts is reported and being sent to collections, so you better prepare yourself for any changes.
Takeaway
Paying off your bills on time is beneficial for you in the long run. Not only that it gives you less worry about it building up, but taking care of it on time will also improve your credit score. However, some instances are beyond our control. If your account gets sent to collections, it is best to settle and make sure to come up with an amendable agreement.
