This post originally appeared February 1, 2018 on CreditCards.com as “‘Can parking tickets still be reported to credit bureaus?”

By Barry Paperno

Dear Speaking of Credit,
In your Aug. 31, 2017, article, “Library fines, parking tickets no longer trash your credit,” you mentioned that parking tickets or any other debt not resulting from a contract or agreement to pay should not be reported to a credit bureau.

Well, I have a situation here in which I “refused” to a pay a parking violation to University Parking Service because I felt it was not right. The university went ahead and tasked its debt collector to collect that debt, but the debt was listed as tuition debt. It is now reflected on my credit report.

My question to you is, since the parking violation of $100 dollars (plus a collection fee of $115) was not from a contract to pay, should it even be reported on my credit report?

Also, could you please send me a link that directs me to the actual ruling that applies to parking tickets or library fees? Thanks so much. – Allan

Dear Allan,
Have you ever heard the saying, “Don’t cut off your nose to spite your face?” It means don’t hurt yourself trying to hurt someone else. Or, in this instance, the University Parking Service.

The parking lot company and the collection agency hired to collect the $100 they say you owe have had the last word by tacking on fees to that parking ticket debt and adding a score-damaging collection to your credit report.

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This post originally appeared January 11, 2018 on CreditCards.com as “‘Pay for delete: When it helps credit score, and when it doesn’t”

By Barry Paperno

Dear Speaking of Credit,
Regarding Midland Funding and other “pay-for-delete” practices – will it raise your credit score to pay for delete if the original creditor is still reporting the debt?

When Midland deletes, does the original creditor delete also, or do they still report? – Bridget

Dear Bridget,
Rather than assume, as many do, that whenever something negative disappears from your credit report your score automatically increases, you’re correctly questioning whether that will indeed be the case with a “pay-for-delete.”

A pay-for-delete is an agreement between a collection agency and a consumer to remove a collection account from the consumer’s credit report in exchange for payment in full or a settlement for less than the full amount.

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This post originally appeared December 21, 2017 on CreditCards.com as “‘How to cancel a gym contract without hurting your credit”

By Barry Paperno

Dear Speaking of Credit,
Hi! I have an awful personal training “contract” with a well-known fitness gym. They haven’t kept any of their promises and all of the trainers are nowhere near qualified. I’m totally done with it. I know it’s not a real contract as far as credit goes, and they can’t report me to collections.

I recently opened two new credit cards to strengthen my credit, which is already pretty good, around 730. I no longer need to use the credit card that I have this account tied to.

If Bank of America will continue to allow the transaction through even if I change the card, my question is, should I close the account or will it hurt my credit since it happens to be my longest-standing card? It’s currently empty, and I have had it for about 11 years, and the other two only this month.

I read somewhere that when you close accounts they are still on your history, and you will only notice a difference if there is a significant difference in the amount of time that your cards have been opened. It may make your credit history look half as long.

This doesn’t really make sense to me. Is this true? Do they divide your time after your close an account? Will it significantly affect my credit if I close this one? Thank you so much for your advice! – Amanda

Dear Amanda,
When a business fails to deliver on its promises or simply doesn’t satisfy you, it can be easy to make a well-intentioned but foolish move that can demolish a good credit score. Considering your excellent 730 score, it’s good that you’re asking these questions.

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