Before anything else: Mercantile Adjustment Bureau, LLC is out of business. The Better Business Bureau has confirmed the company has closed, and their BBB file is now marked as out of business. The Buffalo News also reported the closure.
If someone is calling you claiming to be Mercantile Adjustment Bureau, treat that contact with significant caution. Do not provide payment information or personal details until you independently verify who you are actually dealing with.
This guide covers what a Mercantile Adjustment Bureau entry on your credit report means and how to respond.
Who Was Mercantile Adjustment Bureau?
Mercantile Adjustment Bureau, LLC (MAB) was a third-party debt collection agency founded in 1934 and headquartered in Williamsville, New York, near Buffalo. The company collected healthcare, financial, and retail debts on behalf of original creditors for over 80 years.
Their client base included banks, financial institutions, healthcare providers, retailers, debt buyers, colleges and universities, utilities, and telecommunications companies. They also acquired Creditors Financial Group, LLC in 2014. In 2014 they also operated a subsidiary called MAB Collections, Inc.
The company is no longer operating.
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The Possible Successor: Mercantile Solutions
A possible successor entity appears to be operating as Mercantile Solutions at mercantilesolutions.com, from the same address at 165 Lawrence Bell Drive, Williamsville, New York. If you receive calls or letters from Mercantile Solutions about a debt that was previously with Mercantile Adjustment Bureau, confirm the specific entity contacting you before engaging.
Any new collector pursuing an old Mercantile Adjustment Bureau account is subject to the FDCPA. Request written validation identifying the current collector’s legal name, address, and authority to collect before taking any action.
If Mercantile Adjustment Bureau Is on Your Credit Report
An entry from a company that is now out of business requires specific verification steps.
First, identify who the actual furnisher is on your credit report. Credit bureau disputes about an out-of-business entity may receive inadequate responses because there is no functioning company to verify the information. Dispute the entry with each credit bureau and note that Mercantile Adjustment Bureau is confirmed out of business.
Second, identify who owns the underlying debt now. When a collection agency closes, portfolios are typically sold to other debt buyers or returned to original creditors. The entity contacting you about this debt may be different from whoever originally reported it.
Third, verify the original delinquency date. Given how long MAB operated, some accounts in their former portfolios may be approaching or past the seven-year credit reporting window or the statute of limitations in your state.
The Documented Deceptive Letter Pattern
Before closing, MAB accumulated nine documented federal lawsuits following a consistent pattern. Their collection letters obscured the 30-day dispute window, misidentified creditors, and concealed interest accrual information from consumers.
The most documented case type involved letters stating: “The account balance may periodically increase due to the addition of accrued interest as provided in your agreement with the original creditor.” Courts found this language misleading because it failed to state whether the current balance already included interest, what the applicable rate was, or when interest would next apply.
If you received a letter from MAB before they closed and still have it, a consumer protection attorney can evaluate whether the letter’s language supports an FDCPA claim.
If You Receive Claims to Be MAB After Their Closure
Mercantile Adjustment Bureau is out of business. Anyone calling and claiming to be MAB is either a scam or a successor/purchaser using the MAB name informally.
Do not pay anyone claiming to be Mercantile Adjustment Bureau without first confirming their legal entity name, their license to collect in your state, and their specific authority over the account they are pursuing. Send that verification request by certified mail.
If the contact turns out to be a scam, file a report with the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov and your state attorney general.
What Any Successor Collector Cannot Do
The FDCPA applies to any collector pursuing a former MAB account. Under federal law, they cannot:
- Obscure the 30-day dispute window in collection letters: The central documented MAB violation pattern.
- Misidentify the current creditor: A documented federal lawsuit pattern.
- Conceal interest accrual details: A documented federal lawsuit pattern.
- Collect without identifying their legal entity name: Required under the FDCPA.
- Operate without a valid state collection license: Check your state’s attorney general database.
- Call outside permitted hours: Contact is only allowed between 8 a.m. and 9 p.m. in your time zone.
File complaints at consumerfinance.gov. New York residents can also file with the New York Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Bureau.
Verify Before Engaging or Paying Anyone
If a collector contacts you about a former MAB account, send a written validation request by certified mail. Ask for the collector’s complete legal name and state collection license number, the original creditor, the account number, the balance at time of charge-off, the original delinquency date, and the complete chain of ownership from the original creditor to the current collector.
Check the original delinquency date against your state’s statute of limitations and the seven-year credit reporting window before engaging.
How to Check Your Credit Report for MAB Errors
Pull your credit reports from all three bureaus at AnnualCreditReport.com. Is the original creditor identified? Is the original delinquency date accurate? Is the account still within the seven-year reporting window?
Because MAB is out of business, credit bureaus may have difficulty verifying the entry. Dispute entries you cannot verify and note that MAB has been confirmed as closed.
How Long Can Anyone Legally Pursue the Debt?
New York has a 3-year statute of limitations on most consumer debts, one of the shortest in the country. If you no longer live in New York, the relevant state is typically where you currently reside.
Given MAB’s long operating history, many former accounts may already be past the New York 3-year limit.
Your Options for a Former MAB Account
Once you have identified who currently holds the debt:
- Dispute the credit report entry: Note that MAB is confirmed out of business. Credit bureaus may not be able to verify the entry.
- Check the statute of limitations: New York’s 3-year limit means many former MAB accounts may be time-barred.
- Verify the current collector’s identity: Request legal entity name, license number, and chain of ownership before paying anything.
- Negotiate with the current holder if the debt is valid: Get any settlement in writing before paying.
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How to Contact the Possible Successor
If correspondence comes from Mercantile Solutions at the same Williamsville address, verify their legal entity status before engaging:
- Address: 165 Lawrence Bell Drive, Suite 100, Williamsville, NY 14221
Do not use the old MAB phone number to make payments. Confirm current contact information directly from the collector’s written correspondence.
Bottom Line
Mercantile Adjustment Bureau is out of business. Their BBB file is marked closed and the Buffalo News confirmed the closure. Anyone contacting you as MAB should be verified before any payment or personal information is shared.
New York’s 3-year statute of limitations means many former MAB accounts may already be time-barred. Dispute credit report entries from a closed company and demand full chain-of-ownership documentation from any successor collector before engaging.
Brooke Banks is a personal finance writer specializing in credit, debt, and smart money management. She helps readers understand their rights, build better credit, and make confident financial decisions with clear, practical advice.