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Author: Sergei Lemberg
Is Midland Credit Management Calling You?
If you have fallen behind in paying bills or have a large amount of debt, debt collection agencies may begin to contact you. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) developed a law in 1978 to protect debtors from unfair, deceptive, and harassing practices from debt collectors called the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA). The FDCPA prevents debt collectors from violating your rights and it also enables you to pursue legal action against these companies if your rights are violated.
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What is Midland Credit Management?
Midland Credit Management is a legitimate debt collection agency located in San Diego, California. Midland Funding, LLC, which buys unpaid debts from smaller companies for profit, owns the debt collection agency. According to the Better Business Bureau (BBB), Midland Credit Management was founded in 1953 and incorporated in 2000, and additionally established their BBB profile page in 1992. The BBB also notes that the company goes by the alternate business names “Encore Capital Group Inc” and “MCM”. Additionally, Zoominfo reports that Midland Credit Management generates over $2 billion in annual revenue. D&B cites Kenneth A. Vecchione as the Chief Executive Officer of Midland Credit Management.
According to its website, Midland Credit Management “connects with consumers every day to help resolve past-due debts [and] specializes in servicing accounts that have fallen behind and have been charged off by the lender.” The company additionally notes that it “is a subsidiary of Encore Capital Group, which is a public company traded on the NASDAQ stock exchange as ECPG.”
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Who Does Midland Credit Management Collect For?
Midland Credit Management is a third party collector that specializes in debt purchasing. MCM buys delinquent accounts from a wide range of institutions nationwide, including retail, credit card issuers, healthcare, dental and a variety of banks, loan and financial services. Midland Credit Management notes that it has “helped more than 7,000,000 people regain their financial independence.”
Midland Credit Management also lists its professional affiliations on its website. The company is in good standing with DigiCert and RMAI. Additionally, MCM states that it has a “consumer bill of rights” which details their commitment to conduct business ethically and in ways that support their consumers’ financial recovery. However, this claim may be without any merit, considering the large numbers of complaints posted regarding MCM’s practices on the BBB.
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How Many Complaints Are There Against Midland Credit Management?
As of May 2023, there are currently 349 complaints posted in the last 3 years on MCM’s BBB page, 141 of which were posted in the last 12 months. The complaints largely allege that the collections company fraudulently charged them with debt they did not owe, and used unethical collections practice. There are 1,725 Google reviews regarding MCM’s collection practices, amounting to a 4.3 star review. Additionally there are currently 45, 1 star Yelp reviews and Justia lists at least 54 cases of civil litigation naming MCM as the defendant, with several more pages naming Encore Capital and its affiliates as defendants.
Laws Midland Credit Management is Accused of Violating
According to Top Class Actions, in 2014, a man from New York filed a lawsuit against Midland Credit Management. He claimed that they allegedly violated his rights under the FDCPA. The company had allegedly reached out to the man about an outstanding cellphone bill, and the man alleged that they resorted to various threats when he asked about disputing the bill. When a debt collector makes certain threats against a debtor, it is a violation under the FDCPA.
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Midland Credit Management, Inc. Contact Information
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Can Midland Credit Management sue me or garnish my wages?
Midland Credit Management can sue you or garnish your wages, but only with legitimate reason to do so. If the collections company is making empty threats to sue or garnish your wages they are violating federal law. Though it is unlikely that a debt collection company will make these empty threats, debt collectors are still known to take advantage of alleged debtors, proceeding to summon them to court and garnish their wages, even if the threat is without merit. Given this risk, the wisest decision as a consumer or alleged debtor would be to acquire legal help to assist with resolving your case.
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Can I sue Midland Credit Management for harassment?
You can sue Midland Credit Management for harassment. You should if you wish to enforce your rights and recover money for MCM’s violation. In fact, the Fair Debt Collections Practices Act (FDCPA) protects consumers like you, awarding damages of up to $1,000, plus attorney fees and court costs to victims of wrongful collections practices. Take advantage of the federal laws that are meant to protect consumers like you, and contact an attorney if you are at risk.
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How often can Midland Credit Management call?
There are laws which protect consumers from repetitive phone calls from debt collectors. In November 2021, the CFPB’s Debt Collection Rule clarified that a debt collector is presumed to have violated the law if they place a telephone call to you about a particular debt
- More than seven times within a seven-day period, or
- Within seven days after engaging in a telephone conversation with you about the particular debt
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Additionally, a collector’s phone calls can be considered illegal when they are intended to harass, oppress, or abuse you.
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How to stop Midland Credit Management calls?
You can stop MCM from making calls by filing a complaint, and obtaining assistance from an attorney. By utilizing the Fair Debt Collections Practices Act (FDCPA), consumers can protect themselves from improper collections practices by prohibiting actions such as the use of abusive or threatening language; harassment; or the use of false or misleading information to collect a debt. Consumers also receive additional protection under the FCRA, the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA), and the Consumer Financial Protection Act (CFPA). You may have a case if…
- You are receiving multiple calls per week from third party collection agencies
- You are receiving early morning or late night calls from debt collectors
- You are receiving calls at work from a debt collection agency
- Debt collectors are calling your family, friends, neighbors, or coworkers
- Collectors are threatening you with violence, lawsuit, or arrest
- A debt collector attempts to collect more than you owe
- You are being threatened with negative credit reporting
- A debt collector attempts to intimidate you
- Criminal accusations are being made towards you
- Use of obscene language during an attempt to collect
- Automated robocalls are being made to your phone in an attempt to collect
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Does Midland Credit Management hurt my credit score?
Midland Credit Management can hurt your credit score if they have reported your alleged debt to a credit reporting agency. If they have already reported the alleged debt, or you fear that they might, you can remedy the harm by contacting an attorney for assistance.
Disclaimer: The content of this article serves only to provide information and should not be construed as legal advice. If you file a claim against Midland Credit Management or any other third-party collection agency, you may not be entitled to any compensation.
About the author:
Sergei Lemberg is a consumer rights attorney, practicing since 2006, whose practice focuses on consumer law, class actions and personal injury litigation. He is known for a United States Supreme Court case (Facebook v. Duguid) defending consumers from autodialers under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act of 1991 to send unsolicited text messages. He is also the author of Defanging Debt Collectors, a book that teaches consumers how to battle debt collectors and win.
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