What is EOS CCA and how do I remove it from my credit reports?

Woman walking on city street with coffee, looking up eos cca credit reports on her cellphoneImage: Woman walking on city street with coffee, looking up eos cca credit reports on her cellphone

In a Nutshell

EOS CCA is a debt collection agency that could be on your reports if it bought a debt you owe to a bank, telecom company, student loan provider or other company. But you should always verify that a debt is yours when a debt collector contacts you.
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EOS CCA is a debt collection agency that is most likely on your credit reports for an account that’s in collections.

Debt collection agencies like EOS CCA work with creditors such as banks, student loan providers and telecommunications companies to recover debts they’re owed.



Why is EOS CCA on my credit reports?

Debt collection agencies like EOS CCA can end up on your credit reports when your original creditor has sold your unpaid debt to them. You’ll most likely see it listed as an account in collections.

You should always independently verify your debt when a debt collection agency contacts you. Get information about the debt in writing from the debt collector and make sure you know your rights under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.

FAST FACTS

What to do if the debt is legitimate

If you’ve verified that the debt in collections is legitimate, there are a few options for you to consider.  

1. Pay it off. If your debt has been sold, it can be confusing to figure out who you’re paying. Make sure you do your research before you contact the debt collection agency.

2. Consider credit counseling. A credit counselor accredited by the National Foundation for Credit Counseling can help you create a debt management plan. 

3. Look into debt settlement. Debt settlement companies often claim to settle your debt for a lump payment that’s less than you owe, and in some cases, this could be a useful tactic. But the FTC warns that not all “debt settlement” companies are above board. Watch out for companies that make guarantees or try to get you to pay fees before your debts have been settled.

How to remove EOS CCA from your credit reports

If the debt is yours and was correctly reported, you likely won’t be able to remove the account in collections until it falls off your reports roughly seven years from whenever the account became past due.

Some debt collectors may offer the ability to “pay-for-delete,” in which you pay a lump sum to a debt collector in exchange for it removing the collections account from your reports. But according to the FTC, it’s generally illegal for these debt collection agencies to report inaccurate information to the credit bureaus, and this wouldn’t remove the derogatory marks from the original lender anyway.

But if the debt isn’t legitimate, it’s important to act quickly and reach out to the credit bureaus to dispute the debt.

The credit bureaus are required to investigate disputes and forward information about the error to the debt collector, which will have to notify all three of the major consumer credit bureaus about any information they determine is inaccurate.

Learn more: Can you remove late payments from your credit reports?

Next steps: What to do if there’s an account you don’t recognize on your credit reports

Having an account show up in collections on your credit reports can be alarming. It can take time for your credit to recover, but there are steps you can take to work on rebuilding your credit.

But if the account in collections is incorrect, start with disputing the inaccuracy and then monitor your credit reports to make sure you catch any other inaccuracies — it’s possible that you’re facing a case of identity theft. You can periodically access your credit reports from all three major consumer credit bureaus for free at annualcreditreport.com.


About the author: Casey Hollis is a managing editor at Credit Karma, specializing in credit card reviews and education. Throughout her career in writing and editing informational content — from health news and advice at Healthline.com … Read more.