Midland Credit Management (MCM) is the U.S. collection arm of Encore Capital Group. If you hear from MCM, or are sued by Midland Funding, it is usually about a charged-off credit card or other account that a bank or retailer sold to Midland.
- Type
- Debt buyer and servicer
- Also known as
- Encore Capital Group, Inc.; Midland Funding, LLC; MCM
- Headquarters
- San Diego, CA
- Collects
- charged-off credit card accounts, consumer finance accounts, retail accounts
- Phone numbers it lists
- (800) 296-2657
- Website
- midlandcredit.com
37,355 debt collection complaints were sent to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau about ENCORE CAPITAL GROUP INC. from November 13, 2023 to November 12, 2026. A complaint is a consumer's account, not a finding that the company broke the law. Read the complaints in the CFPB database.
Who Is Midland Credit Management?
Midland Credit Management, Inc. (MCM) is a subsidiary of Encore Capital Group, a company traded on the Nasdaq under the symbol ECPG. Encore's annual report lists its principal executive office in San Diego, California, and describes its business as buying portfolios of defaulted consumer receivables "at deep discounts to face value" and then working with people to repay them. MCM runs the U.S. side of that business; Encore's European arm is Cabot Credit Management.
The ownership chain matters when you read your paperwork. MCM says that Midland Funding, LLC owns past-due accounts and that MCM services them. That is why a letter or phone call usually comes from Midland Credit Management while a lawsuit is normally filed in the name of Midland Funding, LLC. MCM's site says it has been around since 1953. Encore's 10-K lists U.S. call centers in Phoenix, St. Cloud (Minnesota), Troy (Michigan) and Roanoke (Virginia), plus centers in India and Costa Rica that can also service U.S. accounts.
Why Midland Credit Management May Be Contacting You
Midland generally does not lend money. It contacts you because Midland Funding bought an account after the original lender charged it off. Encore's 10-K says most of its receivables come from credit card transactions and that sellers include banks, credit unions, consumer finance companies, retailers, utilities and government agencies. So the first letter will typically name a bank or store card you may remember, followed by Midland as the current owner.
According to the same filing, when someone does not respond and appears able to pay, MCM may send the account to its internal legal department or to an outside law firm paid on contingency. That is the step at which many Texans first see the Midland name: on a petition served by a constable. Our Midland lawsuit guide explains what to do then.
How to Check a Debt Midland Says You Owe
With a purchased account, the key question is whether Midland can prove it owns this specific debt and that the balance is right.
- Read the validation notice. Federal law requires a written notice listing the creditor at charge-off, the itemized balance and the dates of your dispute window (15 U.S.C. § 1692g; 12 C.F.R. § 1006.34). See what a validation notice should contain.
- Dispute in writing within the validation period. Ask for the original account agreement, the charge-off statement and the bill of sale or assignment showing how the account reached Midland Funding.
- Match the numbers. Compare the charge-off balance with your last statements. Interest or fees added after the sale should be explained.
- Look at the dates. Texas generally gives four years to sue on a debt (Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 16.004), and a debt buyer like Midland Funding cannot sue on time-barred consumer debt in Texas (Tex. Fin. Code § 392.307; see our explainer). Other states set different periods.
What Midland Credit Management Can and Can't Do
Because buying and collecting defaulted debt is the principal purpose of the business, Midland is a "debt collector" under the FDCPA's principal-purpose definition (15 U.S.C. § 1692a(6)), even though Henson v. Santander (2017) held that merely owning a debt you collect for yourself does not make you a collector under the separate "owed another" prong. MCM, which collects accounts owned by Midland Funding, also fits the definition. In practice:
- It may not threaten a lawsuit on an account it cannot or will not sue on, including a time-barred one (15 U.S.C. § 1692e(5)).
- It is presumed to cross the line if it calls about one account more than seven times in seven days (12 C.F.R. § 1006.14(b)(2); see Regulation F's call limits).
- Once you dispute in writing during the validation period, it must pause collection until it sends verification (15 U.S.C. § 1692g(b)).
- It cannot seize Texas wages for an ordinary credit card judgment; the Texas Constitution bars garnishment of current wages for most consumer debts.
Midland has been the subject of two CFPB enforcement actions, listed below. Our summary of the 2020 judgment explains what the CFPB alleged and what the order requires.
Government Actions on the Public Record
- CFPB v. Encore Capital Group (S.D. Cal.): stipulated judgment after the CFPB alleged violations of its 2015 order; $15 million penalty and five more years of conduct terms (2020-10-16)
- CFPB consent order (CFPB said Encore and Midland collected on debts it knew or should have known were inaccurate or unenforceable; up to $42 million in refunds and a $10 million penalty) (2015-09-09)
Being sued by Midland Credit Management? Read our full lawsuit guide →
We Sue Debt Collectors That Break the FDCPA
Texas Debt Law files Fair Debt Collection Practices Act lawsuits against debt collectors in federal court for consumers in Texas, California, Illinois, Georgia and Colorado. If Midland Credit Management or anyone collecting for it harassed you, misstated what you owe, threatened action it could not take, or told others about your debt, you may have a claim. A court can order a collector that violated the FDCPA to pay your actual damages, up to $1,000 in additional statutory damages, and your attorney's fees and costs (15 U.S.C. § 1692k(a)). An FDCPA claim generally must be filed within one year of the violation (§ 1692k(d)), so keep your letters, call logs, voicemails and screenshots, and talk to us early. Texas residents may also have claims under the Texas Debt Collection Act. Learn more from our FDCPA attorneys.
Free FDCPA Case Review(214) 851-2250
Or start your free case evaluation online. No lawyer can promise a result; every claim depends on its facts and proof.
Sources
- Midland Credit Management: Who is MCM?
- Encore Capital Group Form 10-K for fiscal 2025 (SEC)
- CFPB enforcement action: Encore Capital Group, et al.
- CFPB press release on the 2015 Encore and Portfolio Recovery Associates orders (Sept. 9, 2015)
- CFPB 2015 consent order, Encore Capital Group (PDF)
- CFPB Consumer Complaint Database: ENCORE CAPITAL GROUP INC., debt collection
This profile is general information compiled from public sources, not legal advice, and it does not state or imply that Midland Credit Management has violated any law. Company details change; tell us if something here is out of date. Lea este perfil en español.