ARM Companies Well-Represented in Bankruptcy Filings

Of the top 50 creditors named in consumer bankruptcy filings in the first full week of July, 16 were accounts receivable management firms. Combined, collection agencies and debt buyers were named in 20 percent of filings attributed to the top 50 companies.

The data comes from bankruptcy account management firm American InfoSource and covers consumer bankruptcy filings from July 7-13, 2012.

When consumers file for bankruptcy protection, they must list creditors to whom they owe debts. With debt volumes and ARM placements coming off of all-time highs a few years ago, it makes sense that collection agencies and debt buyers would be heavily represented in the filings.

The most commonly-named creditors in filings are large consumer lenders and credit card issuers, with the IRS also prominently placed.

Debt buyer Encore Capital Group was the highest-ranked ARM company, named in 4,447 filings in the week. NCO Group was next with 3,441 mentions and Portfolio Recovery Associates came in third named in 2,762 filings. Consumers can, and typically do, name multiple creditors in filings.

Interestingly, Encore recently divested its Ascension Capital Group bankruptcy servicing business, with the buyer being American InfoSource, the publisher of the bankruptcy data.

Below is a table with the Top 50 creditors named in filings for the week of July 7-13, 2012. ARM companies are in red.