What Is a Delinquency Notice?
A delinquency notice is a written notification of an overdue payment. You could receive a delinquency notice if you’re behind on taxes, child support, wages, or other financial charges. Failure to respond to the notice can result in the filing of a lien or wage garnishment.
Is a Delinquency the Same as a Late Payment?
Delinquency is when a person fails to make one or more payments on time and falls behind because of this. When you’ve become delinquent on payments, the lender will typically report you to the credit bureau, impacting your credit score.
A late payment is when a person does not make a payment on time. Usually, these are a one-time occurrence and result in a late fee being charged to the person’s account. A late payment has less severe consequences in comparison to delinquency.
What Is Considered a Late Payment?
To be considered a late payment, it’s usually more than 30 days old. Unfortunately, there is no set rule for late payments as the individual lender determines them. The particular lender will decide when the payment is considered late and when to report it to the credit bureaus.
When Is a Delinquency Reported to the Credit Bureaus?
Most lenders generally report delinquencies 30 days after the payment due date. This means it is possible to make up the late payment before it shows up on your credit report. Some lenders may wait 60 days before turning you over for a late payment. Whether the lender turns the delinquency over 30 or 60 days after the payment was due will be entirely up to the lender. However, making the minimum payment will stop the progression of delinquency. For example, instead of becoming 60 days delinquent, you can stay 30 days delinquent by making the minimum payment due.
How Does Delinquency Affect My Credit Score?
Credit reports break down late payments into categories of how late they are. They will show on your credit report: 30 days late, 60 days late, 120 days late, and so on. The longer the payment goes unpaid, the more it will impact your credit score. Individuals with higher credit scores will be more severely penalized by a late payment than those with lower credit scores.
How Long Does a Delinquency Stay on Your Credit Report?
A late payment can stay on your credit report for up to seven years. If the account is charged off and sent to collections, the seven years will start at the original delinquency date.
Will Paying My Debt Remove a Delinquency from my Credit Report?
Paying your debt will not remove it from your credit report. Even after the delinquency is paid, it will stay on your credit report for up to seven years.
How to Remove Delinquency from Credit Report
Delinquencies are challenging to remove from credit reports, but it’s not impossible. Listed below are several scenarios that might result in delinquency removal from your credit report.
Negotiate with Your Lender
One way to remove the late payment from your credit report is to negotiate with your lender. In order to have the late payment removed, you may have to pay the debt in full or agree to a partial payment. Any type of negotiating with your lender must be done in writing.
Write a Goodwill Letter to Your Lender
Sometimes financial emergencies happen, causing a missed payment. Another way that you can try to get a late payment removed from your credit report is to write a goodwill letter to your creditors. You may have a better outcome if this is your first late payment and you have an otherwise blemish-free payment history. The creditor does not have to consider this letter since the late payment is your responsibility and you’re at fault. In some cases, the creditor or collection agency will make a “goodwill adjustment” and remove the late payment from your record.
Consider a Pay-for-Delete Arrangement
A pay-for-delete arrangement is a negotiation tactic where you offer to pay your debt off partially or in full. The collection agency will agree to remove the debt from your record by making this payment arrangement. A pay-for-delete arrangement is only for items that were correctly reported on your credit report, like a missed credit card payment. If you wish to attempt this negotiation strategy, you will need to send a letter to the debt collection agency or creditor letting them know that you wish to pay off the account in exchange for them removing it from your credit report. The collection agency has the right to refuse your request, and pay-for-delete is not always a solution.
Dispute Any Errors on Your Credit Report
If you notice a payment you made on time was marked late on your credit report, you can dispute the error with credit bureaus. Then, if the credit bureau can not verify the statement, it has to remove it from your report. If you dispute anything on your credit report, you must notify the particular lender so that they are aware.
Wait for the Delinquency to Fall Off
If you’re unable to remove the delinquency from your credit report, you can always wait for it to fall off. Negative information is only reported for seven years, so if one of the above strategies doesn’t work, it doesn’t affect you forever. Delinquency also affects your credit score less the longer that it is on your credit report, as you replace that negative information by making on-time payments.
File for Bankruptcy
Filing for bankruptcy does not immediately delete any negative information on your credit report. If the debts are discharged during the bankruptcy, they will remain on your record for ten years.
How Can I Avoid Late Payments in the Future?
If you’re struggling with delinquency, there are some ways you can prevent delinquency in the future. You can set up automatic payments if you have difficulty keeping up with payment due dates. You can also discuss with your lender the possibility of moving the payment due date closer to your pay date.
How Long Does It Take to Recover from Delinquency?
Delinquencies will stay on your credit report for seven years regardless of if they’ve been paid off. The longer the delinquencies stay on your credit report, the less impact they will have on them.
How Can a Bankruptcy Attorney Help Me?
If you’re dealing with an overwhelming amount of debt, you may want to discuss your options with a Louisville bankruptcy attorney. There could be severe consequences for missed or late payments, especially if they involve your mortgage or the IRS. At the O’Bryan Law Offices, one of our expert bankruptcy attorneys will evaluate your debt and determine if bankruptcy is right for you. Our Kentucky bankruptcy attorneys will help you understand your rights and decide the best way to handle your debts.
Contact O’Bryan Law Offices for Help with Late Payments
If you’re trying to clear up late or missing payments, our attorneys at O’Bryan Law Offices can help. It’s important to seek legal advice before debt collectors begin taking legal action for late payments. There are many options available to you other than filing bankruptcy when trying to clear up delinquent accounts. Knowing your rights is important when dealing with a mountain of delinquent payments. Contact the O’Bryan Law Offices to schedule a free initial consultation. Call us today at 502-339-0222 or fill out our online contact form.
