Overpayment of Pell Grant, School Liable?

kelsmom
Sat, 10 Dec 2011 22:02:31 +0000

At this point in time, there is no overpayment because the current school entered the information in a way that they thought was correct. If in the future they are audited and the mistake is caught, they would be responsible for the error. That said, though, if they were to discover their error this year, they would have to correct it. In that case, your Pell grant would be reduced. Did you receive any more money than you had in the first place? If not, they can just correct their mistake and re-award the grants that were reduced. If so, do not spend the extra money until you talk to them and are assured they believe the verification is correct.

My suggestion is to point out the error to the school … not to the person who answers phones, but to someone who is in charge of verifications. Ask to speak to a manager about what you believe to be an error in your verification. Explain the situation. If the school insists it is okay, get that in writing (they may say it’s fine, although you know it isn’t). Email the manager after the discussion, stating that you would like confirmation that he/she has double-checked the verification and in in agreement. That way, if for some reason they try to remove the payment without awarding you institutional money to cover the balance, you can go to them with your email.

Also, make sure the new school doesn’t accidentally use the 0 EFC FAFSA to award your aid. Computers are great, but sometimes they allow another school’s change to be applied at their school … and when they catch the error, they will reduce your Pell based on their verified EFC.