Bad Credit Agency

My co-signer filed bankruptcy & I'm still paying account. It shows on my credit report. does it affect score

My parents filed chapter 7 bankruptcy in 2005 and they had co-signed on a car loan for me. When I pull my credit report it states unrated bankrupty but shows the account payment never being late. I called a consumer agency on the internet and they said it Does negatively affect my score, just by having the word bankrupcty contained in my report. But I've read a similar answer on this page that states it has no affect at all. Which is true? I've tried disputes with the bureau's and they never remove the "bankrupcty" part of it but show that it's being paid as agreed.

Public Comments

1. First you should find out what your credit score is.Call the 3 credit bureaus and request a copy of your credit report and pay for your score. Anything over 700 is great!. 600+ good. 500+ fair and anything under that is not desirable. Once you have your score then you will know where you stand. The score that you purchase from the credit bureaus gives you an analized breakdown each and every factor that is affecting of benefiting your score. The fee for this is relatively inexpensive, anywhere from $5-$15. If the bankruptcy is affecting your score it will let you know. A credit score is formulated by soo many different facotrs rated on a percent form. For example: 15% of the score is your credit limit to debt ratio and 35% is your payment history ect. You might want to consider removing your parents now that you have a history with the finance company. You might also want to refinace so that you dont include your parents in the new loan. Hope this helps.
2. First, you need to try and get your parents off your loan. If you have established a long credit history with this lender, and you r income is secure, they may agree to remove them from you loan. Problem solved. If not, you will need to play hardball. Remember, the CREDITOR is the person who posted this "unrelated bankruptcy" information to your credit report. Contact them and ask where in the Fair Credit Reporting Act it says they can post OTHER PEOPLES public records to your credit report. It's not there. Then point out that if you file a lawsuit, they can be sued for a variety of things including: 1) Defamation 2) Negligent Enablement of Identity Fraud 3) Violation of the Fair Credit Reporting Act I've had a couple similar situations where I've helped people on improper reporting of bankruptcies. Once I threatened legal action the offending reports suddenly disappear.
3. I co signed a loan for my daughter and it was as if the loan was totally mine. The loan was always considered if I wanted to apply for any other credit. I believe it does lower your credit score. You can get a free copy of your credit report once a year. It might be worth it to see how it reads at ALL 3 credit reporting agencies. Believe me they don't have the same information.
4. It will stay the same explanation b/c whether or not you are in Bankruptcy, the Account itself that you have is part of the Bankruptcy when it is included in your parent's bankruptcy. If you go to apply for credit, they actually look at your credit and will ask you about it seeing that none of your other accounts display that and there may not be a public record note of a bankruptcy. Simply provide the place you are getting credit from with a copy of your parent's petition and simply let them know that your parent's filed and that you make payments. Once the Bankruptcy is over, you can contact the bureau and have it removed. Don't be afraid to talk to your parents about it. Their attorney has probably explained this scenario to them. You could try to call the company that the account it with, but it is a possibility that they may not speak to you as the account is in Bankruptcy and it might be a violation of the stay. Don't fret it though.
5. It's not clear to me why your parent's bankruptcy is on your report, but you can always have the credit bureau add an explanation to any item. Put in that it's not your bankruptcy, but your parents that they are referring to.