<prompt> Human: The Situation:I recently graduated college and Ive been getting all my finances in order and to start paying my loans off as smartly as possible. I have one loan, of approximately 32,000, that I had thought was just a normal student loan in my name but I have only just found out is actually a Parent Plus loans in my dads name. He didnt realize it was in his name either.I know that this means that loan isnt my legal responsibility, but my dad is 70 and trying to retire. This amount of debt is probably going to break him, financially. Also, I did intend to take this loan out in my name, and its only not my legal responsibility because he and I made some dumb choices and werent paying enough attention when the loan was taken out. Morally, I still feel like its something I should take care of, instead of dumping it on him...The Good News:I have been lucky enough to land a really good job right out of college hell yeah, Computer Science degree and it is actually within my means to pay this off, as well as the other loans that are in my name. It might take a few years and Ill live like a church mouse, but that was always the expectation.Ive been authorized by the loan provider, and I can make payments over the phone. The Conundrum:My dad is more than willing to help really he ought to, this is more his financial problem than mine But when I mentioned this situation to my mom, she started demanding that I make sure that none of the payments are in my name. She said debt collectors would be able to track me down if my dad ever defaults on this or other bills, and demand I pay in full. She didnt really explain how or why anything like that would happen, but now I really want to know what potential trouble Im asking for by making the majority of the payments for my dads loan. Theyre divorced, so I cant really know if my moms extreme concern is based off real problems that could come up, or some left over spite for my dad. Theyve mostly sorted out all their problems, except when it comes to finances for my siblings and me. So, in short, am I just asking for trouble if I were to pay off this loan as if it were actually mine? Is this really going to come back and bite me? Im not really sure who I can ask for advice, so I would really appreciate any input you might have. The other details:Why cant I just transfer the money to my dad, so all the payments are in his name but with my money?Because of egregious family drama with my dads wife. This is the situation, I dont really think the story of how we got here is relevant to answering my question, but Ill tell it if you wanna know.Why did my dad take out 32,000 in loans and not realize who was legally liable for them?Because hes over confident in his knowledge about finances and didnt look too closely at what he was signing. I realize that this is really concerning.Why didnt I check sooner or make sure it was in my name before he took out the loan?Because I wasnt there when he took out the loan We live in different states and probably because Im an idiot who didnt really understand how much 32,000 is when I was eighteen and decided to go off to college.Tl:dr my dad owes 32,000 that should have been in my name. I dont have to pay it, but would it be trouble if I did anyway?  <response>: Morally, I still feel like its something I should take care ofYes, this is absolutely your loan and youd be a horrible person if you were to foist this on your dad.Like others have confirmed, I dont see how you could damage yourself here in any way with regard to debt collectors. Debt collectors are bullies that often lie about what they can do and what your obligations to them are. They hope that you get scared and just pay them without realizing that its bs. 