If you only take a single credit maxim to heart, it should be to always pay your bills on time.
A single late payment can drop an excellent credit score (750 and above) by over 100 points. It will stay on your credit report for the next seven years, and it can make it difficult for you to get loans or secure an affordable interest rate.
But what happens if you make a single honest mistake, or you have an emergency that affects your ability to pay? Depending on your relationship with the creditor, you may be able to get the late payment removed from your credit report. It isn't always possible, but it's worth a try, especially if you've always paid on time in the past. Here are a few things you can do to improve your odds of getting the late payment wiped from your credit report.
First steps
If you know you've missed a payment, your first step should be to check your credit reports to see if your creditor reported it. It won't appear unless it's at least 30 days past due, and some accounts may not report it unless it's at least 60 days past due. If you've always paid your bill on time in the past, your creditor may give you the benefit of the doubt and not report the missed payment at all.
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If you notice any late payments on your report for accounts you don't recognize, then you may be the victim of identity theft. Place a fraud alert on your credit report and contact the credit bureau and the financial institution immediately. It may take a couple of weeks to sort out, but the credit bureaus are legally required to fix any errors on your credit report, so you shouldn't have too much trouble getting these late payments removed.
Request a goodwill adjustment
If you've been a loyal customer for many years and this is your first late payment, your creditor may be willing to forgive your mistake and remove the late payment from your credit report. This is called a goodwill adjustment. You can contact the creditor by phone to request one, but you may have better luck by writing out a formal letter.
This letter gives you the opportunity to explain why your payment was late. If you have any proof that backs up your claims -- a copy of a medical bill for an unexpected expense, for example -- it's a good idea to include this as well. The more proof you have that your missed payment was truly a one-time occurrence, the more likely your creditor is to remove it. Send the letter via certified mail so that you'll know when the letter is delivered.
Whether you're requesting a goodwill adjustment by phone or by mail, it's important to be polite. Remember, your creditor doesn't have to remove the late payment from your record if it's accurate, and they're less likely to do so if you come across as angry and combative.
Negotiate
If your creditor refuses to offer you a goodwill adjustment based on your previous payment history alone, you may have to offer the company something in return. If the debt is still outstanding, you can agree to pay the full balance off at once. Or you could try offering to sign up for auto-pay to ensure you don't miss any payments in the future. Make sure you get a copy of any agreement you've made with the lender in writing so you can refer back to it later.
If you've tried all of this and your creditor still won't budge, you may just have to accept that the late payment is going to stay on your report. All you can do from there is make sure all your successive payments are on time and do what you can to improve your credit score, including using less than 30% of your available credit and maintaining a good mix of credit accounts.
Over time, that late payment will affect your score less and less as your more recent payment history takes precedence, and after seven years, it will be as if it never happened.
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FAQs
You can only get a late payment removed from your credit report if it was reported in error. To get an incorrect late payment removed from your credit report, you need to file a dispute with the credit bureau that issued the report containing the error.
Can I get a late payment removed from my credit report? ›
Unfortunately, an actual late payment is nearly impossible to remove from your credit report even if you were able to convince your card issuer to waive any fees you may have been charged.
How to ask for late payment forgiveness? ›
An effective goodwill letter requires the following:
- Address the creditor or lender respectfully and thank them for their time.
- Clearly explain the situation that led to the late payment with relevant details and/or documentation to support your explanation.
- Own up to the mistake without excuses.
Payments made more than 30 days past due can ding your credit score, making it harder to qualify for future loans and get good rates. One possible solution: You may be able to remove late payments on your credit reports and start to improve your credit with a “goodwill letter.”
How to get credit one to remove late payments from credit report? ›
If you find yourself with a late payment on your credit report, here are a few things you can try to get it removed.
- Dispute Inaccurate Information. ...
- Dispute Old Information. ...
- Negotiate with Your Creditor. ...
- Ask a Creditor to Remove a Late Payment Out of Goodwill. ...
- Tips for Avoiding Late Payments.
A 609 letter is a credit repair method that requests credit bureaus to remove erroneous negative entries from your credit report. It's named after section 609 of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), a federal law that protects consumers from unfair credit and collection practices.
Will my credit score go back up after removing late payments? ›
It might take three to five months of strong payment history to get the score to turn around, Jackson says. Missed payments will stay on your credit record for seven years from the date of activity, "but that doesn't mean the impact on your credit score is there for the duration of the seven years," McClary says.
How do you convince a creditor to remove late payments? ›
The process is easy: simply write a letter to your creditor explaining why you paid late. Ask them to forgive the late payment and assure them it won't happen again. If they do agree to forgive the late payment, your creditor should adjust your credit report accordingly.
What is a good explanation for late payments? ›
When explaining a delay in payment, honesty and transparency are key. Begin by acknowledging the missed deadline and express your commitment to resolving the situation. Clearly state the reason for the delay, whether it's a financial discrepancy, processing error, or unforeseen circ*mstances.
How do I apologize for late payment of debt? ›
I am sincerely sorry for the delay in payment on {loan type}. I apologize for any inconvenience or frustration this caused you. The delay was caused by {reason}. While I take full responsibility for my mistake, I would like to assure you that this was a one-time error on my part.
How to write a goodwill letter
- Offer an apology and be as sincere as possible.
- Express your gratitude to the creditor for the services they have provided you.
- Make sure that you include the reason why you missed the payment.
- State your case as eloquently as possible.
A hardship letter explains to a lender the circ*mstances that have made you unable to keep up with your debt payments. The letter provides specific details such as the date the hardship began, the cause and how long you expect it to continue. Many creditors will require a hardship letter if you request help.
How do I write a letter to creditors to remove? ›
Your letter should identify each item you dispute, state the facts, explain why you dispute the information, and ask that the business that supplied the information take action to have it removed or corrected. You may want to enclose a copy of your report with the item(s) in question circled.
How to legally get late payments removed from credit report? ›
Here are two of your most viable options to remove late payments from your credit report:
- Call Your Credit Card Issuer and Ask Them to Take the Late Payments Off Your Credit Report. ...
- Write a Goodwill Letter to the Creditor Explaining Why You Haven't Made Timely Payments.
If you have missed a payment on your account by 30 days or more, but you are able to pay it before the next payment due date, your lender or creditor should report the account as being current, but the late payment that they may have already reported will remain on your credit reports for seven years.
Does Credit One offer a hardship program? ›
If you experience certain hardships—sometimes defined as involuntary unemployment or disability—you can activate the program which then allows you to stop making payments for a period of time. Credit card protection insurance may also cancel a balance owed if a cardmember dies.
How long does it take to rebuild credit after late payments? ›
Negative marks on your credit history
| Event | Average credit score recovery time |
|---|
| Late mortgage payment (30 to 90 days) | 9 months |
| Closing credit card account | 3 months |
| Maxed credit card account | 3 months |
| Applying for a new credit card | 3 months |
3 more rows1 day ago
Missing a payment by 30 days
Even if this is the first and only your payment is late by 30 days, it can still impact your score—by about 100 points or more, depending on the scoring model and your current credit score.
Can you get a delinquency removed from your credit report? ›
While they are not required to remove it upon your request, you can ask. If you have a good relationship and a good reason to have missed payments — and especially if you have proof it wasn't your fault — they may agree to remove the delinquency.
How to remove late payments from credit report on closed accounts? ›
Contact the credit bureau and complete the proper dispute form. All three credit bureaus offer online, phone, and by-mail options, making it easy to file a dispute. If the error is on all three reports, you must file a dispute with each one. The forms are similar.
