CFPB Consumer Complaint Profile

Encore Capital Group Inc.

What 55,551 consumer complaints filed with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau reveal about how this company handles credit, billing and collection disputes.

Data updated 2026-05-15

55,551
Total complaints
19,059
Last 12 months
99.9%
Timely response
56
States affected

The verdict

Out of 3,848 financial companies in the CFPB database, Encore Capital Group Inc. has accumulated 55,551 complaints, placing it #12 by volume. It answers 99.9% of complaints on time - above the 93% median for companies with 100+ complaints.

#12
of 3,848 companies by volume
99.9%
answered on time
Debt collection
most-complained product
56
states with complaints
Encore Capital Group Inc. timely response rate 99.9%
Industry benchmark

Percent of CFPB complaints answered within the regulator's expected window. Industry benchmark sits at 95%.

Reading this profile

Complaints by Product

Debt collection - I do not know 20,393
Debt collection - Credit card debt 16,132
Credit reporting or other personal consumer reports - Credit reporting 6,635
Debt collection - Credit card 3,590
Credit reporting, credit repair services, or other personal consumer reports - Credit reporting 2,885
Debt collection - Other debt 2,054
Debt collection - Other (i.e. phone, health club, etc.) 1,586
Credit card - General-purpose credit card or charge card 389
Debt or credit management - Debt settlement 222
Credit card or prepaid card - General-purpose credit card or charge card 214

Top Issues

1.Attempts to collect debt not owed 14,842
2.Written notification about debt 6,974
3.Took or threatened to take negative or legal action 6,756
4.False statements or representation 5,713
5.Incorrect information on your report 4,976
6.Communication tactics 3,535
7.Cont'd attempts collect debt not owed 3,016
8.Improper use of your report 2,403
9.Disclosure verification of debt 1,734
10.Problem with a company's investigation into an existing problem 1,478

Complaints by Year

Year Complaints
2013 984
2014 2,596
2015 2,173
2016 1,559
2017 1,705
2018 1,851
2019 1,676
2020 1,950
2021 3,079
2022 2,732
2023 3,739
2024 8,806
2025 17,401
2026 5,300

Complaints by State (Top 15)

Florida 6,796
Texas 6,641
California 5,840
Georgia 3,980
New York 3,124
Pennsylvania 2,394
Illinois 2,384
New Jersey 1,770
Michigan 1,654
Ohio 1,616
South Carolina 1,322
North Carolina 1,319
Virginia 1,296
Maryland 1,265
Louisiana 1,119

Company Responses

Closed with explanation 33,185
Closed with non-monetary relief 21,487
In progress 783
Closed with monetary relief 95
Closed 1

What the CFPB Complaint Record Shows for Encore Capital Group Inc.

55,551 complaints against Encore Capital Group Inc. appear in the CFPB record, including 19,059 from the trailing year. The 56 states and territories represented put this footprint in nationwide territory. No product draws more complaints than "Debt collection," which sits at the top of the product breakdown. Within that category, the most frequently cited specific issue is "Attempts to collect debt not owed" - a useful starting point for anyone trying to understand what goes wrong most often in the company's consumer interactions.

Encore Capital Group Inc.'s timely response rate stands at 99.9%, meaning that share of CFPB-forwarded complaints received a company reply within the 15-day window the Bureau expects. That is at or above benchmark levels, a sign the company handles intake and escalation well. In 18.2% of resolved cases, the consumer formally disputed the company's response - a rough measure of how often the first resolution missed the mark. 38.9% of resolved complaints ended with some monetary or non-monetary relief for the consumer.

How to read complaint counts

Complaint counts alone do not tell the full story, larger institutions with more customers will naturally generate more complaints in absolute terms. The more informative signals are the direction of the yearly trend shown above, the state-level concentration (which hints at regional servicing issues or regulatory exposure), and the ratio of monetary-relief closures to closed-without-relief outcomes. Taken together, these fields give consumers a reasonable empirical basis for deciding whether to escalate a dispute, and give researchers a starting point for investigating institutional patterns.

Educational data summary, not financial or legal advice. Individual complaint outcomes vary. Consumers should consult a qualified attorney or financial advisor for guidance on a specific dispute.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many CFPB complaints does Encore Capital Group Inc. have?

The CFPB has logged 55,551 complaints against Encore Capital Group Inc. to date, of which 19,059 came in over the last 12 months.

Does Encore Capital Group Inc. respond to complaints on time?

99.9% of the CFPB complaints against Encore Capital Group Inc. get a response within the expected window. That is a strong response record by CFPB standards.

What product generates the most complaints for Encore Capital Group Inc.?

Among all products tied to Encore Capital Group Inc., "Debt collection" accounts for the largest share of complaints (full breakdown above).

What is the most common complaint issue with Encore Capital Group Inc.?

"Attempts to collect debt not owed" is the single most frequently cited issue in complaints against Encore Capital Group Inc. - see all issues and counts above.

How do I file a complaint against Encore Capital Group Inc.?

You can file a complaint against Encore Capital Group Inc. directly with the CFPB at consumerfinance.gov/complaint. The CFPB will forward your complaint to the company and work to get you a response, typically within 15 days.

In how many states have consumers complained about Encore Capital Group Inc.?

Encore Capital Group Inc. has drawn CFPB complaints from 56 states and territories. That figure covers the 50 states, DC, Puerto Rico, and smaller CFPB-tracked jurisdictions (Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands, military postal codes), so it can run higher than the 52 states/territories with a dedicated page on this site.

Similar Companies

Matched by complaint volume nationwide and by product category - a different peer set than the sibling-portal links below.

Source: CFPB Consumer Complaint Database CFPB Consumer Complaint Database Data through March 2026