When you default on your federal student loan debt, your whole life can change. Your credit will reflect negative information, which could affect you getting approved for a car or mortgage. You will receive a phone call after phone call and letter after letter reminding you of this debt and the mountain of issues that it’s causing.
Chances are you are being contacted by debt collectors, such as Immediate Credit Recovery Inc regarding your student loan debt. Collection agencies are known for being relentless when recovering debts for their clients, after all, that’s what they get paid to do.
This guide will tell you who Immediate Credit Recovery is, what they do, how to get your loan away from them, and most importantly, your options for getting back on track. If you need help when dealing with them, contact our office and speak with one of our expert student loan financial advisors that can help you handle this agency.
Who Is Immediate Credit Recovery Inc?
ICR is a third-party collection agency contracted by hundreds of schools, as well as federal and state government agencies which include the Department of Education. According to their website, they “are committed to providing superior debt recovery services while maintaining the highest level of professionalism and respect for all parties involved.”
This company was founded in 1990, and is located in Georgia, and was incorporated in NY in 1998, and have been accredited with the BBB since 2014.
Reviews, Complaints, And Lawsuits
According to the BBB, ICR has had 71 customer complaints in the last 3 years, and 19 of those complaints were closed in the 12 months. The majority of the issues were for billing and collection issues.
According to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Immediate Credit Recovery has had 26 complaints logged for failing to verify debts, making threats, improper communication tactics, and illegally disclosing information. They have had 5 civil litigations filed, for deceptive and misleading practices used to collect or attempt to collect a debt.
How Do I Contact Immediate Credit Recovery Inc?
Hours of Operation: Mon. – Thurs. 8am – 9pm EST, Fri. 8am – 5pm EST, Sat. 8 am – 12 pm
Their contact information is:
Immediate Credit Recovery Inc
PO Box 965156
Marietta, GA 30066
Toll-Free: 866-401-7190
Fax: 770-792-8165
Website: https://myicraccount.com/
Why Are They Calling Me?
You are more than likely to be contacted by ICR for a defaulted federal student loan debt. Initially, when you missed payments on your loan, it moved to delinquent status. When you failed to resolve your delinquent student loan debt (after 270 consecutive days of nonpayment), your loans were placed in default status. The loan service provider sent your loans to The Department of Education’s Default Resolution Group/ Debt Management and Collections System. From there it was sent to Immediate Credit Recovery since the DRG/DMCS were unsuccessful in collecting on your loan.
How Can I Get My Loans Away From ICR?
If you want to get your loans out of the hands of Immediate Credit Recovery Inc, you need to get them out of default. To get them out of default, you can either consolidate your loans or participate in the loan rehabilitation program.
If you want to have a choice on who your loan servicer is then you should choose loan consolidation. Otherwise, if you choose loan rehabilitation, the decision on who your loan servicer will be is up to the Department of Education. If you need assistance with communicating with them regarding resolving your student loan debt, you should contact our office and speak with a professional and experienced student loan financial advisor, to help guide you.
How Can I Stop A Wage Garnishment From Immediate Credit Recovery?
If you want to stop a wage garnishment, you can choose one of the following options:
- Payment in full
- Voluntary repayment program
- Loan rehabilitation
- Loan consolidation
- Negotiate a settlement
Here is a more detailed look of each option:
Payment in full
Obviously if you had the money to pay off your loans in full, you wouldn’t be in default or have a garnishment on your wages. However, some borrowers come into large sums of money through inheritance or lawsuits. The option is there you can pay your loan off.
Voluntary Repayment Program
This is the first option that you will be given by the collection agency. If you enter into a voluntary repayment plan before a garnishment is put in effect, it will prevent it from starting. This option does not get you out of default, therefore it is advised to only select this option when necessary.
Loan Rehabilitation
If you have never rehabilitated your loans before, you may qualify for loan rehabilitation. This program requires you to pay 9 consecutive on-time monthly payments within 10 months. The garnishment will stop after your 5th payment, however, you need to make sure that you make the remaining 4 payments. Otherwise, your loans will not get out of default and your efforts for loan rehabilitation will be wasted.
Important Things To Note:
- You can only rehabilitate your loans one time. If these loans become defaulted once again, you will have to find another way to get out of default.
- Your collection fees are waived once you complete the terms of the loan rehabilitation program.
- You should make sure that when you sign and submit the agreement letter to ICR, that they received it and confirm that your paperwork was approved before making payments.
Loan Consolidation
If you are not under a wage garnishment and you have eligible federal student loans, you are eligible to combine your defaulted federal student loans with another one. If you are under an active wage garnishment, you will need to have the garnishment removed or the judgment vacated before you can consolidate your federal student loans.
You could be considered under an active wage garnishment if Immediate Credit Recovery has sent the garnishment to your employer and the garnishment has not been withheld from your check.
Negotiate a settlement
This option is only available when your loans are in default. If you need time to come up with the money, you should enter into a voluntary repayment program. It will prevent the garnishment from starting, however, your loans will remain in default status allowing you time to come up with the settlement amount.
You usually have to pay 85% of the balance within 30-90 days. Certain circumstances will allow you to negotiate a settlement of less than 85% of your loan balance, however, you would need to get with the Department of Education of the collection agency to get that done. If a collection agency approves less than 85% of the loan balance, they usually have to eat the difference between what the Department of Education would have received and what was agreed upon.
How Do I Keep My Loans From Defaulting Again?
Every year about a million borrowers default on their student loans. According to financial experts, in the year 2023, 40% of student loan borrowers will have defaulted on their student loan debt.
A default can be prevented, the most obvious way is to continue making your monthly payments. If you feel you are struggling to make your monthly payments, you should contact your loan servicer immediately to determine what options you have available. You could qualify for a deferment, forbearance, or an IncomeDriven Repayment Plan.
Keep this in mind, that borrowers that rehabilitate their loans 40% re-default within 3 years. This means that when this happens the only options available are loan consolidation, and filing Chapter 13 Bankruptcy.
Here are tips to keep your loans on track:
- Enroll in autopay. This will help you to avoid late fees each time your loan is late and you can rest assured that the loan servicer will take their payment from your account each month which will prevent you from defaulting on these loans again.
- Track your loans. You can keep track of your loans on the Department of Education’s National Student Loan Data System. This will provide information regarding all of your student loans not just what is under a specific loan servicer. You can view information about your loans, if they have been sold, make sure that your payments are being applied properly and you’re getting credit for any programs that you are in.
- Always keep records of anything regarding your student loan debt. This includes applications, requests, and recertifications.
Remember the information mentioned in this guide pertains to federally-funded student loans. The process for handling defaulted private student loans vary depending on the lender. If you need help with developing the best strategy to overcome your defaulted student loans and how to deal with collection agencies, speak with one of our student loan financial advisors, and they will guide you in the right direction.
Conclusion
Don’t let the thought of dealing with collection agencies keep you from resolving your defaulted student loan debt. The sooner you face your debt the better your outcome will be and the sooner your credit will be repaired, provided that you are keeping up with the other aspects of your credit report, such as car loans, mortgages, credit cards, etc. If you have trouble deciding how to remain on top of your student loans and how to handle collection agencies, give our office a call, we have student loan financial advisors waiting for your call.
