Midland Credit Management Lawsuits

Midland Credit Management (and its alter ego Midland Funding) is a company that buys bad debt – credit accounts that are in default are referred to as bad debt – to try to make a profit. These debts can be in the form of credit cards, auto loans, student loans or personal loans.  Midland tends to focus on credit card accounts when purchasing bad (or zombie) debt.  Midland buys large groups of these allegedly defaulted credit card accounts for pennies on the dollar for the sole purpose of attempting to collect whatever they can from individuals just like you. From the information that we have, they spend an average of about three cents per dollar on these account purchases.  They file hundreds of lawsuits daily in hopes of collecting on old debt claims that have been charged off by the original creditor.  As of early 2023, Midland has been averaging about 500-700 lawsuits per week in Pennsylvania.

It is perfectly legal for you to force them to prove a case, and, it is highly recommended. Do not think that you “owe the debt” because they say so or because they can identify an old account of yours. This is the first mistake that most consumers make when dealing with a Midland Credit Management account.  At some point, you possibly owed some debt to the original creditor but you likely do not owe anything to this debt buyer.  Midland is NOT working for the original creditor and they are not collecting for the original creditor.  They bought your account and they own it.  This is no different than purchasing a vehicle or any other asset.  If you pay any money to Midland, the original creditor will not see a dime.  Any payments made to Midland are pure profit for the company.

So How Does This Work?

Generally, Midland Funding buys these credit card accounts in blocks of about 25,000-35,000.  Once they buy the accounts, they assign them to their in house collection agency, Midland Credit Management.  Midland Credit will then begin the collection process, starting with a Dunning letter.  This is a letter that advises you of the sale and advises you of some of your rights.  This letter is an attempt to collect a debt and it is the first thing that Midland will do for most cases.  After the letter is sent, there may be phone calls to you.  These are additional attempts to collect debt.  Most of us do not want to take these phone calls, but most people don’t know how to make them stop.  All that it takes is a simple letter on your part, directed to Midland Funding or Midland Credit Management, that says “do not contact me via phone again”.  After that letter is sent, Midland will not be able to call you again.  If they do, they will have violated your rights under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.

Midland can no longer call you, what can they do next?  In most instances a follow up letter will arrive about three weeks apart.  If you do not make payment arrangements during this time, in most instances, Midland will sue you.  DO NOT FEAR A LAWSUIT!  This is the best way to resolve a delinquent or defaulted account in most instances.

The Midland Credit Management Lawsuit

For the last few years, Midland has taken the approach of filing lawsuits at the local district justice.  This is where about 95% of Midland lawsuits are filed.  Your local magistrate has jurisdiction over any civil case that is $12,000 or less so it is proper for Midland to file there.   After the lawsuit is filed, it will be served to you via one of two different ways.  The lawsuit can be served via certified mail or the local constable can hand deliver the lawsuit to you.  It’s much cheaper to use certified mail so Midland will make that first choice almost every time.

Your first step should be to contact a consumer attorney.  Do not contact the local attorney down the street, do not contact a personal injury attorney or the family attorney.  You need a specialist, an attorney who is well versed in these types of cases.  Having someone who has handled hundreds if not thousands of these cases is crucial to protect your rights and interests.  At your consultation you can discuss your options.  Generally there are two;  defend or settle.   If a good consumer attorney is involved these matters can be settled for a fairly nominal amount, usually a small percentage of the debt.  If you cannot stand the thought of litigation or pressure then this can be an option for you.  In most instances it’s not the best option but it is an option. 

The second option is to defend the case.  This approach is fairly straightforward.  You hire a consumer attorney then get out of the way.  The attorney will attend the hearing and you will not attend.  You should never attend a credit card hearing (one exception is if there is an identity theft allegation).  If you appear then the Midland attorney can cross examine you and use your testimony against you.  Attending a hearing can be fatal to your chances of winning.   In most instances, Midland will hire an “appearance attorney” to represent itself at the hearing.  This is basically a “temp” attorney.  Midland, in most cases, will not have a witness at the hearing.  The hearing ends up taking place with a temp attorney, no witness, limited documentation, and your Artim Law attorney.  In this scenario, a positive outcome is the most likely result.

Other Midland Issues

Throughout the collection process, Midland might contact you several times via phone or mail.  Keep notes of all phone calls, including date, time, who you spoke to, which account was discussed, and what was discussed.  Make sure to keep all letters from Midland (be sure to keep the envelopes that they come in) so that we can review them for discrepancies or rights violations.  There are many instances where these letters violate your legal rights and when that occurs we can take the offensive against Midland.  We have filed several FDCPA claims against Midland for unfair debt collection practices. If a representative of Midland has contacted your neighbors, employer or relatives, or has threatened wage garnishment, or has committed any other illegal act, please contact our office immediately.

Our firm has a great deal of experience in defending credit card collection cases. If you have been sued in any Pennsylvania county, by Midland Credit Management or another collection agency, our firm can help you defend this claim at minimal cost, with a great chance at success. Contact our office here or call us at 412-348-8600. We offer a free, no obligation 15 minute consultation on any Midland matter.