Student Loans

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As we’ve discussed before, the CFPB sued Navient over its student loan servicing practices in the Middle District of Pennsylvania.  In doing so, the CFPB followed its strategy of announcing new legal standards by enforcement action and then applying them retroactively. The chief allegation in the complaint is that Navient wrongly “steered” consumers into using loan forbearance rather than income-based repayment plans to cure or avoid defaults on their student loans.… Continue Reading

One of the hallmarks of the CFPB’s enforcement actions has been its use of those actions to announce new legal standards. Navient attacks this enforcement strategy in its motion to dismiss a recent case brought against it by the CFPB. On January 18, 2017, the CFPB sued Navient, alleging a number of violations.… Continue Reading

On November 18, the GAO released a report examining issues related to implementation of the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA) interest rate cap for student loans. The Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs requested the report in response to indications that servicemembers with student loans who are eligible for an SCRA rate reduction may not always be receiving the benefit.… Continue Reading

On Monday the CFPB released updated examination procedures for student loans.  This update revises and expands on a previous update that was released in December 2013 in conjunction with the CFPB’s “larger participants” rule for student loan servicers. The new procedures serve to offer CFPB examiners more detailed guidance for examining student loans servicers subject to the CFPB’s supervisory authority, including banks, private student loan lenders, and others servicers subject to CFPB supervision under the Bureau’s “larger participants” rule.… Continue Reading

The CFPB has released its fifth Annual report of the CFPB Student Loan Ombudsman discussing complaints received by the CFPB about private and federal student loans and the lessons drawn by the Ombudsman from those complaints.  The report states that it is based on the CFPB Student Loan Ombudsman’s analysis of approximately 5,500 private student loan complaints and 2,300 debt collection complaints related to private and federal student loans handled by the CFPB between September 1, 2015 and August 31, 2016. … Continue Reading

Senator Elizabeth Warren is scheduled to be the keynote speaker today for “National Student Debt Day,” an event in Washington, D.C. for “student loan activists from around the country.” The event is sponsored by Young Invincibles, which describes itself as “a national organization, working to engage young adults on issues, such as higher education, health care, and jobs.”… Continue Reading

In a letter sent last week to U.S. Department of Education Secretary Arne Duncan, four U.S. Senators urge the ED “to direct federal student loan servicers, debt collectors, and all other third parties” to delay use of the new robocall authority given by the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015.  Two Senators are Democrats (Elizabeth Warren and Edward J.… Continue Reading

Pursuant to a March 2015 Presidential directive, an interagency task force consisting of the Department of the Treasury, Department of Education, Office of Management and Budget, and Domestic Policy Council has issued recommendations on best practices in performance-based contracting intended to ensure that federal student loan servicers “help borrowers responsibly make monthly payments on their student loans.” … Continue Reading

A new CFPB report entitled “Overseas & Underserved: Student Loan Servicing and the Cost to Our Men and Women in Uniform” contains the CFPB’s findings regarding student loan servicing problems faced by servicemembers.  According to the CFPB, it has handled more than 1,300 complaints from military borrowers relating to the servicing or collection of student loans since it published its last report on this topic in October 2012. … Continue Reading

The CFPB has issued a “Mid-year update on student loan complaints” that analyzes the approximately 3,100 private student loan complaints received by the CFPB between
October 1, 2014 and March 31, 2015.  The update also analyzes the approximately 1,100 debt collection complaints related to student loans during the same period.  … Continue Reading