Brian Snyder
Thousands of people struggling to pay off their private student loan debt may get a reprieve, as at least $5 billion in debt is missing crucial paperwork to enforce payments. Creditors seeking to collect on past debts have reportedly hit a roadblock when trying to seek payment through the courts, with insufficient ownership records and flawed documentation, The New York Times reported Monday. The National Collegiate Student Loan Trusts, one of the biggest owners of private student loan debt, has reportedly been unable to present legal paperwork showing it owns more than $5 billion in student loan debt. The result is that many debts simply get wiped out in court. Samantha Watson, a 33-year-old mother of three, was taken to court over $31,000 in student loans. But the judge erased her debt after finding that National Collegiate “failed to establish the chain of title” on the loans, according to the Times. Several other court cases in Texas, New Hampshire, and Ohio have been tossed due to missing or flawed paperwork.