Why are employers checking applicant credit files as contingent upon?

When checking my credit report, I discovered a credit account opened my mom was written off, what do I do?

• I know I posted this question earlier this evening but I wanted to repost it with the added details so here it goes... My mom opened a credit card account through HSBC and gave me a card on the account in 2008. I only used it a couple times (and spent less than $100) when I went on a class trip to NYC and gave the card back to my mom since I never used it. I checked my credit report shortly before Christmas of this year, because my fiancee and I are starting to talk about apartments and wedding plans, and saw I had an account charged off for I believe about $750. After looking at the details of the report, the account had me as an authorized user and the date major delinquency was reported was 11/2011 if that tells anyone anything... I know that I need to start establishing credit to get an apartment or get a credit card just so I can have a good credit history and hadn't thought about that previous card I had with my mom. Every time I tried talking to my mom about credit, (which she is in debt and has a poor credit score) she tells me I shouldn't worry about it because if I have a credit card I'll charge too much on it or she just tells me I don't need it. I don't know if she's just trying to hide the fact of my old card that has been closed or if she's just trying to protect me; I don't feel as though I can talk to her about what I found on my credit report because I don't know how she'll react to it. I have read that you should pay off the account but then I have also read that paying off a charge off in full is bad because the note on the report would be removed in 7 years but then since I was only an authorized user on the account I am not responsible for the debt on the account. So I am unsure what I should do. Would this keep me from getting a secured credit card to work on building my credit? Or how else can I build my credit now that I have this on my record? Can I contact HSBC to get my name off the account and my credit record? Any help please!

• Answer:

  I recently learned I was an authorized user on one of my mothers cards that had been charged off to. After a little research I found out that as an authorized user I had no legal responsibility to repay the debt and I was not liable for they account. It only showed up on my Transunion and Experian reports so I went online to there websites and disputed the account. On Transunion I was able to write a message and I basically said - I would like this item Deleted. Because I am listed as an authorized user on this account, I have no contractual responsibility for payment of the debt, and I am not liable for this account. Within 24 hours I got an email from Transunion saying they deleted the account and when I pulled my credit report it was gone. Equifax didn't allow me to write them anything on there site. I checked a box, something about not being responsible for the account. They emailed me back after a few weeks saying they deleted the account, I checked my credit report and it had been deleted. I hope this helps. Good Luck!