Student Loans Company

[Giveitback]

On a more general subject I'm a neurotic hoarder and have kept not only the original agreements but also some of the changes to terms and conditions, and sale of student loans notification letters. Would the text of these be useful to anyone else looking into the legalities of their student loans? If there's a demand I'll type it all up and post a "letters from the SLC" thread. Won't bother if nobody asks though (I do have a life - at least I did I'm not sure where I put it since finding this site!).

 

koko, I'd be interested, if you could post them

 

GIB

[kokomar]

OK Give, looks like I have some typing to do, no scanner at the mo!

[Slab Layer]

Can anyone help me out?

 

I have request all the info from Student loans and they have managed to get it to me in time. I was wondering what I do now to claim back the unjust charges that they gave me? Do I go through all the records I have been sent and work out the amount of money I think I should get back from them?

 

I just really want to find out what the next step is, any help would be much appreciated.

 

Cheers in advance!

[maybelline]

hello slaylayer, I think you send the prelim letter with a schedule of all the penalty charges (the ones that are considered unfaire because they are much higher than true cost), you may have to amend the letter slightly as it is not a bank.

 

If you have a copy of your original agreement does it state anything about deferrment and your entitlement to defer, if you are still entitled to defer then I imagine they must accept this providing you fill in the forms provided. I understand they often lose these and claim not to have had peoples deferrment forms then, whack on the charges so you need to keep copies of everything, and use recorded delivery post. I have ignored student loans till now because I have never been in a position to pay, i.e. earned below the thrreshold to pay or was on disability bens HOWEVER they are still chasing me for nearly £3K and I dont seem to be able to convince them they are in the wrong, good luck!

[noomill060]

I had a look at the SLC's website. On the home page they state the are affiliate members of an organisation called the Credit Services Assosiation.

 

Part of the Association's rules are that:

 

 

3

Each member shall:

a. Comply with all relevant legislation benefiting consumers including:

- The Administration of Justice Act 1970 Section 40.

- The Consumer Credit Act 1974 (and Regulations made thereunder).

- The Sex DiscriminationAct 1975.

- The Disability Discrimination Act.

- The Race Relations Act 1976.

- The Data Protection Act 1998.

- The Consumer Protection Act 1987.

- The Criminal Justice Act 1995.

 

 

 

- Unfair Terms in Consumer contracts Regulations 1994.

[noomill060]

Note- Unfair Terms in Consumer contracts Regulations 1994.

 

OK, it should be 1999, but this is the directive that we are all using to claim our bank charges back.

 

Also note; The Consumer Credit Act 1974 (and Regulations made thereunder).

 

 

Complain to the Credit Services Association. The CSA's website has the complaints proceedure- AND they state that ALL complaints made to them are relayed directly to the CEO of the member organisation.

[noomill060]

CSA complaints page- Home Page

[maybelline]

I understand they also have something on their website about disability and special circumstances whereby former students who may never be in a position to pay can apply for termination of the contract - however, my request has been ignore and they continue to pursue?

[Slab Layer]

Hello Maybelline,

 

Thanks for that info, but being a dafty and not with much time on my hands, what is the letter you spoke of? Is there a template I can find on this website that I can change and send off? I need to be quite quick as they are relentless on pursuing me for money I don't think I owe them, they are threatening me with court action. I just need something to delay them.

 

Any help would be amazing.

 

Cheers,

The layer.

[maybelline]

yes, go to bank templates which you will find if you go back to beginning of consumer group, sorry do not know how to do the link, maybe someone else will be able to set it up for you.

[noomill060]

maybeline- I would write directly to the SLC's ultimate boss, the Secretary of State of Education and complain- mention disability discrimination and unlawful charges. Also mention the Paliamentary Treasury Committee's investigation into bank charges and remind him that the SLC isnt above the Law.

 

 

Rt.Hon. Alan Johnson MP

Secretary of State for Education

House of Commons

London

[maybelline]

DEFAULT NOTICE served under section 87 (1) of the CCA 1974 - just checked my files, I havent sent them the CCA request yet but received this default in post today, how silly of me to forget to send it anyway, looks like I need to get into gear fast, apparently I have until 3 Feb to pay £2660.36! (the interestbearing loan (£3600 approx with charges total £4000 approx)!? bearing in mind I haver been eligible to pay a penny under their own rules this is disgusting. I finished my degree in 1995.

[cashme01]

I've just served a Moneyclaim order on them - it was deemed served this Monday. Claiming for around £400. It took months to get the data protection stuff from them and they ignored my prelim letter and passed my letter before action onto Honours Student Loans who I also have been claiming charges back from. Student Loans Company owe me £400 and Honours £195. Honours won't take any responsibility for the old loans with SLC so it was incorrect of them to pass the letter on.

 

I've had no response back yet from the Moneyclaim but fingers crossed.

[Karma!]

mine is also over 10 years old, I remember laughing at the time when I learnt that if the earnings threshold had not been reached by the time former student became 50 it became void? Of course we would all have wonderful careers and be rich, no problem, however, for some of us, other stuff happened - does anyone remember this clause or is that a myth??

 

 

I have a copy of 'The Student Loans Scheme 1993/1994'. It states under 'Terms of Loan' ...

 

As long as you are not behind with your loan repayments, any amount remaining due under your loan agreement will be cancelled after 25 years or when you reach the age of 50, whichever is earlier.

[noomill060]

Ive discovered by reading the CCA that S77 CCA requests do not apply to non commercial loans and "small loans".

 

Do Student Loans fall into the non commercial loans category...?

[maybelline]

I have a copy of 'The Student Loans Scheme 1993/1994'. It states under 'Terms of Loan' ...

 

As long as you are not behind with your loan repayments, any amount remaining due under your loan agreement will be cancelled after 25 years or when you reach the age of 50, whichever is earlier.

 

Karma, thanks for this, I thought I was going mad, I have made a CCA request to get a copy but no reply yet.

[maybelline]

It has been suggested elsewhere on this board, if they sue you the onus is on them to prove their charges are not excessive etc ~ whilst if you pay and then sue, the onus is on you to prove they are wrong.

 

Food for thought?

 

also, if you make a payment to something you are challenging you are accepting that you own the debt, I think ths is re the Limitations Act, (or are they exempt from this too?)

[kokomar]

Sorry Giveitback I haven't had time - Lloyds hearing on Feb 7th. Will get round to it soon I promise!

 

Koko

[jayp0st]

hi i posted this via another thread but hoped i would get a better response from this one..really desparate for some advice.

please help!!, this is a sum up of a situation i have and i'll try to be brief but bear with me. i took a loan via SLC in 94, never heard from them till 2002 when they contacted me via my work asking for money i sent a financial statement asking for deferment, never heard anything so took it as that was ok, then last year capquest wrote saying they had taken on the loan and demanding payment i wrongly assumed i was earning enough so dutifully started paying them monthly instalments of 75/m. at the end of last year SLC sent me a statement of my payments via capquest. on the back of the statement it also mentioned that earnings less than a certain amount could be deffered, i again forwarded a financial statement to the slc asking for deferment and stopped my payments to capquest. a month later after getting a solicitors letter via capquest demanding payment in full i contacted the SLC to see what progress had been made re my request. they tell me that my choice of deferement has expired so i should contine my payments via capquest.i asked for a copy of my terms and conditionsn and receive it with a copy of my origanally signed agreement so then i contact capquest offering to continue my payments but at a lower monthly payment of 50/m instead this they agreed in a a letter. today 06/02/07 i received a letter from the SLC demanding full payment which is 200 pounds more than i owed to capquest plus charges. i call the SLC and am informed that capquest were under agreement that if my debt hadnt been cleared by 2001 therefore they were taking the debt back. i have recieved no notification of this in writing from either parties. i realize now i could have tried to deny owing this money way back in 2001 but i was trying to do the decent thing. does anyone have any productive suggestions please.thanks

[a2222]

I have a great SLC story... I happily deferred my 96/97/98/99 Student Loans year on year when (on july 7th 2004) I declared myself bankrupt, including the £7k student loan on the forms.

 

I then was on Job Seekers Allowance untill mid 2006 when I set up my own company and I am working on building now.

 

I had had no contact from SLC and received no statements OR deferment forms from them, until I saw that they had done a search of my credit rating which I thought was strange.

 

I gave them a call and found out to my dismay that the law had changed on July 1st 2004 meaning that I could not include the loan in my bankruptcy. Not only that, but because I hadnt continued deferring the loan (as they had stopped sending me the forms!) I now owe over £2000 in arrears which they are aggressively pursuing me for!!

 

They have allowed me to defer the loans but not the 3 years of arrears since I declared bankruptcy which add up to approximately £2500 for which they are threatening me with court and bailifs and for which I have no means of paying without shutting and selling off my fledgeling business.

 

Great innit?!

[maybelline]

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/site-questions-suggestions/53182-cant-find-what-youre.html

 

you might find some useful letter templates and advice on this thread, it is an a-z list of all threads, actions possible etc, have a quick look through. My feeling is that if you do not earn enough to start payment then you do not and you cannot pay for any other 'missing' period either, even if you went to court a judge could only consider your current circumstances, you are not a criminal even thought the SLC tried to behave as if so. have a look at some of the areas of what to do to stop bailiffs also if they continue with that threat.:)

[maybelline]

hi i posted this via another thread but hoped i would get a better response from this one..really desparate for some advice.

please help!!, this is a sum up of a situation i have and i'll try to be brief but bear with me. i took a loan via SLC in 94, never heard from them till 2002 when they contacted me via my work asking for money i sent a financial statement asking for deferment, never heard anything so took it as that was ok, then last year capquest wrote saying they had taken on the loan and demanding payment i wrongly assumed i was earning enough so dutifully started paying them monthly instalments of 75/m. at the end of last year SLC sent me a statement of my payments via capquest. on the back of the statement it also mentioned that earnings less than a certain amount could be deffered, i again forwarded a financial statement to the slc asking for deferment and stopped my payments to capquest. a month later after getting a solicitors letter via capquest demanding payment in full i contacted the SLC to see what progress had been made re my request. they tell me that my choice of deferement has expired so i should contine my payments via capquest.i asked for a copy of my terms and conditionsn and receive it with a copy of my origanally signed agreement so then i contact capquest offering to continue my payments but at a lower monthly payment of 50/m instead this they agreed in a a letter. today 06/02/07 i received a letter from the SLC demanding full payment which is 200 pounds more than i owed to capquest plus charges. i call the SLC and am informed that capquest were under agreement that if my debt hadnt been cleared by 2001 therefore they were taking the debt back. i have recieved no notification of this in writing from either parties. i realize now i could have tried to deny owing this money way back in 2001 but i was trying to do the decent thing. does anyone have any productive suggestions please.thanks

 

if you havent made payment or had any contact at all, in any way (as this would be admitting the debt is yours) for six years then you can find a letter in a-z templates saying you do not accept this debt, however, I am not sure that SLC come under these regs, I think someone posted somewhere, sorry dont know where at the moment, that they are not regulated by the CCA? if not then will need to consider another action. if you have made contact then keep records of everything you have sent, if you are not eligible to pay because of your current circumstances then you are not, so send them a breakdown and only offer what you can afford. send your letters recorded post and read around the other student loan threads as they have some good info also:)

[jayp0st]

Maybeline thanks for your advice, unfortunately i have already owned up to owing the money, i do itend paying it back and yes eventually i will write to them stating how much i can afford to pay. my main bugs are

1, should i have been told by both Capquest and the SLC that my debt was being taken back off capquest? there is over 200 pound difference between companies.

2, should the slc have been adding interest to the debt whilst it was being handled by capquest?

3, there are no details in the credit agreement i signed way back in 94 of the deferment expiry date.

 

would you have any advice on where i stand on any of these points and should i get evidence of all this before offering repayments terms?

[maybelline]

your situation is similar to mine, I deferred every year no problem from 95 onwards then I became ill and disabled, informed them and heard no more, now suddenly at the end of 2006 they start asking for nearly 4K?? I am planning on defending this all the way into court if necessary. at no time have I been liable to pay but it all seems to hinge on communication breakdown, what they received from me and what they returned in response or otherwise. I have pulled together all I have, which is not much from them at all. what seems to be happening is that SLC assume the worst and proceed accordingly whether they have reason or not, it is my udnerstanding they have to prove you owe the money and that you have not notified them of any changes of circumstances, do you have copies of all the relevant info you sent in the past? I am sorry I do not know how the expiry dates affect your position but I am going to approach this issue using current legislation (I am yet to discover how SLC are exempt from this leglisation except that it may be they were formed by govt at the time)??

 

can someone with more experience with SLC help? thanks

[jayp0st]

Thanks again Maybelline looks like you got it much harder than mine, in my case i just forgot about them from 94 to 2002 so basically dropped of the face of the planet, ive already paid them about 400 via capquest and thankfully slc have sent a staement recording the payments. good luck!