Serious delinquency

FICO code numbers

Code numbers can differ by bureau and score version. The wording of the statement is what to match.

What puts this reason on your score

This code points to an account that went far past due. A car loan that fell 90 days behind before you caught up, or a card the issuer charged off, are typical triggers.

FICO weighs how overdue an account became and how recently it happened. A serious delinquency scores badly on both counts at first, which is why it can hold a top slot for a long time.

What to check on your credit report

• Find the account with the worst rating on each report.
• Make sure the rating matches what happened. A 60-day late shouldn't show as 90.
• If you caught up, check that the account's current status shows current.

What you can do about it

• Keep the account current if it's still open.
• Dispute ratings that are wrong, with proof of your payment dates.
• For a charge-off you still owe, find out how a payment or settlement will report before you send money.

The free drop off calculator can help with this step.

How soon a change can show

The delinquency can stay up to seven years from when it began. Its weight shrinks as months pass without a new late.

If you are applying for a mortgage

Underwriters see the month and the severity, so a serious late from last year draws more questions than one from five years ago. More clean months between it and your application help both the score and the file.

Guides that go deeper

• How a late payment grows from 30 to 90 daysA missed payment can be reported as 30, then 60, then 90 days late. See how lates stack, why one payment may not catch you up, and how to stop the slide.
• How a late payment affects your credit score, using FICO's own numbersFICO's own simulation shows a 30-day late can cost a 793 score far more than a 607 score. Why that happens, and what FICO weighs about each late payment.
• How to recover from a late paymentA late payment fades, and what you do in the first months shapes how fast. A week-by-week, year-by-year recovery plan based on how FICO Scores work.
• What your credit score reason codes are telling youReason codes list what held your score back the most, in order. What the common ones mean, which you can act on, and which to leave alone.