Fair Collections & Outsourcing, Inc. d/b/a FCO: if a letter from them arrived

Names you may see

A 2025 Connecticut Department of Banking consent order names Fair Collections & Outsourcing, Inc. d/b/a FCO and Fair Collections & Outsourcing of New England, Inc. d/b/a FCO, and states they share a parent company, FCO Holding, Inc.

“WHEREAS, FCO NE and FCO are affiliated entities, which share a parent company, FCO Holding, Inc., a Maryland corporation;”
Conn. Dep't of Banking, In the Matter of Fair Collections & Outsourcing of New England, Inc. d/b/a FCO and Fair Collections & Outsourcing, Inc. d/b/a FCO, Consent Order, May 1, 2025

Where it is based

The Connecticut order describes Fair Collections & Outsourcing, Inc. as a Maryland corporation with its main office in Laurel, Maryland.

Complaints to the CFPB

From 2023-10-01 to 2026-09-30, consumers sent the CFPB 3,232 debt-collection complaints naming FAIR COLLECTIONS & OUTSOURCING, INC.. The company responded on time to 98% of them. Most complaints came from TX (441), FL (342), CA (317), MD (257), GA (242), NC (163). Where consumers named the kind of debt: rental debt (1,944), other debt (113), credit card debt (18), telecommunications debt (5).

What the complaints were about

How the company responded

The CFPB publishes complaints after the company responds or after 15 days. It does not verify every fact in a complaint, and complaint counts reflect company size and how many consumers know to complain as well as company conduct.

Public enforcement actions

CFPB v. FCO Holding, Inc., Fair Collections & Outsourcing, Inc., Fair Collections & Outsourcing of New England, Inc., FCO Worldwide, Inc., and Michael E. Sobota, No. 8:19-cv-02817 (D. Md.), Stipulated Final Judgment and Order, Oct. 27, 2021

The CFPB sued FCO Holding, Inc. and subsidiaries including Fair Collections & Outsourcing, Inc. in 2019, alleging FCRA/Regulation V and FDCPA violations; on October 27, 2021, the court entered a stipulated final judgment requiring an $850,000 civil money penalty and policies and procedures to prevent future violations.

“On October 27, 2021, the court entered a stipulated final judgment and order, which requires defendants to pay a $850,000 civil money penalty and put in place policies and procedures to prevent future violations.”
CFPB v. FCO Holding, Inc., Fair Collections & Outsourcing, Inc., Fair Collections & Outsourcing of New England, Inc., FCO Worldwide, Inc., and Michael E. Sobota, No. 8:19-cv-02817 (D. Md.), Stipulated Final Judgment and Order, Oct. 27, 2021

CFPB v. FCO Holding, Inc., et al., No. 8:19-cv-02817 (D. Md.)

The CFPB alleged that FCO failed to maintain reasonable policies and procedures regarding the accuracy and integrity of information it furnished to consumer reporting agencies, including the handling of consumer disputes.

“The Bureau alleged that FCO, which furnishes information to consumer reporting agencies, violated the Fair Credit Reporting Act and Regulation V by failing to maintain reasonable policies and procedures regarding the accuracy and integrity of the information it furnishes,”
CFPB v. FCO Holding, Inc., et al., No. 8:19-cv-02817 (D. Md.)

Conn. Dep't of Banking, Consent Order, May 1, 2025

In a May 1, 2025 consent order, the Connecticut Banking Commissioner alleged that between at least 2015 and December 31, 2024, Fair Collections & Outsourcing, Inc. acted as a consumer collection agency in Connecticut without a license; the respondents agreed to a $10,000 civil penalty plus $2,000 in back licensing fees.

“the Commissioner alleges that between at least 2015 and December 31, 2024, FCO acted as a consumer collection agency in Connecticut without a license, in violation of Section 36a-801(a) of the Connecticut General Statutes, in effect at such time;”
Conn. Dep't of Banking, Consent Order, May 1, 2025

Conn. Dep't of Banking, Consent Order, May 1, 2025

Under the Connecticut order, the respondents agreed to pay, jointly or severally, a $10,000 civil penalty.

“they shall, jointly or severally, remit to the Department of Banking by electronic funds transfer, cashier’s check, certified check or money order made payable to “Treasurer, State of Connecticut”, the sum of Ten Thousand Dollars ($10,000) as a civil penalty;”
Conn. Dep't of Banking, Consent Order, May 1, 2025

If you got a letter from Fair Collections & Outsourcing, Inc. d/b/a FCO

1. Check that the debt is yours and the amount is right before you pay anything. A collector has to send a validation notice listing the creditor and an itemization of the amount.
2. Within 30 days of receiving that notice you can dispute in writing; the collector then has to stop collecting the disputed amount until it verifies the debt. The validation letter generator writes that letter.
3. If the debt is old, check your state's statute of limitations before you pay or promise anything — in many states a payment can restart the clock, in others it cannot.
4. If something is wrong, you can submit your own complaint at consumerfinance.gov/complaint.