Metro 2 Special Comment Codes (Field 31)
Adds a short standardized narrative to a tradeline explaining an unusual arrangement such as forbearance, a payment plan, a transfer, or a closure.
24 codes documented · Base Segment · 2 characters at position 213–214 · CRRG Exhibits 6 & 7 (Special Comment Codes)
All special comment codes at a glance
How special comment codes work
The Special Comment is the one place in the Base Segment where a furnisher can attach a short standardized narrative to a tradeline. Account Status says how the account is performing, Payment Rating says how it performed this cycle, and the balance fields say what is owed. The Special Comment says why the arrangement looks the way it does: the borrower is in forbearance, a formal repayment plan is in place, the loan was modified, the credit line was closed by the grantor rather than the consumer, or the balance was paid by an insurer instead of the borrower. The comment prints on the consumer's credit report in the bureaus' own words, so choosing the right one matters as much as choosing the right status.
Report exactly one Special Comment per record per cycle. There is no combination code in this set the way there is in the Compliance Condition Code set, so when two comments look applicable you have to pick the one that describes the account's defining condition and drop the other. Single-character codes such as B, C, H and O are left-justified and space-filled in the field; the two-character codes occupy it exactly as written. The field is optional, and an account with no unusual arrangement should carry no comment at all rather than a filler value.
The single biggest failure mode in this set is a stale comment. A hardship comment describes a condition that is true right now: B and C describe an active forbearance, AI describes an active deferral, AB, AC, AU and CP describe an arrangement the borrower is currently performing under. When the forbearance ends or the plan completes, the comment has to come off in the very next file. A tradeline that still says "Account in forbearance" a year after the borrower resumed normal payments is inaccurate data, and accuracy is the furnisher's obligation under the FCRA regardless of how the comment got there. Terminal comments behave differently: AS, CJ, CL, CM, AX, BN, BP and BT describe events that already happened and stay in place because the account itself is finished.
Set-wide cross-field rules are worth learning once. Any comment that says the account is closed or paid needs a populated Date Closed and, in most cases, a zero Current Balance and zero Amount Past Due; a closure comment sitting on an account that still reports a balance is a contradiction a bureau edit will catch. Any comment that says the account moved (AN, AS, H, O) belongs with an Account Status that agrees, and a sale to another party normally travels with a K2 Purchased From/Sold To Segment. Comments describing a modified obligation (CN, AC, AU, CP) usually imply that Scheduled Monthly Payment, Terms Duration, or Terms Frequency changed in the same record, because a plan that changed nothing is not a plan. And no Special Comment ever changes the Date of First Delinquency: a hardship arrangement does not reset the FCRA purge clock on a delinquency that already occurred.
Hardship, Workout and Payment Plans
Active arrangements that change how the borrower is paying: forbearance, deferral, interest-only terms, formal plans, modifications, and partial payments.
Account in Forbearance
The furnisher has agreed to pause or reduce the borrower's payments for a defined short period while a hardship is worked through. The obligation still exists; only the payment expectation is suspended.
Account in Extended Forbearance
The same payment suspension as B, but running long enough to be a long-term hardship arrangement rather than a brief pause. Reported for as long as the extended forbearance is in force.
Agreement in Place
A formal payment arrangement has been agreed between the furnisher and the borrower and the borrower is performing under it. Used when the relationship is governed by a negotiated agreement rather than the original payment schedule.
Interest-Only Payments
The borrower is paying interest only for a period, with no principal reduction, under a workout arrangement. Reported while that payment structure is in force.
Deferred Payment
One or more scheduled payments have been deferred, typically as a temporary skip-pay, and are not expected in the deferral window. The payments are postponed, not forgiven.
Repayment Plan
The borrower is on a structured repayment plan, typically to cure arrears over a defined number of months while keeping the account alive.
Loan Modified
The loan's contractual terms were permanently changed, for example the rate, payment, or maturity. The same obligation continues under amended terms.
Account in Partial Payment
The borrower is making partial payments that are less than the full contractual amount. Reported while that pattern is the accepted arrangement.
Account and Credit-Line Closures
Comments that explain who closed the account or credit line and how it ended.
Closed at Consumer's Request
The account was closed because the consumer asked for it to be closed, rather than because the grantor withdrew the relationship.
Credit Line Closed - Grantor
The grantor closed the credit line. Used when the lender withdrew the available credit, for reasons such as risk, inactivity, or a portfolio decision.
Credit Line Closed - Consumer
The consumer asked for the credit line to be closed. The available credit is withdrawn at the consumer's request rather than by a grantor decision.
Closed - Paid Collection
A collection account was paid and closed. The comment records that the tradeline ended because the collection balance was satisfied.
Closed - Paid Lease
A lease reached its end and the lessee's obligation was satisfied. The tradeline closes with the lease paid.
Account Closed
The account is closed. The general-purpose closure comment, used where no more specific closure code in this set applies.
Transfers, Refinances and Replacements
Comments that explain that the obligation moved: to another office, to a new loan, or to another party.
Transferred to Another Office
The account has been moved to a different office, branch, or servicing unit of the same organization. The obligation did not change hands to an unrelated party.
Refinanced or Replaced
The obligation was refinanced or otherwise replaced by a new one. The old tradeline ends and a separate tradeline reflects the replacement loan.
Transferred
The account was transferred. Reported by the furnisher that is handing the account off so the tradeline shows why it stopped updating.
Transferred
The account was transferred. The second of the two codes the source lists for a transfer, carrying the same printed comment as H.
Paid by a Third Party
The balance was satisfied by someone other than the borrower: an insurer, a dealer or merchant, a government program, or the collateral itself.
Account Paid From Collateral
The balance was satisfied out of the collateral securing the loan rather than by the borrower's own payments, for example from the proceeds of a repossession or foreclosure sale.
Paid by Insurance
An insurer paid the balance rather than the borrower. Used where credit insurance, a claim settlement, or a similar policy retired the obligation.
Paid by Dealer or Merchant
A dealer or merchant satisfied the balance instead of the consumer, typically under a recourse, buyback, or unwind arrangement.
Paid by Government
A government program or agency paid the balance rather than the borrower, for example under a guarantee, subsidy, or relief program.
Legal Action
A court proceeding or judgment is attached to the account.
Other Account Conditions
Standardized comments that do not fit the hardship, closure, transfer, or third-party-payment groups.
Related reading
Other Metro 2 code sets
Every CRRG code set has its own reference. The Metro 2 codes cheat sheet puts all of them on one page.
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