Consumer complaint received 2026-03-30 00:00:00
Product: Debt collection — Credit card debt
Issue: False statements or representation — Attempted to collect wrong amount
Company: ENCORE CAPITAL GROUP INC.
State: TN

Complaint narrative:
I am filing this complaint against Midland Credit Management XXXX XXXX ( MCM ) for eight documented violations of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act ( FDCPA ) and Fair Credit Reporting Act ( FCRA ), all established from the face of MCMs own written communications and credit bureau records regarding MCM Account No. XXXX ( original creditor : XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX, account ending XXXX, alleged balance {$4000.00}, charge-off date XX/XX/XXXX ). VIOLATION 1 FALSE CREDIT REPORTING REPRESENTATION : MCM 's XX/XX/XXXX email stated it would not report this account to credit bureaus until XXXX months after initial contact XX/XX/XXXX. On XX/XX/XXXX, only 22 days later, MCM threatened imminent credit reporting before its own XX/XX/XXXX deadline. These representations directly contradict each other in violation of 15 U.S.C. 1692e ( 10 ) and 1692e ( 8 ). VIOLATION 2 OVERSHADOWING VALIDATION RIGHTS : MCM transmitted simultaneous threats of attorney referral and accelerated credit bureau reporting on XX/XX/XXXX the final day ( Day XXXX ) of MCM 's own stated dispute window. This conduct overshadows the consumer 's right to dispute under 15 U.S.C. 1692g ( b ). VIOLATION 3 EMPTY ATTORNEY THREAT : MCM 's Pre-Legal Notice ( Form XXXX, Batch XXXX ) is a standardized mass-generated form threatening to refer the account to a Tennessee attorney . No attorney has been identified. Batch-form litigation threats without individualized determination violate 15 U.S.C. 1692e ( 5 ). VIOLATION 4 FALSE DEFAULT DATE : MCM 's XX/XX/XXXX initial contact letter states default date of XX/XX/XXXX in the same paragraph as last payment date of XX/XX/XXXX. A payment accepted 12 days after the stated default date means at least one date is false, violating 15 U.S.C. 1692e ( 2 ) ( A ). VIOLATION 5 CONFLICTING SIMULTANEOUS DEADLINES : On XX/XX/XXXX, MCM transmitted two communications regarding the same account : a physical letter stating pay by XX/XX/XXXX, and an email stating pay by XX/XX/XXXX. The same-day communications also show different phone numbers ( XXXX vs. XXXX ). At minimum one deadline is false, violating 15 U.S.C. 1692e ( 10 ) and 1692e ( 2 ) ( A ). VIOLATIONS 6, 7, 8 UNAUTHORIZED CREDIT FILE ACCESS ( XXXX U.S.C. XXXX ; XXXX ) : MCM accessed my XXXX credit file on three separate dates XX/XX/XXXX, XX/XX/XXXX, and XX/XX/XXXX under the Account Review category. MCM has no tradeline on XXXX for this account, has furnished no data to XXXX, and had no existing account to review. Additionally, the XX/XX/XXXX pull preceded XXXX acquisition of this account by two calendar days : MCMs own initial contact letter ( Exhibit A ) states the account was not sold to MCM until XX/XX/XXXX. On XX/XX/XXXX, MCM had no ownership of this debt and no relationship with this consumer, making any account ownership defense wholly unavailable for that specific pull. Each pull falls outside all permissible purposes under 15 U.S.C. 1681b ( a ). Each constitutes a separate FCRA violation carrying up to {$1000.00} in statutory damages under 15 U.S.C. 1681n ( {$3000.00} total ), independent of FDCPA damages. I mailed a formal written dispute and validation demand to MCM on XX/XX/XXXX by XXXX XXXX Mail. I have documentation of all eight violations in the form of MCMs own printed communications and my TransUnion credit report. I am seeking confirmation that this account has been coded as disputed and that MCMs validation response satisfies all statutory requirements.

Company response to consumer: Closed with non-monetary relief