So my credit union just denied me for a loan, and it’s apparently because I’m in collections… which was news to me. No one ever contacted me about it, and it didn’t show up on Credit Karma or anything.
Turns out it was my energy company from three years ago with a balance of $28.76. They sent the notice to my old address about four months after I moved out. No phone call, no email, even though they had that info.
I went ahead and paid it off, and the energy company told me to dispute it with the credit bureaus directly. But when I checked Experian, TransUnion, and Equifax, none of them show anything in collections. Seems like the credit union saw something, though.
I tried starting a dispute, but TransUnion and Equifax won’t let me since they don’t have it listed. Going to contact Experian next but expect the same.
This $28 was the main reason I got denied a small line of credit, and even though I can live without it, I’d like to get this cleared up, especially if I need a bigger loan down the line. Any advice on where to go from here or who I should reach out to?
Ask the credit union for a copy of the report they used or at least find out which credit reporting agency (CRA) they pulled from. When you moved, did you leave a forwarding address? If not, might want to set that up. Bills like utilities are easier to manage on autopay—no late payments, no stamps, and helps keep your credit looking good.
@Ren
Thanks for the advice. I saw the physical report in person, but I didn’t catch which agency they pulled it from, so I’ll have to check back.
I do use autopay for everything. The energy company confirmed my account was on autopay, and the rep couldn’t figure out why it didn’t go through. Not very ‘auto’ if you ask me lol.
@Ren
I’d put utilities on autopay if I could, but my utility company is known for messing with people’s bills. Until they’re more transparent, I don’t trust them with autopay.
Kind of weird side note: I got a $20,000 loan from this same credit union just a few months ago. I’ve also opened two credit cards and a $12,000 personal loan in the past few years. Apparently, this collections issue was already there, but none of those other places had a problem with it.
The loan they just denied was only $2,000. I’ve also paid off more than half of my non-mortgage debt, so I actually have less debt now than a few years ago.
This could be from ChexSystems or a similar reporting company that banks use. They cover things like unpaid utility bills and bad checks and don’t show up on the standard credit reports.
Maybe see if there’s a letter or other document showing the collection is cleared. Even if the energy company updated it right away, it might take a few weeks to show up on your credit report.
You knew there’d be a final bill when you moved, and it was up to you to provide a forwarding address. But it’s going to stay on your credit history for seven years as an unpaid bill.
Hayden said:
You knew there’d be a final bill when you moved, and it was up to you to provide a forwarding address. But it’s going to stay on your credit history for seven years as an unpaid bill.
Then why don’t any of the three credit bureaus have it listed?
@Rowan
I think the big three have a minimum for reporting, maybe around $50. Did you check to see which report they pulled? You might also want to look at some of the smaller bureaus, like Innovis: https://www.innovis.com