Posted Date:July 26, 2013
| Author: | Jana Hernandes, Service Director, Operations, Federal Student Aid |
Subject: Loan Servicing Information - Additional Federal Loan Servicer Team Changes
Earlier this month (July 12, 2013), we informed the financial aid community of upcoming changes to our federal loan servicer team. In that announcement, we explained that we will bring closure to all functions performed by ACS (Xerox) over the next several months and that Nelnet will be added as a third servicer to which we assign newly-made traditional consolidation loans. At this time, we need to inform the community of another change to our federal loan servicer team.
Four Not-for-Profit (NFP) members of our federal loan servicer team—COSTEP, EDGEucation Loans, EdManage, and KSA Servicing—will partner with other NFP members of the federal loan servicer team. The four NFP servicers are partnering with other NFP servicers because the servicing platform that COSTEP, EDGEucation Loans, EdManage, and KSA Servicing use will soon not be available. We will transfer the Direct Loan accounts assigned to COSTEP, EDGEucation Loans, EdManage, and KSA Servicing to the new NFP servicer partners as outlined below.
| Direct Loan accounts assigned to departing NFP servicer… | Will be transferred to… |
| COSTEP | MOHELA |
| EDGEucation Loans | MOHELA |
| EdManage | MOHELA |
| KSA Servicing | Aspire Resources Inc. |
The transfer of Direct Loan accounts from COSTEP, EDGEucation Loans, EdManage, and KSA Servicing to the new NFP servicer partners will occur in August and September 2013. All affected borrowers will be informed of the servicer change before and after the transfers occur.
The phone numbers, Web site addresses, and e-mail addresses for COSTEP, EDGEucation Loans, EdManage, and KSA Servicing will remain operational until we transfer all Direct Loan accounts and complete all decommissioning steps. We will inform the community of the closure and decommissioning dates through a subsequent Electronic Announcement on the Information for Financial Aid Professionals (IFAP) Web site.
Borrower and school contact information for MOHELA and Aspire Resources, Inc. is available on the IFAP Web site’s Loan Servicing Centers for Students page and Loan Servicing Centers for Schools page, respectively.
Direct Loan Borrower Account Transfers from COSTEP, EDGEucation Loans, EdManage, and KSA Servicing to New NFP Servicer Partners
We, along with our federal loan servicers, are committed to ensuring that this transfer process goes as smoothly as possible for affected borrowers. We present key information about the upcoming transfers from COSTEP, EDGEucation Loans, EdManage, and KSA Servicing to the new NFP servicer partners—MOHELA and Aspire Resources Inc.—in question and answer format below.
Q1: How will a borrower know if his or her Direct Loans have been transferred from COSTEP, EDGEucation Loans, EdManage, or KSA Servicing to a new NFP servicer partner?
A1: When we transfer a student or parent borrower’s Direct Loans from COSTEP, EDGEucation Loans, EdManage, or KSA Servicing to a new NFP servicer partner, the borrower will receive notification by e-mail and letter. These communications will include preliminary notice of the transfer and the new NFP servicer partner’s name and contact information.
In addition to the pre-transfer communications, the new NFP servicer partner will correspond with the borrower after the transferred loans have been fully loaded to its system. In this correspondence to the borrower, the new NFP servicer partner will explain that the borrower’s Direct Loans have been transferred and that the servicer will service the loans on our behalf going forward. The correspondence will include both toll-free phone number and Web site information for the new NFP servicer partner.
Q2: How will a school know which federal loan servicer—COSTEP, EDGEucation Loans, EdManage, or KSA Servicing or a new NFP servicer partner—is servicing a borrower’s Direct Loans?
A2: In addition to the student or parent borrower receiving correspondence from the new NFP servicer partner, it will be identified as the servicer of the borrower’s Direct Loans in the National Student Loan Data System (NSLDS). The new NFP servicer partner reports this information to the NSLDS after the transferred loans have been fully loaded to its system. Both the borrower and the school will be able to view the federal loan servicer code and name associated with each loan via the NSLDS Student Access Web site and the NSLDS Professional Access Web site, respectively.
In addition to individual Web lookups, the School Portfolio Report (SCHPR1) is available to schools by request under the Report Tab on the NSLDS Professional Access Web site. This report provides a school with information about all Direct Loan and/or Federal Family Education Loan (FFEL) program loans associated with its school code. It includes loans that are serviced by all servicers, including our federal loan servicers, and provides identifying information about the servicer for each loan. The report is delivered to the school’s Student Aid Internet Gateway (SAIG) mailbox. For the most current information about this report, refer to NSLDS Newsletter 40 and NSLDS Newsletter 43 on the IFAP Web site.
Q3: How long will it take for a new NFP servicer partner’s information to be reflected in the NSLDS?
A3: Our federal loan servicers report loan information to the NSLDS on a weekly basis. As a general rule, when we transfer a student or parent borrower’s Direct Loans from COSTEP, EDGEucation Loans, EdManage, or KSA Servicing to the new NFP servicer partner, the new servicer information should be available in the NSLDS within seven to ten business days after the transferred loans have been fully loaded to the new NFP servicer partner’s system and the servicer corresponds with the borrower.
The majority of servicer-to-servicer transfers are completed on schedule. However, in some cases, issues can occur with the data transfer and delay availability of the information in the NSLDS. If a school is concerned about the new NFP servicer partner’s information not being available in the NSLDS, it should contact the Federal Student Aid Research and Customer Care Center (RCCC) at 800/433-7327 or fsa.customer.support@ed.gov for assistance.
Q4: Will it be necessary for a borrower to reinitiate actions related to the current status of his or her account (for example, reapply for a deferment or forbearance)?
A4: Loan status information will be included when we transfer a student or parent borrower’s Direct Loans from COSTEP, EDGEucation Loans, EdManage, or KSA Servicing to a new NFP servicer partner. The borrower should experience no break or gap in any current status (such as deferment or forbearance) that applies to his or her Direct Loans as a result of the transfer. If a borrower is concerned about a break or gap in current status, he or she should contact the new NFP servicer partner for assistance.
Q5: Will it be necessary for a borrower to reinitiate services related to his or her account (for example, account access via the Web, electronic correspondence, and automatic debit or Web payments)?
A5: When we transfer a student or parent borrower’s Direct Loans from COSTEP, EDGEucation Loans, EdManage, or KSA Servicing to a new NFP servicer partner, it will be necessary for the borrower to contact the new NFP servicer partner to reinitiate some services related to the borrower’s account. After the transferred loans have been fully loaded to the new NFP servicer partner’s system, the servicer will provide correspondence to the borrower that explains how the borrower establishes account access via the Web and signs up for other services (such as Web payments, electronic correspondence, and, if necessary, automatic debit). If a borrower has questions about reinitiating account services, he or she should contact the new NFP servicer partner for assistance.
Contact Information
We appreciate the community’s support as we transfer borrower accounts from COSTEP, EDGEucation Loans, EdManage, and KSA Servicing to the new NFP servicer partners—MOHELA and Aspire Resources Inc. Please monitor the IFAP Web site for the forthcoming Electronic Announcement that will inform you of the closure and decommissioning dates associated with these federal loan servicer team changes.
If you have questions about Direct Loans transferred to one of the new NFP servicer partners, contact the servicer directly. Contact information for MOHELA and Aspire Resources Inc. is available on the IFAP Web site’s Loan Servicing Centers for Schools Contact Information page.