Helb Takes Loan Defaulters To Court As It Seeks To Recover Ksh10.5 billion.
The Higher Education Loans Board (HELB) has begun taking persistent loan defaulters to court in an attempt to recoup over Ksh10.5 billion owed to it by beneficiaries.
HELB Chief Executive Officer Charles Ringera stated that the government agency has resolved to take legal action against 109,000 beneficiaries whose debt has been flagged as “hardcore,” indicating that it has not been serviced for nearly ten years.
He went on to say that the loans board had already filed cases against five hardcore defaulters, despite the fact that it had originally targeted seven.
Ringera explained that HELB takes extreme measures ten years after the defaulter is listed with credit reference bureaus and private debt collectors’ efforts fail.
“We chase one another for like three years before now we say this debt is now approaching hardcore. However, if during the intervening period, you have actually been able to see us, then nobody will list you.
HELB is attempting to collect at least Ksh4.9 billion two years after repayments were disrupted due to the Covid-19 pandemic’s destabilization of the economy.
The loans board stated that some of the beneficiaries choose not to repay their loans despite numerous attempts by the government agency to recover the amounts.
“We chase one another for like three years before now we say this debt is now approaching hardcore. However, if during the intervening period, you have actually been able to see us, then nobody will list you.
“On KRA, you can see they are paying taxes, on NTSA you can see they are buying their Subarus. This is how we are chasing one another. That is why we become a little bit hard in terms of even thinking about prosecution,“ Ringera explained.
After the seventh year, HELB forwards a defaulter’s information to private debt collectors. In 2021, the student loans board notified 85,000 Kenyans that they risked being listed on the CRB if they did not pay their loans.
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Wavi Muigai, HELB Communications Director, told Kenyans.co.ke that plans were in place to ensure defaulters pay.
"They will be listed on CRB, and there are penalties, Ksh5,000 a month according to the HELB Act. People pay monthly and we keep tabs of those who pay every day,” Muigai stated.
Helb Takes Loan Defaulters To Court As It Seeks To Recover Ksh10.5 billion
