SLC Recovery of overpaid grant

quirkygord69

Hey Guys. Im just about to start my second year at university and through a change in circumstances I am actually changing institutions, ie I am transfering from 1 university to another. I updated my change of university for my student finance online whilst applying and the following day I was contacted by my LEA asking if this was an error. I informed them that it wasnt and that I was actually transferring universities. The LEA informed me that if I were changing institutions I would have to sign withdrawal forms from my current university and file a fresh student finance application in paper to student finance and that they would delete all of my application data I had entered online so I could effectively start again. I was abit put out but did as they requested.

Today I have returned home to find 3 seperate letters from student finance. The first telling me that student finance had been advised that I had effectively 'withdrawn' from my old university and thus payments for that academic year would be stopped. The second letter was a payment schedule stating that I had been accepted for student finance for the next academic year however it STILL shows my old university (ie my information has not been altered). The third and most important letter was a final demand for £738 stating that I had been 'overpaid my grant'. I contacted the number on the letter and was told by the advisor that the maintenance grant I receive is calculated and paid on the proviso that it is to last up to 31st August 2010 and that as I had signed withdrawal forms from my old university (which I did on request from the LEA), for the period between the end of term at my old university and the start of term at my new university I would not be classed as being in higher education and therefore would not be entitled to a maintenance grant. The advisor also stipulated that if I withdrew my initial withdrawal and re-enrolled at my old university then attended a week and requested a transfer to my new university that I would not be liable to pay the £738 they say I owe :-s

I want to make it absolutely clear that I did not 'drop out' of my university. Infact I got the highest marks in the year. Can the student loans company actually do this? Does anyone have any suggestions?

Taiko

Yes, they can. You need approval from both HEI's in writing for the transfer to be agreed. The appropriate transfer notifications must be sent to the local authority in order for this to be actioned. Without it, you're classed as a withdrawal and therefore a new application. Withdrawal terminates your eligibility for support, hence the overpayment.

quirkygord69

I have resolved this. It was a clerical error afterall. Old university filed me as withdrawn rather than completed year to my LEA and thus the LEA file me as dropped out rather than transferring DOH. Thanks anyway.

ninni

I have also transferred from my course (i sat and passed the exams), but as i am going on to do another course (within the same institution) I have got the SLC demanding i pay them £650?? i dont think they have on record my new course only the withdrawal of the current course!!

Hope mine too is just a clerical error!! will ring 1st thing to find out!!

Taiko

Agin, follow the advice in my earlier post, and it should be amended.