As indicated by the title, I currently have one loan in deferment and am seeking to defer a private loan as well. My Perkins loan is currently deferred because I am still in graduate school. However, I just had a frustrating experience with a customer service representative (who abruptly ended the chat), claiming that only one loan can be deferred at a time. According to her, I will need to submit new forms when my Perkins deferment ends in May this year.
Should I attempt to contact another representative at ECSI? I have previously had two loans deferred simultaneously through them. I’m unsure if this representative was misinformed or if this is indicative of ECSI’s overall service quality. Your insights would be appreciated.
It would be ridiculous to apply the in-school deferment to just one loan.
If she says there are numerous types of deferments, she most likely means you have to apply for each kind of loan. Although it sounds silly, that’s probably what’s taking place.
My suspicion is that the problem stems from the conditions of the private loans. As far as I’m aware, federal student loans do not have any restrictions on in-school deferment periods, so it’s common for them to have a finite number of them. People enrolled in PhD or medical schools typically suffer when their private loans become due in the middle of their programs.
Do you possess any of the private loans’ loan documentation? Although Perkins loans were eliminated in 2017, you may still see some information about them on the studentaid.gov website.
ECSI may have policies limiting the number of deferments allowed per loan or borrower. Contact ECSI directly to understand their specific deferment policies and to discuss options for managing your loans, such as alternative repayment plans or temporary forbearance, if deferment isn’t available.