10 year old debt holding my transcripts hostage

[TopDocChick]

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I went to a small college 10 years ago for a year. I owe them $4500. They have offered to take 40% off my bill to settle so that they can release my transcripts. My brother, who is an attorney, told me that their statute of limitations is up and that they can't collect on the debt. They also have never sent me notices of the $$ I owe so I couldn't pay them slowly over time - and now that i need the transcripts i need to pay them $2500 all at once - money i don't have. Has anyone else been through this? By the way - the college told me that even though the statute of limitations is up they can still use my transcripts as a lean against my debt, they just can't send me to collections. Also, when i began attending my current college 5 years ago this old college sent my transcripts without a word - so somehow the debt resurfaced itself.

Thanks

 

[sehnsucht]

I went to a small college 10 years ago for a year. I owe them $4500. They have offered to take 40% off my bill to settle so that they can release my transcripts. My brother, who is an attorney, told me that their statute of limitations is up and that they can't collect on the debt. They also have never sent me notices of the $$ I owe so I couldn't pay them slowly over time - and now that i need the transcripts i need to pay them $2500 all at once - money i don't have. Has anyone else been through this? By the way - the college told me that even though the statute of limitations is up they can still use my transcripts as a lean against my debt, they just can't send me to collections. Also, when i began attending my current college 5 years ago this old college sent my transcripts without a word - so somehow the debt resurfaced itself.

Thanks

I am curious-how could you not have known about the debt before leaving the institution in question?

 

[gotmeds?]

So what exactly makes you think that you don't to pay the school? You went there. You got an education. You owe them money. It's kinda sad how you're using your lawyer brother and a statute of limitations to try to get out of it.

 

[LifetimeDoc]

Sorry, that's just terrible that you owe that money, though if you truly owed them money and it wasn't some kind of mistake why are you contesting it? They have by the proverbial "B***s" so you'll need to pay the money and move on with your life. Sometimes even though you are in the right, those who are in power can still make trouble for you unless you take them to court (which will cost more $$$).

Case in point, I got a $25 ticket at my university for parking without a permit. They placed the ticket about 1 foot away from my properly displayed parking permit tag hanging from my rear-view mirror. The parking attendant was just too lazy to get their fat ass out of their golf cart and walk around to the front to see it, so wrote me a ticket. I tracked them down, they had just written the ticket, but they had already hit the ENTER button on their computer so I had to file an appeal. I wrote a letter to the appeals committee, explained what happend, that I had a properly displayed notice. Guess what? They denied my appeal. Sometimes things aren't fair, but they hold dominion over you in their tiny little worlds. Pity them that that's all they have to hold onto in their lives, their power over students.

 

[postbacker]

Not sure about the legal advice you got - perhaps they cannot legally "go after" you to collect the debt now, but I would think they have every right to demand payment before rendering you any additional services...I would try to negotiate a better price and pay up, because without the transcripts, you are dead in the water...consider it the "cost of doing business"...I don't see any way around this short of talking them out of it...

 

[TopDocChick]

Here is some more history on the debt.

When i went to that school as an 18 year old, I asked the financial aid office to help me fill out the forms to receive my Pell grants and other grants. I filled out everything they needed. I went through the FAFSA form with my parents etc, etc. I gave it to them and i left it at that. I did not follow up on their processing it or anything. At the end of the term when they said i owed the $$ I was upset because they never put my forms through. They then claimed that they couldn't do it retroactively. At the time i was so poor I was living in a roach infested basement apartment and got food from a friend who owned a pizza restaurant (leftovers from the day). I contested the debt back then and then they didn't appraoch me about it again. I never got confirmation that it was settled, but i just assumed it was. Especially when 3 years later I asked them to send my transcripts to my current school and they did without a problem. I am going to pay the debt - i just want to know what other people think of this problem. For all of those who think I am ungrateful for the education they gave me - I am grateful. I just don't understand the process. They never billed me again after that. I could have paid slowly over the years. I could have done a lot of things. Now i need my transcripts and they bring it up? I understand their position i just wanted to see if others have been through it. I wanted to know if there is any base for my claims? And, I did not approach my brother as a lawyer with this problem - I talk to my brother about everything and he just happened to mention that the statute of limitations on debt is 3 years.

 

[dancinRN1022]

hello

A similiar thing happened to me when I requested my transcripts... I went to sign up for one more physics class...and apparently I was on my school'd deliquency list... I thought I consolidated all of my loans but I left one out...and I owed them 8000 dollars... I couldn't pay all of that at once...but I negotiated and ended up consolidating after all...after paying 3500 out of pocket... I was annoyed at first..but ultimately it was my fault for not checking up on everything... and I am happy that my transcripts have been sent...if u can... I would just pay it..in the end...it'll be worth it if you get into school...because you need to send in your info now..unless you have perfect grades..the earlier you ger your app complete the better off you will be...I am just a novice at this like you...but this is one lesson that everyone seems to agree on.

Mel🙂

 

[futureboy]

There's something disturbing about the school doing nothing about this for ten years and now strong-arming you to pay a debt you don't legally owe. Statutes of limitations sound like technicalies, but they exist for situations like this where people are harmed by the failure to assert claims in a timely fashion. You may want to check with your brother to see if the school is violating your state's consumer protection laws by withholding transcripts to collect a time-barred debt. A school can't withhold transcripts to collect unpaid tuition and fees discharged in bankruptcy. By the way, I'm a lawyer in Ohio.

Of course, it may be more practical to pay the school and put it behind you. Best of luck to you.

I went to a small college 10 years ago for a year. I owe them $4500. They have offered to take 40% off my bill to settle so that they can release my transcripts. My brother, who is an attorney, told me that their statute of limitations is up and that they can't collect on the debt. They also have never sent me notices of the $$ I owe so I couldn't pay them slowly over time - and now that i need the transcripts i need to pay them $2500 all at once - money i don't have. Has anyone else been through this? By the way - the college told me that even though the statute of limitations is up they can still use my transcripts as a lean against my debt, they just can't send me to collections. Also, when i began attending my current college 5 years ago this old college sent my transcripts without a word - so somehow the debt resurfaced itself.

Thanks

 

[TopDocChick]

Thanks for the response - but its too late... :cry:. I shelled out $2500 to them on Friday. I do owe them for their crappy education and the crappy grades that they gave me so I did just chock it up to experience. If anyone else searches this thread for your own school holding your transcript hostage - FIGHT HARDER THEN I DID!

 

[Doctor Bagel]

Thanks for the response - but its too late... :cry:. I shelled out $2500 to them on Friday. I do owe them for their crappy education and the crappy grades that they gave me so I did just chock it up to experience. If anyone else searches this thread for your own school holding your transcript hostage - FIGHT HARDER THEN I DID!

That sucks. 🙁 It's a good lesson to always make sure you don't owe the school or some random school lender somewhere money. I've known several people who've gotten screwed by small loans that just disappeared for a long time and resurfaced. Perkins loans seem to be a big cause of problems.

I was so nervous when my husband requested transcripts from our ugrad that some several thousand dollar debt would be there -- his mom had a nasty habit of saying she paid stuff when she didn't and then never forwarding him any notices about anything. Luckily he didn't seem to owe anything, but I could so see that happening.

 

[Deepa100]

I am from a different country and I have always known that if you don't pay the bills, the U will put a hold on your records and transcripts. How can you, American kids not know about it?😕

 

[TopDocChick]

See my earlier post about them ALREADY sending me a transcript.

 

[postbacker]

Here is some more history on the debt.

When i went to that school as an 18 year old, I asked the financial aid office to help me fill out the forms to receive my Pell grants and other grants. I filled out everything they needed. I went through the FAFSA form with my parents etc, etc. I gave it to them and i left it at that. I did not follow up on their processing it or anything. At the end of the term when they said i owed the $$ I was upset because they never put my forms through. They then claimed that they couldn't do it retroactively. At the time i was so poor I was living in a roach infested basement apartment and got food from a friend who owned a pizza restaurant (leftovers from the day). I contested the debt back then and then they didn't appraoch me about it again. I never got confirmation that it was settled, but i just assumed it was. Especially when 3 years later I asked them to send my transcripts to my current school and they did without a problem. I am going to pay the debt - i just want to know what other people think of this problem. For all of those who think I am ungrateful for the education they gave me - I am grateful. I just don't understand the process. They never billed me again after that. I could have paid slowly over the years. I could have done a lot of things. Now i need my transcripts and they bring it up? I understand their position i just wanted to see if others have been through it. I wanted to know if there is any base for my claims? And, I did not approach my brother as a lawyer with this problem - I talk to my brother about everything and he just happened to mention that the statute of limitations on debt is 3 years.

Sorry, but that is just not true.

In a later post, it sounds like you did what I suggested - negotiate a better price, and pay up.

 

[Doctor Bagel]

I am from a different country and I have always known that if you don't pay the bills, the U will put a hold on your records and transcripts. How can you, American kids not know about it?😕

It's not that people don't know it. It's just that the billing system at schools can be pretty chaotic, so you might not know that you owe anything until too late. As the op said, she could have been making payments on this debt over the years if she had known about it, but they never bothered to send her a bill and released her transcripts several years earlier, leaving her to think everything was OK.

 

[Nasrudin]

I am from a different country and I have always known that if you don't pay the bills, the U will put a hold on your records and transcripts. How can you, American kids not know about it?😕

How about the next time you stub your toe on the coffee table going to the bathroom in the middle of the night you imagine by southern drawl saying.....in America we remember where we put our funiture, Whycome yall aint got any sense.

 

[futureboy]

There are a few lessons here. Never, ever assume that a debt will just go away if you don't hear about it for a while. If you settle a debt, particularly for a reduced balance, ALWAYS GET IT IN WRITING. (actually, get everything in writing...). States may have a very long statute of limitations. For example, Ohio's is 15 years on a written contract, 6 years on an oral contract. Even if you have a debt that comes off your credit report after 7 years, you can still get sued on it for up to 15 years (in Ohio; statutes of limitations vary by type of claim and by state). There are companies that purchase old debt and then sue to collect on it years after people think the debt went away.

In sum, get your financial house in order as soon as possible because bad finances can hinder you for a long time.

Sorry, but that is just not true.

In a later post, it sounds like you did what I suggested - negotiate a better price, and pay up.

 

[budhak0n]

So what exactly makes you think that you don't to pay the school? You went there. You got an education. You owe them money. It's kinda sad how you're using your lawyer brother and a statute of limitations to try to get out of it.

Oh Really? So quick to judge..

How about this situation. Mr Know it all. I went to an institution who collected well over 100 grand from me.. Never practiced a day. Never profited a PENNY.

And then this institution after I paid like 3 grand in extortion money to get my transcripts 5 years ago... Has come up with another supposed "bill" for 1400 that was never discussed prior to releasing my academic records to the Federal Government.

Maybe you should "really" get a good idea of the operations of some of these so called educators before calling somebody out on the carpet for not wanting to pay somebody who basically was in the business of ripping off the "undereducated".

I wouldn't pay them a cent "if" the money is owed in conjunction with some sort of "financial" aid package... If you owe the money because of food or lodging or books etc... well then that's your call.

Not knowing your situation , I can't say for sure. But I do know this... People who make blanket statements about certain educational "institutions" don't know squat about what they speak for the most part.

Identity "THEFT" Sure.. the largest growing crime of the past decade and the single greatest offender from 1980-2000 was the Dept of education and the institutions who stole all that federal backed funds from you and I the taxpayer.

Can you imagine the Higher Ed Act of 1974 in Ben Franklin's day? LOL that would be a great concept. ....

They have no right to hold you up over anything and if necessary sue them for release of the information.. They'll pony it right up once you file <g>.. but then again like I said I know nothing of the specifics of your "debt" .. If it was for on campus housing or anything like that.. well then you probably should pay them.

 

[budhak0n]

See my earlier post about them ALREADY sending me a transcript.

TDC trust me I've dealt with this before and will deal with it again in the future... Every time you come back to them and "need" something from them they will make it another opportunity for a pay day....

You could always do what I did but this is just an exercise in futility. I filed a formal complaint with the D of E claiming false certification of ability to "benefit" from the program.

So that just like the US government charges "back" Truck driver schools that don't fulfill their requirements... Let them charge "back" educational institutions that grant absolutely nothing in exchange for piling 100's of thousands of bucks into their "Presidents" pockets...

The Higher Ed bill of 74 is way out of wack and the most recent goings ons in NYC with the AG taking dead aim at this corrupt institution is LONG LONG overdue.

"IDENTITY" Theft? Get real.. there's no greater ID theft than the goings on of people like these over the past 30 years...

 

[budhak0n]

Oh and by the way, it's not just people like me who recognize this system to be woefully broken.

Take a good peek at Princeton University nowadays folks.

When I graduated High school from one of the best Prep schools in the Philadelphia area I had the grades and resume to get into any of the higher level Ivy's but there was no way I could afford such a thing.

Now a days.. Princeton university not only makes sure that if undergrads can get in they can afford to be in...

They DO ALL THEIR Financial Aid packages without LOANS.

They no longer indebt their undergrads.. Don't believe me? Go look at their site.

A move that was long overdue and let's be woefully honest.. the Practice of attempting to pass the buck to Generation X is just another in a LONG LONG line of Baby Boomer Scams and tax shelters... just on a much grander scale.

Don't believe me? Check out how many doctors and lawyers who got their licenses in the 70's had their debts discharged via bankruptcy.

Meanwhile these same jerks are the ones responsible for making ridiculous completely unjustified student "loan" debt nondischargeable.

It's all a scam and all a huge game of let's pass the buck. ( P.S.- I'm not talking about undergrad... I'm more concerned with grad work most specifically legal... although I guess some med programs if they don't satisfactorily prepare people to practice medicine without subjecting them to huge malpractice claims could be tossed in there)