INDIANAPOLIS — Relief is on the way for tens of thousands of people with student loans. Some of those borrowers are here in Indiana.
Why is debt being canceled?
A January settlement between student loan servicer Navient and state attorneys general is cancelling more than $1 billion in student loan debt.
State attorneys general accuse the company of targeting struggling students and engaging in deceptive and abusive practices. They also say Navient steered people into forbearance instead of more affordable repayment plans.
Navient denies violating any law, including consumer-protection laws.
As for steering people into forbearance, the company said that "after years of discovery, no borrower was ever produced to substantiate these claims because they did not and do not happen."
The settlement includes $1.7 billion in debt cancellation and $95 million in money paid back to borrowers. Navient will also pay $142.5 million to the attorneys general.
A judge still needs to sign off on this settlement plan for it all to happen.
Do I qualify?
The debt cancellation will benefit 66,000 people.
The cancelation is for borrowers "who took out private student loans at Sallie Mae, largely between 2002-2010 and who subsequently defaulted," according to Navient's FAQ page.
The borrowers attended for-profit schools including ITT Technical Institute, DeVry Institute and Brown Mackie College.
Do I need to do anything?
If you qualify for forgiveness or payment, you do not need to act.
Navient will notify borrowers of the discharge of their private loans in writing by July 2022, according to the settlement page. The page adds that restitution payments will be automatically distributed to eligible federal loan borrowers by Rust Consulting, which is the settlement administrator.
"If you are eligible for a payment, the settlement administrator will send a postcard to you in the mail later this spring. Checks are expected to be sent by mail in mid-2022," the settlement reads.
To ensure payment, the site said to update your contact information in your studentaid.gov account or create an account if you do not already have one.