Question:
OK, what do you do when the loan
company changes your address to
an address you never lived at. Then
for a year sends letters to this
wrong address and then puts your
loan in default because they claim
they could not contact you. NOTE:
the loan company never received
any information from the student
to change his address.
The last loan
they had on the student has his
correct address. The student was
still in school while the company
was sending letters to an address
he never gave them, also the student
worked at the school during this
time. The student has just finished
school and found out about the defaulted
loans when he went to change banks
and the bank did a credit check
and told him about the defaulted
loans. His student loans should
not be due until July 2003. Anybody
know a good lawyer in the Washington
DC area. The student can not get
the loan company to take the loan
back because they keep telling him
he should had told them where he
was and it is all his fault he is
in default. He can not get the Dept
of Ed to understand he did not move
they changed his address by mistake.
The loan company does not understand
THEY made a mistake.
Answer:
First thing to do is to find out
what credit company the bank used
and demand your free copy of the
report. Then file your response
stating that the loan is NOT in
default because it is not due until
July 2003, and that the reported
information is a FABRICATION because
the notices were sent to an address
that is not yours. Whoever held
your loan at the time the fabrication
was done is responsible. If it was
held by a bank, look up the Fair
Credit Reporting Act and see which
regulatory agency governs that kind
of bank.
A bank president
is accountable for the bank to follow
applicable laws. If it was held
by a government agency, complain
to your Congressman. This
is an interesting quandary that
you are in I have heard of this
happening quite frequently before
but that was in the late 80's and
early 90's And those lenders and
billing servicers are out of business
now. In representing borrowers in
a default prevention program - I
(we) was successful in working with
the guaranty agency to force the
lender to repurchase loans when
default claims were paid and the
lender or their billing servicer
did not service the loan properly.
Sometimes
we were successful a full year after
the default claim payment. One weakness
in the arguments that you presented
is the line that follows: The last
loan they had on the student has
his correct address. That may be
the case - but what was the address
on the loans prior to the last loan
Just because you provide a new address
on a new loan - doesn't mean that
they lender has to change it Address
changes come directly from you.
Do you have the lender's servicing
history on the loan??? Ask for it,
you may get it. Could the lender
at one time have received mail return
from the address you never left?
An argument
that the lender is going to fall
back on is that your promissory
places the burden of communication
on you and not them So, because
you signed the note thereby stating
you understood all the terms and
conditions, you knew you had to
repay them either during school
or after you left school And because
it take a full year to default on
a student loan - they are going
to claim it is still you fault If
your claim is true - ask the school
for help. Your Financial Aid Director
- even the Bursar (business officer),
most likely, has very high level
contacts with the guaranty agency,
ED and the lender - Call them to
the plate and ask for their help.
Sorry - but I do not know any good
lawyers in the DC area that can
help you But there are lots of them.
I don't think you have to go down
this path yet. There are plenty
of people at the Guaranty Agency
and ED that can and will help you.
With that being said - you should
be able to find relief at the Ombudsman's
office - go to http://www.ed.gov/
and search for the Ombudsman's page
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