Questions and Professional Answers

• My Credit Report

  I am a 19 year old college student that has repeatedly applied for credit cards, and repeatedly been turned down. I have no previous credit card or anything that would involve credit at all; however, the last credit refusal stated that I have a ''delinquent credit obligation.'' I do not know how because, like I said, I own no credit cards, or have any payments of any kind. I believe my parents may have a credit card in my name, that they were trying to build up my credit, but instead ruined it. What can I do to find out what is weighing against me, and what do I do if it is my parents that have given me a bad name, and not me at all?

  • Re: My Credit Report

    When you have been denied credit, you normally are given the identity of the credit bureau that supplied the information that lead to the denial. Get a copy of the report from that credit bureau; in fact, get a copy of your credit reports from all three national credit bureaus and review the reports carefully. If there are errors, you can require the credit bureau which is reporting false information to verify the information. If that fails to fix the problem, you can add an explanation of why the credit entry does not apply to you and can seek redress against the company which is reporting negative information to the credit bureau. You do have rights under the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act. Good Luck.

    E. Brian Davis
    Davis Law Office
    101 North Seventh Street
    Louisville, KY 40202-2924

• Corporate credit card and sharing some elses credit

  Hi I have two questions.If someone else has excellent credit let's say your father and he list you as someone who can use one of his credit cards, does that automatically give you his credit rating based on that credit card or is it only for future purchases?Can you recommend some good credit card companies for small businesses and how long does it usually take to be approved?Thank You

  • Re: Corporate credit card and sharing some elses credit

    In your example, the credit card, and the credit, will be just your fathers. All you have, is permission to use the card. If you are trying to improve your credit by getting and using a credit card, have your father co-sign an application for a new card. Then your usage, and payment on the credit card will be positively reflected on your credit record.

    Frank Loscalzo
    Law Office of Frank Loscalzo
    223 Wall Street, # 300
    Huntington, NY 11743

• bad credit

  I have a niece that has bad credit because her Mom (my sister) took out credit cards in her name when she was a teenager (without her knowledge). ''Mom'' fled to Australia leaving the credit cards unpaid. What needs to be done to resolve the bad credit and credit card issue?

  • Bad Credit Due to Child's Identity Stolen by Parent

    In addition to hiring an attorney, the first step for any victim of identity theft is to report the crime to law enforcement authorities, which would probably result in an arrest warrant for the mother. Unless the victim has an affidavit of forgery on file, none of the banks is likely to believe her and grant her any relief (and still might not, even after the crime is reported). The Federal Trade Commission's web site (ftc dot gov)has a great deal of free information available. At minimum, it will be necessary to challenge each debt with all three credit bureaus via a copy of the police report. There is also a procedure for getting a new social security number in severe cases if nothing else succeeds. Finally, a last resort and often the easiest step is that of filing bankruptcy on the debt, since the result will be legal forgiveness (discharge) of the debts, regardless of who incurred them, if the bankruptcy is successful. Since many children are hesitant to potentially put their parents in jail regardless of what they have done, this is an increasingly popular option for an all too common problem.

    Jay K. Nixon
    NIXON LAW OFFICES
    333 South Main St
    Racine, WI 53401-1555

• Credit reports

  How to take remove blemish off credit report? I let my ex use my credit card until she estiblish her credit with written agreement that I won't be hold liable for any misgiving. Then found out credit card company reported to credit agency for late payment.

  • Re: Credit reports

    You can contact the credit reporting agencies and put a short explanation on your credit report of why you have this credit "blemish." As for taking it off, only intervention by the credit card company itself can probably do that for you in a cost effective manner. Such intervention is very unlikely. That is why you never let anyone have use of your credit cards: it's like lending records (i.e. LPs) in days of old. You end up living with the scratches on the disk because it's not their property.

    Stanley Moerbeek
    The Law Offices of Stanley L Moerbeek
    1370 N. Brea Boulevard, Suite 210
    Fullerton, CA 92835

  • Re: Credit reports

    Unfortunately, wait the 7 years for it to come off. Yo may be able to get the cc company to reverse it based on the agreement you have with the, but to be perfectly honest, they are not really going to care about which of you is responsible, that's a civil matter for the two of you to hash out...they only want to get paid. Since the card was under your name, and obviously was not paid, they made the blemish on your record.Sadly, this is one of those times where being the nice and honerable person did not pay off. Even sadder, it seems to be happening more and more in the world.... It makes one fearful to even be helpful any more.Sorry there is no good answer, but I think you got yourself in a mess of hot water with this and your best bet is to try to work with the cc company that issued the negative mark...only they can remove it.Scott

    Scott Linden
    Scott H. Linden, Esq.
    1510 Cotner Ave
    Los Angeles, CA 90025

• credit before and after marriage

  my girfriend and i are talking about marriage. however, she has a concern about my credit affecting her after we get married. take the worst credit in the world, and times it by 10, and that is my credit. she currently has a pretty good credit score. she wants to wait to get married due to this issue. how would my negative credit affect her credit after we were married?

  • Re: credit before and after marriage

    Her credit will not be affected unless the two of you apply for a joint loan and then it may be more difficult because of your credit. Her credit by itself will never be affected.Consideration should be given to whether she is just using the credit issue as an excuse.

    Renee Walsh
    Walsh Law PLLC
    1805 Hamilton Road
    Okemos, MI 48864

• credit bureau mixed up my credit report with someone else

  Hi, Credit bureau mixed up my information with someone else just because of similar name and because he was previously living at my current address. They said to him that its one person and he is doing fraud. Now he knows all of my personal information including Date of birth, Social Insurance Number, addresses etc. Plus credit companies refusing me credit as his credit is bad. This crewed up all my good credit which was always R1. Please advise me if i can sue credit bureau. What are my rights etc.Thanks a lot for your help in this matter.

  • Re: credit bureau mixed up my credit report with someone else

    As privacy legislation varies from province to province this answer is specific to British Columbia ONLY and does not apply to any other province or territory. More facts are needed to establish how the error occurred and what steps the credit bureau took to remedy the error, but assuming that the error took place because of preventable negligence, and assuming that the credit bureau did not take the steps they are required to according to the law in British Columbia (after you notified them of the error), then in British Columbia you do have a right to sue the credit bureau. You should consult a lawyer immediately as there are time limits you must sue within.

    Donald McLeod
    Donald R. McLeod Law Corp.
    832 Fisgard Street, Suite 103,
    Victoria, British Columbia, Ca, AL V8W 1S1

• Marriage and Credit

  Is it possible to have a marriage ceremony with priest, but not have our credit history combined in the state of Washington. One of us has good credit and the other has really bad credit. If our credit combines we both will have bad credit.

  • Re: Marriage and Credit

    I can't advise you properly without knowing more.Offhand, if you do a ceremony you are married. Your credit is not an issue for the State, but for the credit reporters.If you did a pre nup agreement (or a post-nup) you could make some agreements to keep your income and assets separate in theory.But you cannot make agreements indending to mislead third parties.There are other ways to do this. You would benefit from a half hour with a local family law attorney who can explain.Elizabeth Powell

    Elizabeth Powell
    ELizabeth Powell PS Inc
    535 Dock Street, Suite 108
    Tacoma, WA 98402

• Credit Report

  I have made several late payments on credit cards two years ago, I have received several e-mails scams saying that the credit report could be changed. I don't believe how that can be done if it was not a mistake. This is a quote I saw at a credit repair agency ''...The law demands that negative listings appear on your credit report for no longer than seven years. The credit grantor or the credit bureau can choose to delete the negative credit listing whenever they see fit.''Is that statement true? According to which law? I couldn’t find any information regarding a law stating that.

  • Re: Credit Report

    It's true. It is federal law. Look for Fair Credit Reporting Act.

    Peter Bradie
    Bradie, Bradie & Bradie
    6606 FM 1488, Suite 148-363
    Magnolia, TX 77354-2544

• Fiance Has Bad Credit, I have Excellent Credit

  My fiance has previously filed for bankruptcy on two different occasions (before we met) and therefore has a pretty bad credit rating/history. I, on the otherhand, have always had an excellent credit rating. I'm afraid that if we were married his bad credit would ruin or affect my good credit. Is this true? And, would it make any difference if I were to keep my last name in order to keep from being associated with his last name on future credit checks? I would appreciate your expertise in this matter. Thank you.

  • Re: Fiance Has Bad Credit, I have Excellent Credit

    As long as you've established your own credit history it will not hurt your credit to take his last name, unless you have a similar first name and middle initial, plus the same Zip code.. Mine is Victor E. Hobbs and one of my daughters is Vicie E. Hobbs. Until she was married and changed her last name. Credit companies got confused when we both lived in the same zip code. Keeping your maiden name isn't a bad idea to consider. However it probably will not make a difference. Marrying a guy with his credit track record says things about his character. That should probably be of some concern to you.

    Victor Hobbs
    Victor E. Hobbs
    23161 Tulip Street
    El Toro, CA 92630-4534

• Credit card debt

  I was seeing a girl who had just been divorced. Her ex had taken her through bankruptcy and she had only bad credit. So, nice fool that I am, I co-signed a credit card to help her re-establish her credit. Well now she's jack it to the limit and cant or wont pay it off. Ive asked her to get another loan on her own to pay it off and get me off the hook. But she hasnt, so Ive been forced to clear this credit problem myself. So how do I make her responsible for this debt, a) pay the credit card then sue her, B) sue her into paying the credit card, or C) just pray she does someday pay the bill.

  • Credit Card Co-signor Liability

    Nice Guys Finish Last. You are liable for the debt and if you don't want bad credit, you have to pay it. No easy answer on the limited facts. Suits are expensive and there is no guarantee you could force her to do anything.You don't say if she works outside the home or has dependants. Possible garnishment of wages if she is not the head of a family and has a job. She has to have assets and then you have to find them before you collect anything.I had a case where a wife had to pay her ex"s joint judgment debts. Creditor agreed to give an assignment of the judgment and we went after the ex. Took a lot of time and energy but we finally got back at him.You might have learned an expensive lesson.Write the credit card co. if you haven't already and cancel your guarantee for the future. Then decide if what you have to pay to clear your name is worth what it will cost in time and aggravation as well as money to hopefully collect anything from her. Get a credit report first before you invest too much time and money. Good luck.

    William W. Fernandez, Sr., J.D.
    William W. Fernandez, Attorney at Law
    250 East Panama Road
    Winter Springs, FL 32708-3516