NCO Group
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[edit] NCO's Role
Since 1926, North Collections Organization, Inc. (more commonly referred to as NCO Group) has provided outsourced collections solutions to both public and private sector clients. NCO has grown from a small, honest, family-owned business, to its current standing as a free-holding enterprise with outsourcing provided to many different clientele. Currently NCO Group is the world's largest collection agency.
[edit] Illegal Practices
In May of 2004, NCO Group division NCO Financial Services, the collections division of the company, was forced to pay $1.5 million in penalties to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) for violations of the U.S. Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA). The FTC stipulated that NCO used later-than-actual delinquency dates of potential debtors, which allowed the alleged delinquency to be noted on that individual's credit report. The fine was the largest in U.S. history for a collection agency. According to the FTC, the division violated terms of the FCRA related to reporting the date of last delinquency, making it subject to fines of $2,500 per offense.
