Imagine going to pay for groceries or rent, only to find that your bank account has been frozen. The reason: A debt collector has gotten a court judgment without any notice to you at all.

That’s happened for decades to hundreds of Iowa student loan borrowers, hit with court orders to freeze bank accounts or garnish wages for unpaid debts without any opportunity to contest the claims in court.

That’s because, as part of settlements with lenders when they fell into arrears on loan payments, they…