Does Rent-A-Center Report to Credit Bureaus?

RAC does not routinely send your monthly rent payments to the credit bureaus. It only reports when an account becomes severely delinquent - usually after 90 days past due and turned over to a collection agency - at which point the debt can appear on your credit report.

If you stay current, your payments won't affect your credit score; however, a late‑payment that lands in collections will. Monitoring your reports now (see the Rent‑A‑Center FAQ) helps you catch any unexpected entries before they damage your score, and sets the stage for understanding how 'your late RAC payments hit credit?' later in this guide.

Late RAC payments only affect your credit report when the account is sent to a collection agency, not when you pay on time. RAC generally keeps rent‑payment activity off the major bureaus, but once a delinquency reaches the collection stage (typically after 90‑180 days), the collector can file a tradeline that appears on your credit reports. This is why you may see a 'Rent‑A‑Center Collections' entry even though regular payments never showed up.

• Pay the balance before the 30‑day notice to avoid collection referral.
• Call RAC immediately to negotiate a payment plan if you anticipate a miss.
• If a collection entry already exists, request a 'pay‑for‑delete' agreement before sending payment.
• Pull your free credit reports within 30 days of any payment to verify the entry.
• Dispute inaccurate or outdated collection entries with each credit bureau.
• Keep future rent payments current; on‑time payments still won't be reported, but they prevent future collections that could hurt your score.

RAC generally skips reporting your rent‑to‑own payments because it treats them as retail purchases, not traditional credit, and only contacts the credit bureaus when a debt turns into a collection case.

• RAC classifies leases as retail transactions, so on‑time rent payments don't fit typical installment‑credit reporting models.
• Reporting adds administrative cost and complexity that doesn't improve RAC's profit margin.
• The company prefers to keep customers returning for future rentals rather than penalize them with a credit hit.
• RAC relies on its own internal scoring system, making external bureau data unnecessary for most decisions.
• There's no legal requirement for RAC to submit routine payment data under the Fair Credit Reporting Act.
• Only severe delinquencies that enter collections are sent to the credit bureaus, because those cases pose a higher risk.

Pull your credit report and search for any Rent‑A‑Center (RAC) listings; as noted earlier, RAC typically appears only when a late payment escalates to a collection.

1. Obtain your free report from each bureau - Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion - via Free annual credit report or a paid service.
2. Open the PDF or online view and press Ctrl+F (Cmd+F on Mac) to find 'Rent‑A‑Center' or 'RAC'.
3. Review the 'Accounts' section for RAC entries; note whether the status is open, closed, or listed under collections.
4. If a collection shows, compare the dates and amounts to your records; contact RAC's customer service to dispute any inaccuracies.
5. Document the entry details for use in later steps, such as challenging errors or planning an early payoff.

Finishing a RAC lease early does not add a positive mark to your credit report, but it can stop a future negative entry.

• RAC only sends data to the bureaus when an account becomes severely delinquent and is sent to collections; an early payoff removes that risk.
• Without a collection, no late‑payment or charge‑off appears, so your score stays unchanged rather than improves.
• If RAC ever reports, a 'paid in full' status shows you settled the debt, which is better than an unpaid balance.
• After you return the items, ask the RAC store to confirm the account is closed and request a copy of your credit report to verify the 'paid' notation.

Avoiding a collection protects your score, which is the real credit boost you can get from ending the lease early. The next step is learning how to return RAC merchandise without hurting your credit.

Return the items before your rental term ends, settle the final balance in full, and obtain a written receipt from the store. RAC only sends data to the credit bureaus when an account is sent to collections, so a clean return prevents any entry on your credit report.

Call RAC customer service, ask for the exact payoff amount, pay any remaining fees with cash or a prepaid card, and request a confirmation letter that states the account is closed with zero balance. Keep the letter and monitor your reports for the next 30 days; if a collection shows up, dispute it referencing the closure letter. For example, a customer returned a couch two weeks early, paid a $12 fee, and saw no negative mark on her credit file. See the official RAC collections terms for details.

Collections from RAC can slam your credit score. When Rac sends your account to a collection agency, the agency reports the delinquency to the major credit bureaus, and the entry behaves like any other collection item.

The damage looks like this:

• a single RAC collection can shave 60‑100 points off a mid‑range score,
• the negative mark remains for up to seven years,
• lenders treat the entry as a high‑risk signal, often raising interest rates or denying credit.

Act fast: pull your credit reports, locate the RAC collection, and either negotiate a pay‑for‑delete agreement or dispute any inaccuracies. Paying the balance off eliminates the worst of the hit, and the entry will shift to 'paid collection,' which still hurts but lessens the scoring impact.

Next, learn how to challenge RAC errors on your report to clean up any lingering blemishes.

RAC mistakes on your credit report are removed by filing a formal dispute with both the credit bureau and Rent‑A‑Center. A dispute forces the bureau to verify the entry, and RAC must either confirm its accuracy or correct the record.

Start by ordering a free report from each bureau, then note the RAC item that looks wrong. Gather the lease contract, payment receipts, and any correspondence showing on‑time payments or a settled balance. Log into the online dispute portal of the bureau - use Equifax's dispute page, TransUnion's tool, or Experian's form - and upload the documents. State that RAC's entry is inaccurate, request deletion, and keep the case number.

Follow up with RAC's customer‑service email, attach the same proof, and demand a correction notice. If the bureau still lists the error after 30 days, request a re‑investigation or consider filing a complaint with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Remember, Equifax also offers a paid 'Credit Lock' service separate from the free freeze, should you need immediate protection while the dispute proceeds.

You can keep renting from RAC while you repair your credit because RAC typically does not report on‑time rent payments; only serious delinquencies that enter collections get sent to the credit bureaus (RAC credit reporting policy).

Pay every rent payment before the due date, set up autopay or calendar reminders, and contact RAC immediately if you anticipate a slip‑up; a pre‑arranged payment plan often stops the account from becoming a collection and protects your credit report(s).

A borrower with a 650 score rented a bedroom set, paid each month promptly, and saw a 20‑point rise after six months because no negative entry appeared; the same person would see a sharp drop only if a missed payment triggered a collection filing.

• Reddit users confirm that missed RAC payments often trigger collection accounts that appear on credit reports, as detailed in a personal finance thread on RAC credit issues.
• One poster described a $1,200 overdue balance that landed a 180‑day delinquency, dropping their score by roughly 100 points.
• Several members say RAC sent a 'charge‑off' despite an active payment plan, resulting in a hard inquiry and a new collection entry.
• A recurring complaint involves RAC reporting a 'settled' account as unpaid, keeping the negative mark on the report for seven years.
• Users warn that RAC can file lawsuits; the resulting judgment shows up as a public record and damages credit even after the debt is paid.