When going to purchase a new car, I received a copy of my credit report, checking the accuracy of the report I noticed a 1200 dollar (USD) debt, that I was not aware of. Upon further investigation, the debt was owed to ECMC a company I had never dealt with in any fashion.
Upon contact with this company, I was told that the debt had been incurred by a federal student loan. As I am still paying off my college education, I was not surprised that I may have missed something upon my exit interview with the school.
Being the responsible bill paying person I am, I asked to make arrangements to pay this debt off (still assuming I actually owed this money). I was placed on a payment plan of 50.00 a month, not only did I pay that but payed an additional 50% for a grand total of 75.00 a month for 3 months. During this time i did not receive correspondance from this company.
My second contact with this company was to request formal bills in the mail, as so I could track my balance. I was then informed that my balance had gone from 1200 dollars to nearly 1600 dollars. With my 225 dollars paid into it. This bewildered me, and it made me curious as to how these people could not only take a payment that I arranged to make they didnt track me down. But then charge me a "daily compounded interest" on a federal student loan.
At this point I challenged the validity of the loan, and received paperwork that I infact did recognize. It was paperwork that the school had given me to get financial aid. At the time I filled out my FAFSA information I would receive a whopping 640 dollars to pay my 58 thousand dollar tuition.
So I decided that the US Govt. Would not be able to help me and obtained private funding through a secondary student loan company. Never signing the promissary note.
The promisarry note they had sent had the name of the school, loan ammount, had NOT been signed physically, or electronically.
If you find them on a credit report challenge it. If you are currently in their talons, challenge the validity of the claim, it is within your legal rights as a consumer to do so.
According to them, I still owe them money, according to the unsigned promisary note they can go right into the 7th circle of heck.
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