Midland is reporting a debt you don't owe?

Who Midland is

Midland Credit Management (MCM) is a subsidiary of Encore Capital Group, a public company traded on the Nasdaq as ECPG. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has described Encore as the nation’s largest debt buyer and collector.

Midland is not your original lender. It is a debt buyer. Banks, card issuers and other creditors charge off accounts they consider uncollectible and sell them, usually at a discount. According to Midland, its affiliate Midland Funding LLC owns past-due accounts and partners with MCM to service them. If you see “Midland Funding” on your credit report, Midland says Midland Funding owns the account. If you see “Midland Credit Management,” MCM owns it.

Midland reports these collection accounts to the credit bureaus. Its own credit reporting page says it does not begin reporting during the first six months after it sends its initial notice that it acquired the account. After that, a Midland tradeline can sit on your Equifax, Experian and TransUnion reports, where lenders and landlords see it.

Midland’s record with federal regulators

In September 2015, the CFPB took action against Encore and its subsidiaries, including Midland Funding and Midland Credit Management. The CFPB ordered up to $42 million in consumer refunds and a $10 million penalty, and required the companies to stop collecting on debts with an estimated face value of over $125 million. Among other things, the CFPB found that the companies collected debts that were unsubstantiated or inaccurate, including wrong balances and interest rates, and that Encore ignored or inadequately investigated disputes. The order requires the companies to review original account-level documents before collecting in certain situations, such as when a consumer disputes the debt.

In September 2020, the CFPB sued Encore, Midland Funding, Midland Credit Management and Asset Acceptance, alleging they violated the 2015 order and federal debt collection law. A stipulated final judgment entered in October 2020 required a $15 million civil money penalty and $79,308.81 in consumer redress, and extended certain conduct provisions of the 2015 order for five more years.

These are regulator findings and allegations, not findings about your account.

Reporting errors Midland accounts can cause

When debts change hands, account details can get lost. Common problems include:

• Debts that aren’t yours. A wrong match on name or Social Security number can put a stranger’s debt, or an identity thief’s account, on your report.
• Wrong balances. A Midland balance higher than what the original creditor charged off may include interest or fees that were not authorized.
• Paid or settled debts. Midland says it requests deletion after an account is paid or settled in full. If yours still shows a balance, that is inaccurate.
• Bankruptcy-discharged debts. A debt discharged in bankruptcy should not be reported as currently owed.
• Re-aged debts. Under 15 U.S.C. § 1681c, a collection account generally cannot be reported more than seven years after the 180-day period following the original delinquency. Midland itself states it must delete its tradeline seven years after the delinquency date. A new or later delinquency date keeps a debt on your report longer than the law allows.
• Duplicates. If the original creditor still reports a balance after selling the account to Midland, the same debt is counted twice.
• No dispute notation. If you disputed with Midland and it keeps reporting without noting the dispute, that can violate the FDCPA.

How to dispute a Midland account

1. Pull all three reports. Get them from AnnualCreditReport.com and save dated copies. Note whether the account appears as Midland Funding, Midland Credit Management, or both.
2. Dispute with each credit bureau that reports it. Use the official dispute channels for Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. Explain exactly what is wrong and attach proof: a bankruptcy discharge, a settlement or paid letter, an identity theft report, or records showing the real delinquency date.
3. Also dispute in writing with Midland. Midland offers a dispute process through its help center. Send a written dispute too and keep proof of delivery. If you dispute within 30 days of Midland’s first notice to you, the FDCPA requires it to stop collecting until it provides verification (15 U.S.C. § 1692g).
4. Keep everything. Save results letters, envelopes, confirmation numbers and later credit reports.

Why both? The FCRA’s private claim against a debt buyer, 15 U.S.C. § 1681s-2(b), is triggered only when you dispute with a credit bureau and the bureau notifies the furnisher. A dispute sent only to Midland does not trigger that claim. The direct dispute still matters: it creates a record, and once you tell Midland the debt is disputed, reporting it without that notation can violate the FDCPA.

Your rights

• Investigation by Midland (§ 1681s-2(b)). After a bureau forwards your dispute, Midland must conduct a reasonable investigation, review what you sent, and correct, delete or block information that is inaccurate, incomplete or unverifiable.
• Accuracy and reinvestigation by the bureaus (§§ 1681e(b), 1681i). The bureau must follow reasonable procedures to assure maximum possible accuracy and reasonably reinvestigate your dispute. A bureau that simply repeats Midland’s answer may be liable separately.
• FDCPA protections. A collector may not falsely represent the amount of a debt (15 U.S.C. § 1692e(2)) or communicate credit information it knows or should know is false, including failing to communicate that a disputed debt is disputed (§ 1692e(8)).

What you may recover

Under the FCRA, you may recover actual damages for negligent violations, including credit denials, higher interest and emotional distress, plus attorney’s fees and costs (15 U.S.C. § 1681o). For willful violations, you may recover actual damages or statutory damages of $100 to $1,000, punitive damages, and fees and costs (§ 1681n). Under the FDCPA, you may recover actual damages, statutory damages of up to $1,000 per action, and attorney’s fees (15 U.S.C. § 1692k).

FCRA Attorneys handles these cases on contingency. There is no fee unless we win.

Get a free case review before time runs out

FDCPA claims expire one year after the violation. FCRA claims generally must be filed within two years of discovering the violation and no later than five years after it occurred. If Midland is reporting a debt that isn’t yours, a wrong balance, or a debt that should be gone, gather your credit reports and dispute letters and request a free case review. FCRA Attorneys has offices in Dallas, Houston, Chicago, Los Angeles and Atlanta, and files FCRA cases in federal court nationwide, directly or with local counsel.

Questions about suing Midland Credit Management

Can I sue Midland over my credit report?

Possibly. If you dispute a Midland account with Equifax, Experian or TransUnion and Midland fails to reasonably investigate or keeps reporting inaccurate information, you may have a claim under 15 U.S.C. § 1681s-2(b). Because Midland is a debt collector, false credit reporting can also violate the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.

What is the difference between Midland Funding and Midland Credit Management?

Midland Credit Management says that Midland Funding LLC owns past-due accounts and that Midland Credit Management services them. Either name can appear on your credit report. Both are part of Encore Capital Group, and either may be a proper defendant depending on who reported the information.

Midland says it will delete the account if I pay. Should I pay a debt that isn't mine?

Midland's published policy is to request deletion of its tradeline after an account is paid or settled in full. That policy does not make a debt you don't owe valid. If the account is not yours or the balance is wrong, dispute it and talk to a lawyer before paying anything.

How long do I have to act?

An FCRA claim generally must be filed within two years after you discover the violation and no later than five years after it occurred (15 U.S.C. § 1681p). An FDCPA claim must be filed within one year of the violation (15 U.S.C. § 1692k(d)), so timing matters.

Related reading

• How to Dispute Credit Report Errors With Equifax, Experian and TransUnion
• An Account on My Credit Report Is Not Mine: What Now?
• Charged-Off Account Still Showing a Balance? When It's Accurate and When It's Not
• Examples of FCRA Violations, Matched to the Section of the Law They Break
• Do You Still Have an FCRA Claim After the Error Was Fixed?

Sources

• Midland Credit Management: Who Is MCM (subsidiary of Encore Capital Group)
• Midland Credit Management: Midland Funding LLC and its relationship with MCM
• Midland Credit Management: Credit Reporting help center
• CFPB press release: CFPB Takes Action Against the Two Largest Debt Buyers for Using Deceptive Tactics to Collect Bad Debts (September 9, 2015)
• CFPB enforcement action: Encore Capital Group, et al. (2020 lawsuit and stipulated final judgment)

Updated November 2026. This page is general information, not legal advice.