To have lost it with the guy on the phone to my student loan?

[Gertrudesings]

I just lost it. Really lost it.

I have x3 student loans 1 for my under graduate, one for post graduate diploma and one for my masters.

I pay 140 a month for my masters, one for my 128 for my undergraduate and 60 for my PGDip so £328 a month.

I have 3dcs, lone parent and earn 26k a year.

The government sold my undergraduate loan to a private company, Erudio. I didn't know they had sold it as my abusive EXH wouldn't give me any post from the marital home (that he stayed in as I got removed by the police for safety reasons). So it went into arrears but I've been paying it back. They are very aggressive. They just phoned me to 'review' my account. Made me give every single outgoing and incoming item and he announces I can 'afford' to pay another £101 a month because I have 300 'disposable' income. For fucking food and childcare! I can not pay another £101 on top of the £328. They don't count childcare costs and I don't do anything or go anywhere so I do have a bit extra a month but that's for the DC's stuff. I don't get maintenance.

AIBU for losing it? I live in my overdraft. I've got credit card debt because if my washer breaks or the kids have a birthday or the car breaks I've got nothing left in my budget. I don't mind paying back my student debt but I can't pay a quarter of my income out to it. I've cut back so much already. I'm sat here crying because the guy made out I'm some kind of leech.

They are bastards. Get some help with this - when did you finish your last course, can you approach that University's Student Union? Or Citizens Advice. You really need someone in your corner on this, they are vicious.

Not make allowances for childcare? WTH? Do they not fathom there wouldn't be a chargeable income without childcare?

Sorry, that was gibberish. The reason I got upset is he was saying something about my credit rating and risk? I couldn't understand what he was saying but he was basically threatening me.

I graduated in December last year. I don't get it? They bought the 5k debt for 500 quid from the government? Why are they so aggressive? My childcare is 150 min a month. He said he 'wasn't really interested' how much I pay out.

Contact the student union and ask for their help. They do it because they are just debt collectors and don't care. I'm sure I read that the agents work to targets/bonuses so they will try whatever they can, including threatening language. Dreadful. They have to take into account all essential outgoings, whether he cares about them or not! Good luck.

I suggest you contact one of the amazing debt advice charities such as CAP or Stepchange, and ask their advice - they can take on your case and call the company for you so that you don’t have to deal with it. I know people who work for one of them and they say that companies often are aggressive with customers as they know they can get away with it but chance their tune when they hear where they are calling from. All the best in getting it sorted

This sounds awful, I thought that you only had to pay off a percentage of the loan once you earnt over £21k, I never realised the loan would be sold to what is basically a loan shark. Surely, you have been mis-sold this, and this can be your get out clause. Do not pay the extra, the screwing bastard.

What now? Governments selling on student loans!? I thought that once you went above a pay thresh hold it simply took it automatically from your paycheque? A few times (not many) I clocked enough overtime to surpass the thresh hold, and yeah, it just came out automatically?

Flatt, this is what I thought. I'm starting uni next year, as a mature student, and am now really worried.

Op, I've just checked payments online, and it says there that if you earn 25k you pay £29 pm.

Could you contact Martyn Lewis of Money Saving Expert? He quite rightly has a bee in his bonnet over the way students are treated by this companies.

FFS I had no idea this had happened. Not surprised you lost it OP.

Agree with reallynearlythere

He is on 'This Morning' regularly, could you get in touch with them via Facebook?

I'd take it to your MP and see what s/he has to say.

My post grad diploma is an income contingent loan. That's why I pay 60 a month which is fine.

My masters is not income contingent. It's a professional career and development loan that you start to pay off a month after you graduate regardless. Again, fine, I knew what I was signing up for.

My undergraduate loan was taken out in 1997,1998 and 1999 and is a mortgage style loan and you pay it back when your income goes about 28k. Which mine has with child benefit and is a fixed monthly amount now it has been sold to Erudio. It's called a mortgage style loan. I could defer if I worked PT but I'm trying to do the right thing.

I agree stepchange or similar, see if they will be an intermediary when dealing with them. Good luck.

I have absolutely no issue paying back my loans btw. I don't want my education for free but when they tell me paying back 328 a month isn't enough and ask for another £100 it just makes me really scared.

I didn't mean working PT isn't the right thing, god I'm coming across terribly. I mean I'm trying to work FT to pay off my debt. Sorry.

There must have been some sort of non payment for it to have been sold to a debt collection company?? As long as you keep making the payments you are currently making there isn't anything they can do. The only time they can take further action is if you default on the current plan. They just do a review as an attempt to get more money. Keep making payments as agreed and you will be fine. (Former debt collection agent here).

Mine was sold to 2 different companies. Erudio have 2 of them. I did the same as you and let mine get into arrears so the payments are higher. I told them I couldn't afford to pay what they wanted and I wasn't discussing my income and expenditure with them. They were quite arsey over it. But I'm paying what I can afford and they've left me alone.

Just carry on with what you have been paying. I assume the loan has been passed to a recovery agent because you fell behind with payments while with abusive ex. These debt collection agencies can pile on the pressure for you to pay more but you can't.

R.e. the incoming/outgoing forms- you need to include every expenditure including groceries, credit card repayments and childcare even if that comes under "other" on the form. Otherwise it will look like you have more disposable income than you do.

Don't panic, as long as you are making regular repayments it's fine as it is.

I understood what you meant.
It is awful for you. I would do as advised above and contact Martyn's Lewis he loves getting his teeth into something like this.

My loans were in deferment when they were sold. I think everyone's from that period has been sold

I think some confusion, Erudio are the company who manage student loans taken out between 90-98. Previously it was the student loan company who managed them.

Their blurb says they are all about afforadable repayments, is the issue here arrears? How far in arrears did you go? I’m struggling to understand how you went into arrears simoly because they changed management? Usually your payments just transfer over?

How could we check if our loans have been sold? This has terrified me.

If you go to the CAB they will be able to halt this for you and sort out a new repayment plan.

NEVER do income and outgoings with your creditors on the phone, on line or in person; you must used an authorised debt advice agency, if not the CAB then something like Stepchange.