I've had a random letter from Akinika Debt Recovery acting of behalf of SLC requesting £1087!?

[Skudge]

I'll keep it short but include all necessary details.

 

I started a foundation degree with the Manchester College in September 2011.

I was on the course for 6/7 months and then I dropped out.

I never informed Student Finance and I just informed my college that I was dropping out.

I am not sure if my college then in turn informed Student Finance or not but I never received any further payments after I dropped out (I know that much).

 

 

I am not going to lie and say I know all the figures of what I borrowed or how much I was actually paid.

 

upon checking the student loan repayment website,

it says I owe £4099.70 as of 31/03/2016

(this amount may have changed now, I'm not sure).

 

 

I was in employment from September 2013 up until January 2015 where I ticked that I had a student finance and my employer was automatically making payments on my behalf but I didn't actively keep track of them, I just remember seeing them on my payslips.

 

 

I then didn't pay anything off my student loans until my most recent employer who I started with in November 2015 and have just left this month (January 2017).

 

 

I have some payslips (not all) to say that money has been taken out of my salary for payments towards student loan repayment.

I can maybe get a copy of all my payslips from my old company if needed.

 

Out of nowhere I have received a letter from a company called Akinika Debt Recovery who I believe from my research used to be called IQOR.

 

 

They now say I owe them £1087 and they have made attempts to contact me by phone, SMS & this letter.

I haven't spoken to them as of yet and I didn't want to until posting here.

 

 

I have no idea why they are suddenly contacting me regarding this SLC debt

as I was under the impression I was paying them through my employer (up until my redundancy this month).

 

 

The only thing I can think is that my former employer has been collecting payments from me for the debt but has not paid SLC or because of my redundancy SLC have passed the debt onto Akinika.

 

 

I am going to ring the HR department tomorrow and seek there advice as to if they have paid them or not.

 

I have no idea what to do or who to turn to or whether to make contact with Akinika or not to see if they have ended up with the debt, but I don't know if contacting them is the wrong thing to do .

 

 

Should I try and contact SLC and see what they say?

Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated, thank you.

 

Edit: Also just as a side note, I have never received anything from SLC.

This is the first that I have heard of this debt (besides knowing about it already)

Edited January 30, 2017 by Skudge

[dx100uk]

you ignore the DCA totally

they are not bailiffs

and have

NO LEGAL POWERS WHATSOEVER.

 

 

deal direct with SLC.

 

 

dx

[Skudge]

Thank you very much. I will contact them tomorrow and see what's happening.

[Skudge]

So bit of an update,

I think it would be beneficial to have your input on this before I make contact with Akinika.

 

Just got off the phone with Student loan repayments (the collections department).

 

 

They said that they were made aware of the overpayment of my grant (because I dropped out of my course early) in 2012 and made attempts to collect it (I never received any letters or nothing else).

 

 

They now advised me because it has been passed over to Akinika that I have to go through them and speak to them about it.

 

 

I don't know if this is correct or not?

Again any advice would be greatly appreciated.

[dx100uk]

certainly not.

 

 

if you look at their letters

its says our client SLC

so they are totally powerless

[but they are a DCA so were totally powerless anyway!!]

 

 

if slc want their money IF you owe anything

then its for you to deal with them.

 

 

pers i'd never ever phone anyone

you are under no legal obligation to talk about any debt to anyone over the phone.

 

 

if you wish WRITE to SLC

and tell them if they want paying then they need to propose some ideas to you by letter

and that you WILL NOT, deal with any 3rd party DCA.

as under law you are not obliged too

 

 

dx