Trellis Company contacts consumers about defaulted federal student loans, and unlike credit card or medical debt collectors, it can garnish your wages and seize your tax refund without ever taking you to court.
According to BBB complaint records, consumers have allegedly reported calls continuing after written disputes, contact from numbers that display no company name, and collection activity on accounts they did not recognize as Trellis. If Trellis is calling you, +1-844-638-1122 connects you directly to The Wood Firm PLLC for a free case review.
Key Takeaways
- Trellis Company, formerly Texas Guaranteed Student Loan Corporation (TG), is a nonprofit FFELP guaranty agency headquartered at 301 Sundance Parkway, Round Rock, TX 78681.
- If you see “TG,” “Texas Guaranteed,” or “TGTRELLIS” on your credit report or caller ID, that is Trellis Company. The name changed; the debt did not.
- Trellis holds approximately 39 BBB complaints over the last three years. Most involve credit reporting disputes on paid or rehabilitated loans and collection activity consumers did not recognize.
- Trellis asserts in every BBB response that it is not a debt collector under the FDCPA. Consumers have named it in federal FDCPA suits regardless, and courts have examined those claims.
- Trellis can garnish wages and seize federal tax refunds without a court order. No statute of limitations applies to federal student loan debt.
- Loan rehabilitation clears the default notation from your credit report after nine qualifying payments. Consolidation removes default status immediately.
- The Wood Firm PLLC handles consumer protection cases on contingency: no upfront fees, and the collector pays if they violated federal law.
Free Case Review: +1-844-638-1122
Who Is Trellis Company?
Trellis Company is a nonprofit student loan guaranty agency authorized by the U.S. Department of Education to administer the Federal Family Education Loan Program (FFELP). It is not a typical third-party debt collector.
When a borrower’s FFELP loan reaches 270 days of non-payment, Trellis pays a default claim to the original lender and becomes the holder of that loan. From that point forward, Trellis contacts the borrower directly to collect.
Trellis operated for nearly 40 years under its original name, Texas Guaranteed Student Loan Corporation, commonly abbreviated as TG.
The rebranding matters for consumers: if “TG,” “Texas Guaranteed,” or “TGTRELLIS” appears on your credit report or in a BBB complaint, that is the same company now operating as Trellis. Loan guaranties originally held by the New York Higher Education Services Corporation (NYHESC) also transferred to Trellis under a Department of Education-approved agreement in May 2023, which is why some borrowers first encountered Trellis without any prior contact from them.
In our practice, the name change is the first thing we flag on any Trellis file, because consumers who dispute a “TGTRELLIS” credit entry often do not know they are disputing a Trellis Company account. Linking those identities is the starting point for any credit reporting or collection analysis.
- Also Known As: Texas Guaranteed Student Loan Corporation; TG; TGTRELLIS
- Headquarters: 301 Sundance Parkway, Round Rock, TX 78681
- Collections Mailing Address: Trellis Collections, P.O. Box 659602, San Antonio, TX 78265-9602
- Ombudsman Address: Trellis Ombudsman, P.O. Box 83100, Round Rock, TX 78683-3100
- Phone: 800-252-9743 | (800) 252-9743 | +1-800-252-9743 | 8002529743
- Alternate: (512) 219-5700
- Website: trelliscompany.org
- BBB Profile: Trellis Company BBB listing
Phone Numbers Trellis Company Uses
Trellis contacts borrowers from its Round Rock, Texas headquarters lines. Consumers searching a number to identify who called them should check against both documented lines:
- 800-252-9743 | (800) 252-9743 | +1-800-252-9743 | 8002529743
- 512-219-5700 | (512) 219-5700 | +1-512-219-5700 | 5122195700
According to BBB complaint records, at least one consumer alleged that Trellis contacted them from a number that did not display the company name, making the call indistinguishable from a scam call. If a number called you with no identifying information and you have a federal student loan, Trellis is one of the first entities to verify against these numbers.
Why Is Trellis Company Calling You
Trellis Company is calling you because a federal FFELP student loan you took out before 2010 went into default, and Trellis paid a claim to the original lender and became the holder of your debt. FFELP loans originated through commercial banks and credit unions, not directly from the federal government, so many borrowers do not immediately recognize Trellis as connected to their original loans.
Some borrowers encounter Trellis for the first time when their loan guaranty transfers from another agency. In 2023, Trellis absorbed the NYHESC portfolio under a Department of Education agreement.
Borrowers whose loans were originally guaranteed in New York received contact from Trellis with no prior relationship with them. If you do not recognize Trellis as your loan holder, that gap in communication is documented in BBB complaints and does not eliminate the underlying debt obligation.
What Trellis Can Do Without Going to Court
Yes, Trellis holds collection powers that no credit card or medical debt collector has. Federal law grants FFELP guaranty agencies the authority to pursue defaulted student loan borrowers through administrative channels that bypass the court system entirely.
Those powers include:
- Administrative wage garnishment: Trellis can garnish up to 15% of your disposable pay directly from your employer without obtaining a court judgment, after providing 30 days advance notice
- Tax refund offset: Trellis can instruct the U.S. Treasury to intercept your federal and state tax refunds and apply them to the defaulted balance
- Federal benefits offset: Social Security benefits and other federal payments may be offset under the Treasury Offset Program
- Federal student aid block: Default status with Trellis can prevent you from receiving future federal financial aid
- No statute of limitations: Federal student loan debt does not expire, and Trellis can pursue collection indefinitely
These powers distinguish a Trellis default from virtually every other collection situation. Ignoring Trellis contact does not make the debt unenforceable; it makes the administrative collection tools more likely to activate.
Does the FDCPA Apply to Trellis Company
Trellis disputes it. In every documented BBB response, Trellis states that it is not a debt collector as defined by the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. The agency’s position is that it operates as a federal guaranty agency under the Higher Education Act, not as a third-party collector covered by the FDCPA.
Consumers and consumer protection attorneys have challenged that position in federal court. Two documented cases named Trellis as a defendant in FDCPA claims:
- Tavares v. Waypoint Resource Group, LLC and Trellis Company, No. 5:2019cv00445 (N.D. Ohio) — consumer protection lawsuit naming Trellis alongside its collection vendor regarding student loan collection practices under the FDCPA
- Schneider et al v. Credit Human Federal Credit Union, Trellis Company, et al, No. 4:2020cv01747 (N.D. Ohio) — multi-party civil suit involving collection claims and validation of consumer debts held or managed by financial institutions and student loan entities
When we review a Trellis file, we examine the specific collection conduct at issue. The FDCPA coverage question is a legal determination that depends on how Trellis was acting at the time, not only on how it classifies itself.
Has Trellis Company Reported Your Credit Accurately
Yes, Trellis can report to credit bureaus, and federal regulation 34 CFR 682.410(b)(5) requires it to report the status of FFELP loans to all national consumer reporting agencies. The reporting obligation continues for seven years from the date of first delinquency, even after the debt is paid or consolidated.
Several BBB complaints document specific credit reporting disputes with Trellis:
- A consumer disputing a “TGTRELLIS” tradeline did not recognize the entry as their loan because the name change obscured the connection, according to a November 2024 BBB complaint
- A consumer whose loans were paid in full on February 26, 2020, confirmed Trellis updated the credit entry to “paid in full” on April 30, 2020, per Trellis’s BBB response
- Consumers whose loans exited default through consolidation found that Trellis continued reporting the prior default status, which Trellis confirmed is required by federal regulation for seven years from the date of first delinquency
If a Trellis entry appears inaccurate as to the date of delinquency, the balance, or the payment status, a dispute under the FCRA may be appropriate. The seven-year clock starts from the first delinquency date, not the date Trellis paid the claim.
Is Trellis Company a Scam
No. Trellis Company is a legitimate, authorized nonprofit operating under federal authorization from the U.S. Department of Education. It is not a scam operation. However, several documented consumer experiences with Trellis share characteristics that make it difficult to distinguish from one.
The specific documented patterns include:
- Contact from phone numbers that display no company name, which consumers reported as indistinguishable from scam calls, according to BBB complaint records
- Collection activity on loans that transferred to Trellis from NYHESC in 2023, where borrowers had no prior contact with Trellis and no awareness of the transfer
- A consumer whose bank account showed a charge from “PSG Hollis Cobb” without prior contact — while that was a different collector, Trellis complaints show a similar pattern of first contact arriving as a charge or credit entry rather than a call or letter
Authorized does not mean every collection communication is lawful. If Trellis contacted you in a way that failed to identify the company or the nature of the debt, that specific communication may still give rise to a legal claim regardless of the underlying debt’s validity.
Is Trellis Company Banned by the FTC
No. Trellis Company has not faced a formal FTC enforcement action. It operates as a licensed, active federal guaranty agency under Department of Education authorization.
The absence of an FTC action reflects Trellis’s status as a federally authorized entity rather than a commercial debt collector. Oversight of FFELP guaranty agencies runs primarily through the Department of Education and the CFPB. Consumers with complaints about Trellis’s collection conduct have the most direct avenue through a CFPB complaint at consumerfinance.gov/complaint or through the Federal Student Aid Ombudsman at studentaid.gov/feedback-ombudsman.
How to Get Out of Default With Trellis Company
Yes, two federal pathways exist to remove your loans from default status with Trellis. Both are documented in Trellis’s own BBB responses as options the agency offers borrowers.
Loan rehabilitation requires nine full, voluntary, on-time monthly payments based on your income. After completing the nine payments, the loan exits default, returns to a lender for servicing, and Trellis removes the default notation from your credit report. The payment amount is calculated based on your current financial situation.
Loan consolidation rolls the defaulted FFELP loan into a new federal Direct Consolidation Loan, removing it from default status immediately. Income-driven repayment plans become available after consolidation. Once a loan is in default, Trellis confirms there are no forbearance or deferment options available, so neither pathway involves delaying repayment.
How The Wood Firm PLLC Helps With Trellis Company
When we review a Trellis Company file, we focus on three things this agency’s complaint and litigation record surfaces most often: whether the collection communication identified the caller or company as required, the accuracy of the credit reporting entry against the documented delinquency and payment dates, and the specific conduct at issue when Trellis is named in an FDCPA claim. Trellis’s position that it falls outside the FDCPA is a legal argument, not a settled fact, and the outcome depends on the specific conduct in the file. The firm handles consumer protection cases on contingency: no upfront cost, and if Trellis violated federal law, they pay the fees.
After you call, we review what Trellis has done, identify which federal statutes apply, and tell you clearly whether a claim exists. The Wood Firm PLLC has represented only consumers: never a creditor or collector. To start that conversation, call us at +1-844-638-1122.
If Trellis contacted you without identifying itself, reported a credit entry you believe is inaccurate, or pursued collection on a loan you did not know had transferred to them, those facts are worth a legal review. Visit our contact page or call +1-844-638-1122 for a free case review. The Wood Firm PLLC handles these cases on contingency: if they violated federal law, they pay our fees.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Trellis Company legit
Yes. Trellis Company is a legitimate nonprofit authorized by the U.S. Department of Education to administer federal FFELP student loan guaranties. Legitimate does not mean every collection communication is lawful. If Trellis contacted you without identifying the company or the nature of the debt, that specific conduct may give rise to a legal claim.
Why is Trellis Company on my credit report
Trellis appears on credit reports because federal regulation 34 CFR 682.410(b)(5) requires it to report FFELP loan status to all national consumer reporting agencies. The reporting obligation runs for seven years from the date of first delinquency, even after the loan is paid or consolidated. If the entry shows “TGTRELLIS,” that is the same company under its former name.
Can Trellis Company garnish my wages
Yes. Trellis holds administrative wage garnishment authority under federal law and can garnish up to 15% of your disposable pay without a court judgment, after providing 30 days advance notice. Loan rehabilitation or consolidation can stop an active garnishment by removing the loan from default status.
What is the difference between Trellis Company and Texas Guaranteed Student Loan Corporation
They are the same entity. Texas Guaranteed Student Loan Corporation, also known as TG, rebranded as Trellis Company. Credit report entries showing “TGTRELLIS” reflect that transition. The underlying loan guaranty obligations did not change with the name.
Can Trellis Company take my tax refund
Yes. Trellis can refer defaulted FFELP loans to the U.S. Treasury Offset Program, which intercepts federal and state tax refunds and applies them to the outstanding balance. Loan rehabilitation or consolidation removes the loan from default status and stops future offsets.
Does the FDCPA apply to Trellis Company
Trellis asserts in every BBB response that it is not a debt collector under the FDCPA. Consumers have named Trellis in federal FDCPA lawsuits regardless, and courts have examined those claims. Whether the FDCPA applies depends on the specific conduct at issue in each case.
What is Trellis Company’s loan rehabilitation program
Rehabilitation requires nine full, voluntary, on-time monthly payments based on your income over approximately ten months. After completing the payments, the loan exits default, returns to a lender for servicing, and Trellis removes the default notation from your credit report. Contact Trellis at (800) 252-9743 to request an income-based payment calculation.
Your Next Step If Trellis Company Has Contacted You
Trellis holds collection powers no other agency in this category has, but its communication conduct still faces legal scrutiny, and its credit reporting must still comply with federal accuracy requirements. If the company contacted you without identifying itself, reported under a name you did not recognize, or pursued a loan that transferred to them without notice, those facts are worth examining. The Wood Firm PLLC handles these cases on contingency: no cost to you unless a violation exists. Call +1-844-638-1122 to find out where your situation stands.
Jeff Wood represents consumers exclusively: never creditors or collectors. He holds federal court admissions across 9 districts, including all courts of AR, CO, NM, and TX. He practices from Little Rock, AR.
