The attorney general of New York is negotiating settlements with eight student loan companies to reform deceptive practices in the industry. A particular focus is the marketing of products so they appear to be federal loans.
"Some of the seals (used by lenders) looked very similar to those of the federal government," said Alex Detrick, a spokesman for the attorney general's office.
The distinction is important because federal loans have fixed interest rates that are often lower than private loans.
The student loan companies also misled consumers at times about the best loan options on the market, he said.
This group of direct-to-student lenders sends advertising material by mail or market to students online, but do not necessarily have a presence on campus. Students are sometimes offered iPods or gift cards as an incentive to sign up, Detrick said.
Source
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment