Ownership, Description of Business, and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies (Policies)	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2015
Accounting Policies [Abstract]
Portfolio Purchasing and Recovery	Portfolio Purchasing and Recovery United States The Company purchases receivable portfolios based on robust, account-level valuation methods and employs a suite of proprietary statistical and behavioral models across the full extent of its operations. These methods and models allow the Company to value portfolios accurately (and limit the risk of overpaying), avoid buying portfolios that are incompatible with its methods or goals and precisely align the accounts it purchases with its operational channels to maximize future collections. As a result, the Company has been able to realize significant returns from the receivables it acquires. The Company maintains strong relationships with many of the largest credit and telecommunication providers, and possesses one of the industry’s best collection staff retention rates. The Company uses insights discovered during its purchasing process to build account collection strategies. The Company’s proprietary consumer-level collectability analysis is the primary determinant of whether an account will be actively serviced post-purchase. The Company continuously refines this analysis to determine the most effective collection strategy to pursue for each account it owns. After the Company’s preliminary analysis, it seeks to collect on only a fraction of the accounts it purchases, through one or more of its collection channels. The channel identification process is analogous to a funneling system, where the Company first differentiates those consumers who it believes are not able to pay from those who are able to pay. Consumers who the Company believes are financially incapable of making any payments, facing extenuating circumstances or hardships (such as medical issues), serving in the military, or currently receiving social security as their only source of income are excluded from the next step of its collection process and are designated as inactive. The remaining pool of accounts in the funnel then receives further evaluation. At that point, the Company analyzes and determines a consumer’s perceived willingness to pay. Based on that analysis, the Company will pursue collections through letters and/or phone calls to its consumers. Despite its efforts to reach consumers and work out a settlement option, only a small number of consumers who are contacted choose to engage with the Company. Those who do are often offered deep discounts on their obligations, or are presented with payment plans that are better suited to meet their daily cash flow needs. The majority of contacted consumers, however, do not respond to the Company’s calls or letters, and therefore the Company must then make the difficult decision whether or not to pursue collections through legal means. The Company continually monitors applicable changes to laws governing statutes of limitations and disclosures to consumers. The Company maintains policies, system controls, and processes designed to ensure that accounts past the applicable statute of limitations do not get placed into legal collections. Additionally, in written and verbal communications with consumers, the Company provides disclosures to the consumer that the account is past its applicable statute of limitations and, therefore, the Company will not pursue collections through legal means. Europe Cabot: Through Cabot, portfolio receivables are purchased using a proprietary pricing model. This model allows Cabot to value portfolios with a high degree of accuracy and quantify portfolio performance in order to maximize future collections. As a result, Cabot has been able to realize significant returns from the assets it has acquired. Cabot maintains strong relationships with many of the largest financial service providers in the United Kingdom. Cabot also uses insights discovered during its purchasing process to build account-level collection strategies. Cabot’s proprietary consumer-level collectability analysis is a determinant of how an account will be serviced post-purchase. Cabot continuously refines this analysis to determine the most effective customer engagement strategy to pursue for each account it owns to ensure that customers are treated fairly and the most suitable engagement and collection strategy for each individual customer is deployed. In recent years, Cabot has concentrated on buying portfolios that are defined as semi-performing, in which over 50% of the accounts have received a payment in three of the last four months immediately prior to the portfolio purchase. Cabot establishes contact with consumers, in order to convey payment arrangements and gauge the willingness of these consumers to continue to pay. Consumers who Cabot believes are financially incapable of making any payments, those having negative disposable income, or those experiencing hardships, are managed outside of normal collection routines. The remaining pool of accounts then receives further evaluation. Cabot analyzes and estimates a consumer’s perceived willingness to pay. Based on that analysis, Cabot tries to engage with customers through letters and/or phone calls. Where contact is made and consumers indicate a willingness to pay, a patient approach of forbearance is applied using regulatory protocols within the United Kingdom to assess affordability and ensure that plans are fair and balanced and therefore, sustainable. Where consumers cannot be located or refuse to engage in a constructive dialogue, Cabot will pass these accounts through a litigation scorecard and rule set in order to assess suitability for legal action. Through Cabot’s Marlin subsidiary, Cabot has a competitive advantage in the use of litigation-enhanced collections for non-paying accounts. Grove: Grove, through its subsidiaries and affiliates, is a leading specialty investment firm focused on consumer non-performing loans, including insolvencies (in particular, IVAs) in the United Kingdom and bank and non-bank receivables in Spain. Grove purchases portfolio receivables using a proprietary pricing model. This model allows Grove to value portfolios with a high degree of accuracy and quantify portfolio performance in order to maximize future collections. Latin America Refinancia is a market leader in the management of non-performing loans in Colombia and Peru. In addition to purchasing defaulted receivables, Refinancia offers portfolio management services to banks for non-performing loans. Refinancia also specializes in non-traditional niches in Colombia, including providing financial solutions to individuals who have previously defaulted on their credit obligations, payment plan guarantee and factoring services through merchants and loan guarantee services to financial institutions. Beginning in December 2014 the Company began investing in non-performing secured residential mortgages in Latin America.
Tax Lien Business	Tax Lien Business Propel’s principal activities are the acquisition and servicing of residential and commercial tax liens on real property. These liens take priority over most other liens. By funding tax liens, Propel provides state and local taxing authorities and governments with much needed tax revenue. To the extent permitted by local law, Propel works directly with property owners to structure affordable payment plans designed to allow them to keep their property while paying their property tax obligation over time. Propel maintains a foreclosure rate of less than one-half of one percent. Propel’s receivables secured by property tax liens include Texas tax liens, Nevada tax liens, and tax lien certificates in various other states (collectively, “Tax Liens”). With Texas and Nevada Tax Liens, Texas or Nevada property owners choose to have the taxing authority transfer their tax lien to Propel. Propel pays their tax lien obligation to the taxing authority and the property owner pays Propel over time at a lower interest rate than they would be assessed by the taxing authority. Propel’s arrangements with Texas and Nevada property owners provide them with repayment plans that are both affordable and flexible when compared with other payment options. Propel also purchases Tax Liens in various other states directly from taxing authorities, securing rights to outstanding property tax payments, interest and penalties. In most cases, such Tax Liens continue to be serviced by the taxing authority. When the taxing authority is paid, it repays Propel the outstanding balance of the lien plus interest, which is established by statute or negotiated at the time of the purchase.
Basis of Accounting	The accompanying interim condensed consolidated financial statements have been prepared by Encore, without audit, in accordance with the instructions to the Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, and Rule 10-01 of Regulation S-X promulgated by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) and, therefore, do not include all information and footnotes necessary for a fair presentation of its consolidated financial position, results of operations and cash flows in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States (“GAAP”).
Use of Estimates	The preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts and the disclosure of contingent amounts in the Company’s financial statements and the accompanying notes. Actual results could materially differ from those estimates.
Basis of Consolidation	Basis of Consolidation The condensed consolidated financial statements have been prepared in conformity with GAAP, and reflect the accounts and operations of the Company and those of its subsidiaries in which the Company has a controlling financial interest. The Company also consolidates VIEs, for which it is the primary beneficiary. The primary beneficiary has both (a) the power to direct the activities of the VIE that most significantly affect the entity’s economic performance, and (b) either the obligation to absorb losses or the right to receive benefits. Refer to Note 11, “Variable Interest Entities,” for further details. All intercompany transactions and balances have been eliminated in consolidation. The condensed consolidated financial statements include the results of operations of subsidiaries from mergers and acquisitions, since the date of respective acquisitions.
Translation of Foreign Currencies	Translation of Foreign Currencies The financial statements of certain of the Company’s foreign subsidiaries are measured using their local currency as the functional currency. Assets and liabilities of foreign operations are translated into U.S. dollars using period-end exchange rates, and revenues and expenses are translated into U.S. dollars using average exchange rates in effect during each period. The resulting translation adjustments are recorded as a component of other comprehensive income. Equity accounts are translated at historical rates, except for the change in retained earnings during the year which is the result of the income statement translation process. Intercompany transaction gains or losses at each period end arising from subsequent measurement of balances for which settlement is not planned or anticipated in the foreseeable future are included as translation adjustments and recorded within other comprehensive income or loss. Transaction gains and losses are included in other income or expense.
Reclassifications	Reclassifications Certain reclassifications have been made to the condensed consolidated financial statements to conform to the current year’s presentation. The Company has reclassified a portion of the increase in other assets in the condensed consolidated statements of cash flows from operating activities to financing activities for all periods presented.
Recent Accounting Pronouncements	Recent Accounting Pronouncements In February 2015, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) issued Accounting Standards Update (“ASU”) No. 2015-02, “Amendments to the Consolidation Analysis.” This ASU affects reporting entities that are required to evaluate whether they should consolidate certain legal entities. Specifically, the amendments: (1) Modify the evaluation of whether limited partnerships and similar legal entities are VIEs or voting interest entities; (2) Eliminate the presumption that a general partner should consolidate a limited partnership; (3) Affect the consolidation analysis of reporting entities that are involved with VIEs, particularly those that have fee arrangements and related party relationships; and (4) Provide a scope exception from consolidation guidance for reporting entities with interests in legal entities that are required to comply with or operate in accordance with requirements that are similar to those in Rule 2a-7 of the Investment Company Act of 1940 for registered money market funds. ASU No. 2015-02 is effective for interim and annual reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2015. This standard is not expected to have a significant impact to the Company’s financial statements. In April 2015, the FASB issued ASU No. 2015-03, “Simplifying the Presentation of Debt Issuance Costs”. This ASU requires that debt issuance costs related to a recognized debt liability be presented in the balance sheet as a direct deduction from the carrying amount of that debt liability, consistent with debt discounts. This ASU is effective beginning January 1, 2016, with early adoption permitted, and shall be applied retrospectively. The Company is currently assessing the impact that adopting this new accounting guidance will have on its consolidated financial statements and footnotes disclosures.

Disclosure of accounting policy regarding (1) the principles it follows in consolidating or combining the separate financial statements, including the principles followed in determining the inclusion or exclusion of subsidiaries or other entities in the consolidated or combined financial statements and (2) its treatment of interests (for example, common stock, a partnership interest or other means of exerting influence) in other entities, for example consolidation or use of the equity or cost methods of accounting. The accounting policy may also address the accounting treatment for intercompany accounts and transactions, noncontrolling interest, and the income statement treatment in consolidation for issuances of stock by a subsidiary.

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