collection agency

American

noun

a firm that collects unpaid bills for other firms and is usually compensated by receiving a percentage of the amount collected.

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

But the fines – which were passed on to a debt collection agency – are understood be for both the vehicle he currently drives and one he claims he sold in 2021.

From BBC • Feb. 13, 2026

At one point, Henry-Halabi received calls from a collection agency that she says came without a warning from her loan holder.

From MarketWatch • Dec. 19, 2025

In March 2024, a New York lawyer representing a collection agency contacted one family who worked with SEAM, saying that Side owed a high-interest lender $69,500 and was seeking to recover it.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 22, 2025

Keller's office sent bills to Trump's New York and Mar-a-Logo residences and a collection agency is working to recover the debt, the mayor's office told ABC.

From Salon • Nov. 4, 2024

But she began receiving menacing phone calls from a collection agency about an old bill her health insurance had not covered.

From "Class Matters" by The New York Times

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023