Erudio Student Loans Continued

[halfpricedebt]

Started a new thread following mrsbug's request.

I got an email from Erudio today telling me that an issue I raised with them on 27 March that was then completely ignored even though they asked for confirmation of my details to process the initial email. I gave them the details they requested and seven days later I still hadn't heard anything. So I wrote them a rather threatening complaint telling them if they didn't respond within 7 days I would report them to the relevant financial services. That was on 3 April and today they've told me that my complaint has been forwarded to their Customer Resolutions Team.

I wonder what they do?

quote "rang today to check on progress and was told that it was invalidated due to the form not being completed and signed."

Shame no-one is bothering to challenge them on that.

I can understand why people are reluctant to though.

There is nothing in law or the loan agreements that says you have to use their phishy form.

The law says you can defer if you show you are below the threshold. Full stop.

@jkay2014

Savings are not income, even on their own form it asks for details of savings, if you are supporting yourself with them, but then goes on to say these are to be disregarded when calculating your gross monthly income.

Savings, loans and CCs are not income and cannot be counted as such. Erudio have said previously there is no need to complete the section of their form asking for these details. Think it's section 8, can't remember.

I suspect the phone advisor you spoke to was the type of person who doesn't like to admit they are wrong and simply dug their heels in. To mention that the details of your savings were now noted on your file and you would have to declare is a typically spiteful retort. If you insist on getting clarification over the phone on this point then remain calm and polite and inform the people you talk to that you are recording the conversation, they are more likely to ascertain the facts before giving a response. Tell them you require a response now and you may get put on hold but you should eventually be told that savings are not counted as income, then ask for this to be confirmed in writing.

If they again insist that savings are income them again ask for written confirmation.

Hiya
I've just joined because of this thread as i've been scratching my head re: Erudio student loans.
Something slightly off the point but really important under contract law you can not sell debt.
Look at it this way, you signed a contract with Sarah saying they lent you money and you agreed to pay it back under certain conditions.
Jane contacts you saying you owe her money, you'd tell her to get lost right.
I'm just in the process of writing to Erudio saying where's our contract, this they can't supply, so the loan can be invalidated. This works with other debt agencies so i don't see why it wouldn't in this case.
Could be very convenient, playing them at their own game.
Cheers A.

@^^

I'm pretty sure you can sell debt, I think it's called re-assignment and is covered in the original SLC agreements.

I've also requested copies of the original loan agreements from Erudio, which they haven't yet supplied, but if they fail to produce them it DOES NOT mean the debt is invalidated. They can still chase me for the arrears it just means they could not attain a CCJ against me, it doesn't mean the debt will be written off.

Debt can be sold

Debt can be sold/assigned yes. Perfectly legal. And in this case, sadly 100% airtight if you have received a notice of the legal assignment from Erudio.

Hello all

I've been reading the 2 threads and just wanted to say thanks to everyone for posting experience and advice, it's very helpful to people in the same boat.

I've been wondering what to do for the best regarding my deferment application. Whether to send my evidence of income with the form they provided or with a covering letter instead.

So I called Erudio this afternoon and said that I was thinking of sending my proof of income with a covering letter rather than with their form. I was advised by the call handler that if I didn't send in the form deferment would be refused and another form would be sent out to me.

She was very nice about it and when I questioned why I had to use the form as it seems to mean I would be consenting to a change to original T&Cs, and also because the original credit agreement says all I need to provide is evidence of income which I would be definitely be sending, she said that obviously it was my decision about what to send but that it would be declined if the application form had not been used.

She claimed that using and signing the form would not change the original T&Cs but that Erudio are applying certain parts of them that SLC did not. From what I have read on here, and seeing the 'linked-to' copies of the credit agreement, what she told me doesn't seem right.

She also said that all that would go on a credit file is that it was a loan that was being managed and that nothing was owing on. I said that my main concern was not it going on my credit file but me consenting to that happening by signing their form if I didn't need to.

I pointed out that the benefit I receive jointly with my dh is not on their list of State Benefits in the accompanying booklet about 'getting your deferment form right'. Dh claims JSA currently, a joint claim, but it is income-based NOT contribution-based, which is the only one they have on their list. She said to mention receiving it but to point out that it is income-based and therefore shouldn't be considered as per their list. Surely income-based JSA would be one of the main benefits to be regarded ???

I was advised that applications would be processed within 28 days, it might be sooner but would be no longer than this.

I also requested a copy of my original credit agreement and was told that they have to apply to get it from SLC and that they have to just wait for SLC to process it and can't do anything about how long that will take! I was also advised that I did NOT need to send payment for that and she checked that with someone else who confirmed that I didn't need to send payment to get a copy of my loan agreement. She put in a request for that for me but I will also be sending that with my application.

I am now thinking that I will just fill in the relevant parts of the form about income (oh yes, 'cos I was also told I could leave the 'address status' section blank) and put a short statement under my signature saying that should any of the fair processing notice constitute a change to the Original loan agreement that I DO NOT consent to this.

I would welcome any comments or advice on any of this.

The reason they don't want you to pay the £1 fee for the copies of the credit agreements is that if you don't pay the fee then they are not legally bound to comply with the request. And as the request would not be legal under section 77 of the Consumer Credit Act, if Erudio could not supply it then they would be able to avoid the consequences of that, which are not being able to enforce the agreement until they do supply a copy.

To make the request and consequences for Erduio of failing it legally binding on them, you need to send the letter in this link.

www.nationaldebtline.org/EW/factsheets/Pages/39%20EW%20Credit%20agreements%20-%20getting%20information/Page-04.aspx

And you NEED to pay the £1 fee.

I've sent off a deferment letter (not form) yesterday, together with my evidence of income and a CCA request. I have made them aware that if they refuse my deferment request for not using their form, which is not fit for purpose, that they will be in breach of the Education (Student Loan) Regulations (1998) Schedule 2, Part 1, Paragraph 9. We need to be clear on this, deferment is not discretionary - should we satisfy the income conditions for deferment and present the evidence, Erudio have no choice other than to defer.

I have contacted my MP up here in North East Fife, Ming Campbell, and he has written to the government. He well known up here for ably assisting constituents, so I am quite optimistic. I am also copying him in to my correspondence with Erudio. I would advise everyone here to email their MP if they can, and to follow up a few days later with a phone call to the constituency office. The caseworker will at least be able to confirm receipt, and hopefully provide an overview of the course of action they hope to take.

I did telephone the Financial Ombudsman earlier today. They didn't give much away - although the gentleman did say they have all been briefed that they should expect an avalanche of complaints regarding Erudio quite soon.

I wish everyone here the best of luck in their dealings with Erudio.

I forgot to add - I have a work colleague who has deferred every year with the SLC by way of covering letter and payslips, rather than the application form. They never encountered any difficulties.

I dont think anyone is dealing with Erudio in reality, it is Ventura/Capita. It is still very unclear if Erudio play any part in any of the processes we are being forced to contact. One base is in Leeds, the other Rotherham, and the left hand doesnt know what the right is doing most of the time. If Erudio are in fact handling the deferment process in anyway they need to come clean and prove it. All the evidence thus far points to the fact that they negotiated the deal for the loans, subcontracted all the actual frontline work out and do little but serve as a conduit through which the financials will flow to Arrow and the other backers of the deal, more than likely through the tax havens associated with The Wilmington Trust. Welcome to the future of the student loans system!
If i am wrong about who is processing our deferments, they need to prove it because i am not even sure the government would know that. There is a strong chance Erudio for all intents and purposes are a ghost, deflecting any problems away from those we are actually sending all our info to and who are just as culpable. If BIS do know this, they certainly havent stated in on record. As for subcontracting the work, we are all still shocked our loans were sold at all, let alone the fact another deal was struck and that we are actually sending and giving all our personal information to a much bigger network of companies that what we suspected Erudio is. What is ventura/capita not stated as handling our phone calls...when the call center says thank you for calling Erudio, is that not a lie? Surely transparency is rather important concerning student loans, but as most of us have found out since our dealings/research into all things Erudio, nothing is clear and it all seems to smell rather bad.

Ok mandakl , thanks for that information. As I said, I will be sending a CCA request with my deferment application so I will also include payment for it.

Has everbody that has sent a CCA request sent payment in the form of a cheque? Presumably I would make a cheque out to 'Erudio Student Loans Ltd' ??

@StAndrewsbythesea, doing it your way is my preference but I just envisage a potential battle to get the deferment accepted and wonder if it's worth the stress and worry, especially if direct debits are being taken and the process drags out so that I go beyond the 3 months payments I can claim back once deferment is confirmed.

Am I right in thinking that everyone on this thread that has been successful with deferment has used Erudio's form in some way, even if it is with sections not filled in or with the warning section blacked out? And that anyone that has only sent a letter with their proof of income has, so far, had their deferment refused and been asked to comply by filling out the form?

@ itiswhatitiswhatitis

congrats on the deferral - did you send back the form or only a letter? Did you reject or ignore the change in T&Cs?

I sent payment for the CCA request by cheque - is it £1 total or £1 per agreement? Hadn't thought of that before!

@MamaMimi I sent a postal order for £1, payable to Erudio Student Loans Ltd. A cheque would also sufficient.

I understand how you might feel easier filling in the form. I'm sure Erudio is relying on others feeling the same, sadly. Make sure you cross out the Fair Processing Note at the end, and include a covering letter making it clear you do not consent to any changes to the terms and conditions.

I haven't given them my direct debit details for the period in question, so I shouldn't have my account debited should Erudio be difficult. You aren't required to have one set up in order to successfully defer. A direct debit instruction might form part of the general terms and conditions, but if you break that part of the agreement Erudio can only claim back losses relating to that breach. If you are in deferment, or should be deferment, their losses will be nil as no payments are due.

I'll tell you something - I am really starting to miss the Students Loans Company since Erudio took over. I would welcome them back with open arms!

www.moneysavingexpert.com/news/loans/2014/04/erudio-student-loans-graduates-have-money-taken-from-accounts-despite-deferring

I sent the form back and ignored the t&c's change. Tbh I sent it back before I had seen these threads so didn't know anything about the t&c's changes

I didn't fill out the direct debit details on the form though

@MamaMimi - I sent a postal order for my CCA request - not sure if accepted yet as they haven't replied as they only got it on 22nd April.

I sent a letter first off and was immediately denied referral so filled in the form for my second try and crossed out the fair processing bit and wrote that I do not consent to any t & c changes.

I checked yesterday they had received this second application (was sent recorded) and the man said he didn't have it (same as last time) until I said it was recorded. He said they have thousands to process so it will go in the queue.

Today I got a letter saying that there was insufficient evidence - I was furious and phoned to say I had only spoken to the man yesterday about it. She said that it was awaiting processing still so I said what about this letter. She said it was a manual letter (?) so had to check on it - it wasn't on her records there, I don't think.

Apparently today's letter related to the first application I made (even though I have already had two more deferral forms sent to me about that application. Today's letter did, however, detail the things that were missing from the first application specifically. Pretty sure my second try has all this info in so will be interested to see what they have to say next time.

So confusing - but not surprising as we appear to all be having nothing but confusion. Congratulations to those who have deferral. I await my response and am not giving up. Haven't contacted FOS yet but probably will try to do MP this week.

file an official complaint with erudio, then the ombudsman if you dont get a sufficient enough response as well. In fact, tell the ombudsman and ask them to file the complaint for you.
Theres no point getting frustrated because its pretty clear the phone crew have virtually no influence over anything and are making it up as they going along because they dont even work for erudio.
Ive given up trying. As mentioned above though, the ombudsman can request transcripts and phone call data for complaints logged with them.

From the MSE article linked above:

Erudio says it is "customary for direct debit instructions to be unspecified in exact amounts".

From Erudio's own website:

The annual statement is accompanied by a covering letter, which will confirm the monthly repayments for the coming year

How have they been allowed to get away with this utter toss?

Hi everyone. I've been following these threads with great interest. I'm glad I fall under the newer system, but my other half isn't so lucky. I was wondering if anyone could offer any advice as I've not seen anyone in quite the same situation as him. Sorry in advance if this is a long read.

He has six of the pre-1998 loans (long story). One of them was sold off to Thesis four or five years ago, but it hasn't been a problem as all the admin and deferring was done through the SLC. He's always received the deferment application at the beginning of March, but it didn't turn up this year. We started to get nervous about the end of march because his deferment was up on the 28th of April and the SLC always seemed to take ages to process.

Lo and behold of course he then received the Notice of Assignment letter from Erudio at the beginning of April saying they had been sold the five loans that were still with the SLC. This was before we knew anything about how useless Erudio seem to be, or before all the trouble about the CRA and change to the T&C were all over internet.

We waited for the deferment form, but it never arrived. So he phoned Erudio and were told one would be sent out, that was about mid-April. Nothing arrived, but he did get a payment note from Thesis for the one loan they hold. He phoned Thesis to ask if they provided separate forms and they told him their admin was still handled by the SLC in Glasgow! The person at Thesis said they would get the SLC to send a form.

Time ticked on and he did a few fruitless chase-ups to Erudio and Thesis. We went on holiday for a bit up to Skye last week, and when we came back there were still nothing from Erudio, Thesis or the Student Loans company. He was planning to phone them from work on Monday there, but when he went to get money for petrol he discovered we were overdrawn because a direct debit had appeared that removed nearly £180 from his account. After popping into the bank it turns out this was most likely Erudio.

We're very much at a loss now about what to do. Some people are saying he should claim the money back from the bank because of the direct debit guarantee, but he's worried that in doing so Erudio will claim he's breached his agreement. The other loan with Thesis hasn't been paid as they've no direct debit set up, and the SLC one is dormant as it's never been used. Thesis maintain that the SLC are responsible for deferments, Erudio have a different story every time he phones and the SLC have a recorded message that tells you the phone numbers for Erudio, Honour and Thesis but no advice on what to do if your loan straddles two companies. When you go through to the SLC's main customer line they don't seem to have much of a clue other than to keep saying the old loans were sold off.

This is such an awful lot of stress that I'm sure worrying about it is making him ill. Is anyone else in a similar situation that's got further than square one with all of these companies? I think we would kill to have the forms and be worrying about the changes to T&C, but we haven't even got that far.

Hi whorudio,

I'm in a similar position, thesis have one of my loans,erudio 2.
Basically,after a real struggle and being passed from pillar to post,I found out that because I have a shared account SLC will still deal with my deferment.
They sent me forms eventually and I received deferment.....only for erudio to take money from my account, which I have claimed back under direct debit guarantee, you should do the same , they cannot take money from you without sending you a letter first stating how much etc. I would also complain to the ombudsman,the number is further up the post.

Anyway, here is SLC head office number 0141 306 2000, ask to speak to someone in deferment and explain what's happened and complain.

Hope you get some answers!

@Moraki7 Have you had anything in writing confirming that SLC are still going to handle the deferment?

@ Whorudio

First question is Does he or Does he not, earn above or below the deferment threshold?

If he does, then a repayment of some kind will begin at some point although all the processes have obviously gone wrong in his case and the payment should not have been taken without notification - go to bank and get repayment under DD Guarantee.

If he doesn't earn more than threshold - go to the bank immediately and get repayment under DD Guarantee.

The agreement will not be in breach (is he earning over the threshold again?) in any case because whoever (have the bank really not told you this?) took the DD didn't follow the proper regulated process.

@mandaki

No nothing in writing from SLC apart from deferment letter and numerous phone calls to them.

I have an email from erudio stating SLC will be handling my deferment but that is all.