Father signed Student Loans in my name without my knowledge. What are my options?

[fractalize]

Hello Everyone, I just joined these forums in hopes of finding some advice pertaining to my situation. I graduated from college last May, and found out that my father took out student loans in my name in order to pay for my education. These loans are signed in my name, yet I never signed any paperwork approving these loans, and now I have come to find that I currently owe ~$48,000 in past student loans.

Granted, upon this discovery, things have not been good between my father and I. I am currently working a part-time job while looking for a second job/work within my field (graduated with a degree in Psychology). I attempted to get into a graduate program, but have been denied and must wait another year to re-apply. In the meantime, my grace periods have expired and I am now writing checks equivalent to a total of ~$700 a month for these loans--this only leaves me ~$125 of my monthly income to afford a living stipend. There are a total of six loans he has taken out in my name, divided evenly between private and federal loans, and all of them are unsubsidized loans.

I have since quit living independently and been relegated to living in my mother's basement until I am able to rectify this situation in some fashion. My father has refused to help pay for these loans he has opened in my name, but I have completed my degree with this money and cannot simply stop the funds since they have now entered repayment. My question is this: is there any legal recourse I can consider against my father?

 

[army judge]

You could sue your father.
You could have him charged criminally.
If he's charged criminally, your obligation to repay the debts he obtained in your name will also shift to him.

You're stuck between a rock and a hard place.


Your legal options will only bring more dischord and confusion into your family.


Why not discuss this with dad and mom?



Let dad know that if he fails to correct this, you might have no choice other than speaking to federal law enforcement officials.

 

[fractalize]

Thanks for replying so quickly! This has actually been an ongoing situation. I have attempted to discuss this civilly with him on multiple occassions, but he is not willing to discuss it, and it always reaches a point of him yelling at not only me, but other members of my family as well. At first I discussed this option as a last resort effort with other close friends of mine, but it seems that this last resort may be a the final ultimatum in this unfortunate scenario. Currently, I would like to arrange this so that I can "pull the trigger" with a clear plan in order when the situation ultimately arises.

Is there any particular source of information or general law that I should familiarize myself with in order to prepare? Any general guidelines or advice you would be able to pass along? I've just now finally wrapped my head around the entirety of the situation since I have had to cut the first checks to avoid any negative effects to my credit. I am more-or-less completely clueless in the steps I must take for this next decision.

 

[army judge]

You don't need to known anything.
Once you contact the authorities, they'll do the dirty work.

What you might want to consider is that this will destroy your dad. He could end up in prison. He will lose his job. It will bring shams and embarrassment upon your family.

This will not end well for any of you!

 

[mightymoose]

You had no knowledge of these loans at all?
How did you manage to pay your tuition and other expenses every semester?
Did you receive ALL of the money from the loans?
Where did you think the money was coming from?

Just curious- it seems there is some info missing here.

 

[fractalize]

I was told by my father that he was taking out loans for the last two years of my schooling. He never stated he was taking out loans in my name, and never showed me any paperwork on which he was putting my name. On top of that, I found that some of the loans are dated to the very first month I started college, so the "two years" was an additional lie.

I never saw any of the money for which he signed my name. All information had been sent through his e-mail address and to his home address while I lived away at school. He made payments for tuition (almost always late), and I am assuming the funds themselves went into his bank account because I never saw a dollar of it. I paid for books and my daily living expenses by working a part-time job all four years.

 

[bluemann33]

Have you told your father that you may have no other choice but to turn him in if he dosent pay or atleast help pay? Did your tuition equal the amount of loans that were taken out, or did he use some of the money for personal use?

 

[gydaqec]

Legally, you may be able to do something, but maybe you shouldn't. Maybe you should be paying these loans. College isn't free and if you wish to go yo sometimes have to pay the consequences.

 

[mileytipton]

Before taking any legal action better you change your authorized signature to prevent future loss. Yes you can file case against your father for fraud and ask for money taken as loan on your behalf...