You betcha! but... you might want to make sure and wait for another commenter to confirm it as I am not completely sure. Better yet, why don't you email the Lending Tree guys because they can answer your Lending Tree question better...

The first thing you should know is that the OC is not required to validate. However, you are correct in that they are required to mark the account as disputed. Yes you can use this violation as leverage for a deletion should they neglect to mark the account as disputed and it wouldn't hurt if the reward for the violation ($1,000) was more than the amount charged-off. However, I wouldn't go to court with only this one violation. If you are seriously planning on taking this to court as opposed to just using the violation for leverage for a deletion then you should attempt to get them on a few more violations first...

I'm not looking for them to validate. I just want to have a record of them having received my dispute. That way, when they don't mark it in dispute, I have them on a FCRA violation..

-LB..

Thanks for responding, Robin..

Well...the amount of the debt is more than the violation. Also, I'm not clear on what other violations there are (reading up on the FCRA is VERY confusing; I need it in layman's terms), but if you could point me in the direction of where these are listed, that would be great. I'm sure they've violated the law in another fashion....I just don't know what qualifies. The OC is Cross Country Bank..

TIA..

Sounds like a similar situation that Im contemplating. In my case, the OC has reported incorrect information (i.e. not noting the account has been disputed) for 2months/cycles now without marking the account in dispute. I asked the question in another post which wasnt answered which was is every month the account is reported wrong a violation? If so then I I would have them on multiple violations if Im correct..

Keep in mind you don't have to sue for FCRA/FDCPA violations. Standard civil torts work just fine / even better. If they are reporting inaccurate information about you - even after you've notified them of the error, this is a case for defamation as long as you can pickup some sort of financial damages resulting from their actions. There are other considerations, such as willful negligence, again - provided there are damages..

But I'm no lawyer - so that's the extent of my advice, just wanted to be sure you're aware that you aren't limited to the FCRA.....

I thought that the FDCPA only applied to CA's. I'm dealing with an OC. Also, is defamation something I can sue for under the FCRA?? And what sort of damages are needed? If I have other derogs how will a declined application help my case?.

-LB..

FDCPA does not apply to OC's You are correct in your thought...

My point wasn't to suggestion you had FDCPA claims. I was explaining that outside of these consumer protection laws, you might still want to seek damages in conjunction with more conventional claims..

> is defamation something I can sue for under the FCRA??.

> And what sort of damages are needed?.

> If I have other derogs how will a declined application help my case?.

You can't sue for defamation "under" the FCRA - that was sort of what I was attempting to explain..

In response to your other questions, it's very difficult to say for each person's unique situation..

I can tell you that in most caselaw the CRA's use the other negative tradelines as a shield to say they've done nothing wrong. In short, other derogs will hurt your chances of motivating a settlement IMHO..

Good luck!..