If you neglected to pay off a credit card or medical bill, a collection account probably showed up on your credit reports. This happens when the original company you owed writes off your debt as a loss, then sells it to a debt collection agency. This usually only occurs after you’ve become severely delinquent on a payment. If this has happened to you, and you paid off the collection, you might be wondering why the collection is still on your credit report. Credit repair takes time, but eventually, the collection will go away.

How Long will the Collection Stay on Your Credit Report?

In general, accounts in collection will remain on your credit reports for seven years, plus 180 days from whenever the account first became past due. Once the original creditor sells your delinquent debt to a collection agency, the collection account can be reported as a separate account on your credit reports.

Do Different Types of Debts get Treated Differently?

All debts that enter into collections are usually treated the same. In most cases, they’ll take up to seven years to disappear from your credit reports. However, medical collections do have a few variations in how they’re reported. Medical debts won’t be reported until after a 180-day waiting period to allow insurance payments to be applied. Medical collections may also have a less severe impact on your credit scores than in the past due to newer credit scoring models.

Will Making Payments Keep a Collection from Falling off My Credit Reports?

In general, making payments on, or fully paying off a debt in collection will not affect the time it stays on your credit reports. In some states, partial payment can restart the time period for how long the negative information appears on your credit report. A partial payment can also reset the statute of limitations.

The Good News is…

If you do pay off an account in collections, the collection agency may be able to contact the credit bureaus and remove the collection account from your credit reports before the seven-year mark. A good credit repair agency can help you navigate this and increase the odds of making this happen. It’s a good negotiating tool that can work in your favor. The collection agency gets paid, and you get a clean report faster.

Need Help with Credit Repair?

Navigating the world of credit repair can be frustrating, especially with all the laws and regulations that seem to be constantly changing. It’s a full-time job to keep up with everything. If you need help repairing your credit and cleaning and raising your credit score working with an experienced credit repair company is the fast way to get your credit back on track.

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