Frequently asked questions
What information do I need to report credit?
The more information you have on the debtor, the more likely we are to report the debt to the correct account at the credit bureaus. If you only have a name, for example, the odds are very slim that we can report your debtor due to conflicts with the credit bureaus. But if you have an address, we can likely associate the individual. Unlike other credit data furnishers, we skip trace every debtor you submit so that we can have an accurate report every time. With The Credit App you no longer need a SSN or even a DOB to provide accurate credit reporting.
How is the debtor notified and what are they instructed to do?
As soon as you submit a New Debtor Form, our automated software takes over and sends out custom automated notices to the debtor via email and text. Here is an example of a notification:
What do I tell a debtor to do after they pay their debt in full?
If they wish to have the negative credit mark taken off their record, then tell them to visit thecreditapp.org where they can upload proof of payment and have the mark removed or not reported in the first place, if they pay on time.
How much does it cost?
$40 per transaction, whether that is to upload a New Debtor Form, Update a Balance or Dispute a Claim. If your contract includes “collection costs” then you can also include the cost of this service in the balance owed.
What states can you report in?
We are currently reporting credit data in all 50 states.
What are the requirements for the credit bureaus to accept a default?
There must be a signed agreement between the creditor and the debtor. The debt must be bona fide and legitimate. The debt must be 30 days past due.
Who can report debt and who can I report?
Any LLC, corporation, or sole proprietor can report customer defaults through The Credit App to the Credit Bureaus. If the contract was signed by a business, the debt must be reported as a business debt, unless there is a personal guarantee in the contract. You can report the debt for any individual, business, or both in which they defaulted on a signed contract for goods or services in exchange for money.
When will the negative mark go on the debtor's report?
We report to the credit bureaus monthly, but we give a two week grace period to the debtors to pay the debt. The main goal is to get the creditor paid. Depending on when the debt was reported, it can take two to six weeks for them to see your name on their credit report.
What's the difference between The Credit App and a debt collector or attorney?
The Credit App is a service to help small business owners collect. We provide the tools for business owners to quickly and cheaply collect late payments and defaults. When you use a traditional debt collector or attorney you normally pay 30% of what they collect. This might sound appealing because you only pay if they collect money. Unfortunately, what normally happens is: You are owed $10,000 from a nonpaying customer. You call a debt collector and sign up for a 30% collection fee. The debt collector calls your customer and says, "will you settle for $5,000"? The debtor says, "that will work". The collector takes a $1,500 cut and the creditor gets $3,500, I guess this is better than nothing? With The Credit App, you pay a flat $40 to do the same thing that a collector would do in the same amount of time it would take you to fill out the contract with the debt collector. Are you guaranteed to get paid when using The Credit App? No, but this is a numbers game. If you submit five debtors for $200 and one pays you that $10,000, that is a great deal!
Why don't you have a phone number?
For obvious reasons we do not make our office number public. The amount that we charge does not include listening to a hundred angry debtors every day pretending to be lawyers. We have a chat box and a public email support@thecreditapp.org. If you wish to speak to us on the phone, please email us your information and we will reach out to you within one business day.
What if I don't owe a debt and the information being reported is wrong?
Please go to Dispute Transaction and submit physical proof of the debt not being owed. This can consist of photos of incomplete work or a bank statement showing the amount being paid. The more evidence and detail you provide the better. Unlike other debt collectors, The Credit App tries to be as fair as possible to all parties. We understand that a lot of companies are unorganized in their accounting practices and very few are, unfortunately, malicious. We strive to be as accurate as possible with data reporting.
What if I have a lot of orders to submit?
Please contact support@thecreditapp.org for bulk order options.
What credit bureaus do you report to?
All of our data goes to Equifax for immediate processing and then normally a month later the other credit bureaus will pick up the data that has been reported to Equifax.
Awaiting Processing?
When a previous purchased order has an account status of “Awaiting Processing”, this means that we have received the file and sent out all notices. When the status changes to “Processing” this means that the account was not disputed, and the debtor was reported to the credit bureaus. We call it processing because we are processing the file every month until the debtor pays.