To give my ex house mates details to the student loans company?`

[ontheedgeofwhatever]

I've been contacted by investigators working for the student loans company as they are trying to track down one of my ex house mates from university. It seems that he's not been in touch with them or paid back a single penny of his loans since we graduated in 1997. He actually told me at the time he was planning not to pay it back which I thought was bad at the time but never thought he'd carry it through

I know who he works for though not his home address.The loan would only have totalled about £7k but there will have been quite a bit of interest added on by now. AIBU if I pass on hte information I have or should i mind my own business? Really in 2 minds about getting involved with this

I'd have thought they could have tracked him via his tax code?

Nope not necessarily.
tbh i would pass the information on as I wouldn't want to be possibly an accessory to fraud which if he has been deliberately not paying would worry me. But you have to be able to live with the consequences of which ever route you take.

I don't think so - firstly he has a very common John Smith type name and secondly I think in the early days of student loans you did not need to give your NI number to apply so much harder to track

I would send them his details, but I am bemused that they can't track him through his NI number.

Ahhhh. I know they have mine but mine was a later loan.

Meep. Um...how much do you like him?

Send details. borrowing money where you agree to pay it back when you have no intention of doing so is basically stealing.

If it's gained hideous levels of interest, that's his fault for pretending his debt doesn't exist.

How do the investigators know you know him?

Jumping - I assume they've done the basics of looking who else was registered to vote at the address at the same time, then tracking them down. (Easy to do if that person did pay their loan and kept the loan company updated with their address details over the years)

Id provide his details too - he has stolen money.

I wouldn't. But then I hate SLC with a passion. Tossers.

I wouldn't. No need to.

And where does the student loan money come from to be lent to the student? We, the taxpayers provide it. Report him because we want it back.

I can't stand any namby pamby treatment of 'friends' who have defrauded the rest of us.

We want ir back to enable us to lend it to others.

*it

People not paying back the loan was the reason why giving the NI no became a requirement.

This will likely make me unpopular, but my Dh is an SLC fraud investigator. They will have contacted OP because they will have searched other people who lived with the client when he took out his loan.

The SIU has access to all sorts of info and can access many, many services etc. in the course of their investigations. Even if they haven't found him yet, they will eventually.

If I were you, OP, I would tell them what you know to keep yourself right. Your friend is defrauding the government and the tax payer. By not paying back his loan, he is making it more difficult for future students.

As I don't agree that education is paid for and should be fee, I'd have an attack of amnesia.

Normally I'd be anally uptight about fraud

soap box out<

Student loans are just stupid, silly money designed to keep the masses in their place by putting mill stones round their necks.

wants a revolution

Yes, as a fellow tax payer, I would like to pass on his details! He needs to learn the lesson that if you borrow money, you need to pay it back. He's not a child so do him a favour and pass on his details so he can explain to the student loan company why he took the money and hasn't paid it back.

PS if you can't face it, PM me the details and I will happily call the SLC myself therefore relieving you of the burden.

If he is a 'friend', why would you side with these investigators over him?
I would not send his details.

Vey much agree with Jumping's sentiments.

He has stolen the money. Give them the details.

I'd shop him. We lived in a flat that had had a former tenant who did this. Got NO end of bother because of it. If I'd known where she'd gone, I'd gladly have shopped her.

Although I agree with the sentiments of JumpingThroughHoops post, your friend agreed to the terms of the loan.

There weren't fee's in 1997 were there? At least I didn't have to pay the great big fee's they now expect. Thank God. But I agree with JumpingThroughHoops sentiment as well.

Thank you I will contact them next week to tell them what I know. Not very impressed with him on this to be honest. I scrimped and saved to pay my loan back in a lump sum and felt really glad when i did.

dontstep - no fees but they started phasing out grants in 1994 so students took increasingly large loans to cover living expenses