Date Received: 2019-10-03
Issue: Dealing with your lender or servicer
Subissue: Received bad information about your loan
Consumer Complaint: The Fedloan Servicing ( U.S. Department of Education ) is providing consumer misinformation which warrants investigation. I have called this department almost every week to attain information regarding the status of my Income Driven Repayment Plan. On the last week of XXXX, I spoke with XXXX ( XXXX ) who indicated that I had the option of not paying the XX/XX/2019 amount of {$540.00} because my forbearance ( {$5.00} ) had been approved and I should be receiving it soon. It was received on XX/XX/2019 stating the forbearance had been approve, but dated for XX/XX/2019 to XX/XX/2019. This forbearance was supposed to cover XX/XX/2019, but now I am getting different information. Today, XX/XX/2019, I was told that the {$540.00} was still due and that they ( XXXX and XXXX ) work Id numbers ( XXXX and XXXX ) respectively did not understand why XXXX would tell me that this payment wouldn't be due. If you listen to the recording, it would confirm and support everything I have stated. An investigation is urgently warranted. This could be impacting thousands of borrowers. I was disregarding and told they were sorry, but the payment still had to be paid. There is illegal activity and the consumer does not know if the information being received is accurate. The public service forgiveness representative indicated there was missing information when there was none. Another confirm that information stated missing was not missing such as the end date. I am still employed which is indicated. This is outrageous. I was not provided the information until much later and had to resubmit the form which is now requiring a longer processing time.
Company Response:
State: LA
Zip: 707XX
Submitted Via: Web
Date Sent: 2019-10-03
Company Response to Consumer: Closed with non-monetary relief
Timely Response: Yes
Consumer Disputed: N/A
Date Received: 2019-10-02
Issue: Dealing with your lender or servicer
Subissue: Keep getting calls about your loan
Consumer Complaint: I submitted my application for the 'Borrower 's Defense To Repayment ' plan over 2 years ago and it is still in " processing '' status despite the fact that I am MORE than qualified to have my loans forgiven AND {$18000.00} in what I've already paid on them reimbursed. The for-profit institution I attended was XXXX so proving they broke the law wasn't hard. It's bad enough this Secretary of Education is stringing me along and having me believe the program I have no faith in actually reimbursing me will pay out, but it seems now that she's selling students debt info to debt financiers and now my federal loans are being chicken hawked by shady debt goons hoping to put me in more financial ruin. As soon as Secretary XXXX finished her sham legal battles this year ( which ground all repayment programs to a halt ) I started getting student loan forgiveness calls from the 'Student Loan Advisory Board ' which I've requested to stop. XXXX XXXX is a menace and should be lumped in along with her brother into the current Presidential investigation. I've never experienced anything so insulting and absurd than the way she has treated these programs meant to lift people out of poverty and despair.
Company Response:
State: IL
Zip: 613XX
Submitted Via: Web
Date Sent: 2019-10-02
Company Response to Consumer: Closed with explanation
Timely Response: Yes
Consumer Disputed: N/A
Date Received: 2019-10-02
Issue: Dealing with your lender or servicer
Subissue: Trouble with how payments are being handled
Consumer Complaint: Issue 1 Response : We agree that you made a payment of {$260.00} on XX/XX/XXXX and that your due date was XX/XX/XXXX. However, no payment had been received in XX/XX/XXXX. Therefore, the payment received on XX/XX/XXXX needed to be credited toward satisfying the delinquent bill from XX/XX/XXXX. Because the XX/XX/XXXX payment was received more than 15 days after the XX/XX/XXXX due date, it did not count as a PSLF-qualifying payment. Therefore, no qualifying payments were counted for XX/XX/XXXX and XX/XX/XXXX. Response to Issue 1 : My previous loan servicer ( XXXX XXXX XXXX ) is no longer in existence. When I try to login to prove my XX/XX/XXXX payment, the website is defunct. My bank also does not keep payment records from this far back. Its egregious that they wouldnt count the XX/XX/XXXX payment because they say I didnt pay my XXXX. Paying a XX/XX/XXXX bill on time, but saying its late because its the XXXX payment, is unacceptable. If I needed to pay both XXXX and XXXX to qualify for XXXX, they should have billed me that amount. I actually did this on XX/XX/XXXX, at the advice of XXXX XXXX XXXX, and paid {$520.00} ( 2 months worth ). Therefore, I request that XX/XX/XXXX be counted and the months worth of EXTRA payment I made on XX/XX/XXXX, at the advice of the loan servicer, be counted for XX/XX/XXXX as I was told. Issue 2 Response : Your Direct Consolidation Loan transferred to FedLoan Servicing on XX/XX/XXXX ( with an effective date of XX/XX/XXXX ). The financial history confirms that no payments were received from you in either XX/XX/XXXX or XX/XX/XXXX. Therefore, a delinquency existed on the account. To resolve the delinquency after the loan transfer period, FedLoan Servicing applied an Administrative Forbearance to the loan on XX/XX/XXXX. This forbearance status was approved retroactively from XX/XX/XXXX through XX/XX/XXXX to cover the past-due bills. As a result, no qualifying payments were counted for XX/XX/XXXX and XX/XX/XXXX. FedLoan Servicing is unable to address any processing delays that may have occurred prior to its servicing period. Response to Issues 2 : XXXX XXXX XXXX transferred to FedLoan Servicing, which was completely outside of my control. On XX/XX/XXXX, XXXX XXXX XXXX sent me a notice saying my loans would be transferred and my bill would be XXXX until the loan transfer process was complete. FedLoan themselves say that the loans were officially transferred finally on XX/XX/XXXX. XXXX placed me in administrative forbearance without any choice on my part, and I had no way of even making XXXX or XX/XX/XXXX payments. Saying that they are unable to address any processing delays in unacceptable for people who are attempting to count every payment possible towards loan forgiveness. This was completely outside my control. Therefore, I request to have the ability to make retroactive payments for XX/XX/XXXX and XX/XX/XXXX. ( Issue 3 Resolved ) Issue 4 Response : On XX/XX/XXXX, you made an online payment of {$390.00}. However, for that month, the monthly installment was only {$350.00}. The payment entirely satisfied the XX/XX/XXXX bill and partially satisfied the XX/XX/XXXX. As a result, only a portion of the monthly installment ( {$320.00} ) remained due to satisfy the XX/XX/XXXX bill. You were notified of this amount, which you paid on XX/XX/XXXX. However, the full monthly installment amount ( {$350.00} ) still needed to be paid in order for the payment to count toward the PSLF program. Therefore, no qualifying payment was counted for XX/XX/XXXX. Regardless of the amount due on the monthly billing statement, please continue to remit the full monthly installment if you wish for it to be counted toward the PSLF program. Response to Issues 4 : My bank, XXXX XXXX, made automatic withdrawals ( which I signed up through my fed loan servicing ). FedLoan made a mistake when I called and said that my loan recalculation was off, which was why my payment was actually lower than my previous {$390.00}. Its unbelievable that I would pay exactly what my bill says ( and actually pay MORE the previous month due to the fault of Fedloan ) and get penalized for it. Fedloan should have billed me the correct amount, ESPECIALLY when I had automatic withdrawals FROM Fedloan. Therefore, I request that XX/XX/XXXX be overridden, and that I have the ability to pay the small difference it what they say I still owed for XX/XX/XXXX. Issue 5 Response : On XX/XX/XXXX, an electronic application was received. You requested the repayment schedule to be changed from the IBR plan to the Revised Pay As You Earn ( REPAYE ) plan. Within eight ( 8 ) business days, on XX/XX/XXXX, the process to remove the account from the IBR plan ( opt-out process ) was initiated. The IBR opt-out process, which was completed in accordance with federal regulations, requires the remittance of a payment under a Standard Repayment plan. If a borrower can not afford the installment under the Standard Repayment plan, then a Reduced Payment Forbearance may be selected. This forbearance option allows a borrower to make a lower payment in order to exit the IBR plan and to change to a different repayment schedule. Response to Issue 5 : Taking three months to review someones loan information, especially when they are applying for loan forgiveness, is unacceptable and denies me due process. They even said I made the required {$280.00} reduced payment ) on XX/XX/XXXX. Therefore, I request that XX/XX/XXXX be overridden and be counted towards my qualifying loan payments, and that I have the ability to override and pay for XX/XX/XXXX and XX/XX/XXXX.
Company Response:
State: NY
Zip: 11222
Submitted Via: Web
Date Sent: 2019-10-02
Company Response to Consumer: Closed with non-monetary relief
Timely Response: Yes
Consumer Disputed: N/A
Date Received: 2019-10-01
Issue: Incorrect information on your report
Subissue: Account information incorrect
Consumer Complaint: Fedloan is reporting I missed XXXX years with of payments which is untrue. They are reporting the same missed payments over an over and over again. I want proof that XXXX XXXX XXXX has XXXX missed payments from fedloan or remove it from my credit report.
Company Response:
State: FL
Zip: 32211
Submitted Via: Web
Date Sent: 2019-10-01
Company Response to Consumer: Closed with explanation
Timely Response: Yes
Consumer Disputed: N/A
Date Received: 2019-10-01
Issue: Struggling to repay your loan
Subissue: Can't temporarily delay making payments
Consumer Complaint: My student loan account had a 60 day forbearance applied twice in an effort to postpone any full payments while my income driven application was processed. I called on XX/XX/XXXX to confirm forbearance and I also cancelled direct deposit to ensure full payment was not deducted. On XX/XX/XXXX ACH debits for {$310.00} and {$480.00} were authorized to my checking account. I called on XX/XX/XXXX and the rep I spoke with said that fedloanservicing could not issue a refund until the payments post on their system and assured me to call back tomorrow ( XXXX ) and the payments would be refunded. I called today XXXX around XXXX and spoke to XXXX XXXX XXXX who transferred me to XXXX XXXX who said she was transferring me to a manager but disconnected the call. I called again XXXX around XXXX and spoke to XXXX XXXX who transferred me to a manager XXXX XXXX. XXXX confirmed that though I called on XX/XX/XXXX, my forbearance wasnt processed until XXXX and my direct deposit wasnt processed until XXXX. She said the refund request will take 60-90 days instead of the 48-72 hours quoted by the initial rep. She also said no overdraft fees or NSF fees that the bank imposes would be refunded to my account. Most egregiously, XXXX said that there was no further dispute resolution process or no other person/department I could speak with to expedite this refund request. I did request the address to FedLoanServicing Legal department, for which she gave me the corporate address, FedLoanServicing XXXX. XXXX XXXX XXXX, PA XXXX XXXX. These two payments / ACH debits have wreaked havoc on my checking account. I followed the proper steps to not only halt any full payments ( for which I did not have the funds to pay ) but also cancel the direct debit payments outright, just in case there were any issues. How then, is it reasonable or legal for a student loan Servicer to neglect processing payment/loan changes and the financial fees/burden be imposed on the borrower? This is plain negligence.
Company Response:
State: MI
Zip: 48309
Submitted Via: Web
Date Sent: 2019-10-02
Company Response to Consumer: Closed with explanation
Timely Response: Yes
Consumer Disputed: N/A
Date Received: 2019-10-01
Issue: Dealing with your lender or servicer
Subissue: Received bad information about your loan
Consumer Complaint: I contacted FedLoan services about cancelling my account and getting a refund since it was advertised and they said they could cancel the account but could not give me a refund. I contacted them on XX/XX/19 about this. This is a public service forgiveness program and I am not in public service. I can not get enough information as to why I can not and I was not given this information at the set up process. I was unaware I would be out 3 payments of {$180.00} to a total of {$550.00} that I paid. I need a refund and I have nowhere to turn to to get my money back. I just want to dispute the charges made to my bank and get my money back since I will be using my bosses service company to pay back my loans.
Company Response:
State: AL
Zip: 357XX
Submitted Via: Web
Date Sent: 2019-10-01
Company Response to Consumer: Closed with explanation
Timely Response: Yes
Consumer Disputed: N/A
Date Received: 2019-10-01
Issue: Dealing with your lender or servicer
Subissue: Received bad information about your loan
Consumer Complaint: I currently have 12 direct federal student loans, being serviced by Fed Loan Servicing ( AES/PHEAA ). My loans were transferred to Fed Loan Servicing in XX/XX/XXXX. From XX/XX/XXXX until now ( XX/XX/XXXX ), I have worked for two different, qualifying PSLF-employers. Since XX/XX/XXXX, I have made 29 qualifying payments under PSLF. I have been very careful about recertifying my income-based repayment plan each year and re-certifying my employer by sending in an updated form each year. Even though these recertifications are burdensome and force borrowers unnecessarily into forbearance during the time it takes to process them - I have completed them. This past year, it took Fed Loan Servicing 4 MONTHS to complete my REPAYE certification - that is four months that I was ready, willing and able to make on-time, qualifying payments towards my 120 total payments. Instead, now my 10 years of payments will be delayed for an additional four months. If it takes Fed Loan Servicing 4 months to recertify my payment plan each year, I will be forced to pay into PSLF for an additional 28 months - extending my payments into a 12+year period. I have called Fed Loan Servicing on two separate occasions to ask for a PSLF qualifying payment update - once in fall XX/XX/XXXXand just today, XX/XX/XXXX. I do not trust Fed Loan Servicing or the PSLF program to approve my 120 payments unless I have documentation issued by Fed Loan Servicing saying that I have made X number of payments. This is extremely important to me - I am making life decisions based on the life of these loans, which have compounded ( now over {$300000.00} ) since I completed law school. These loans are affecting my mortgage, my child 's education, my profession and my retirement. I need to qualify for PSLF in as close to 10 years as possible under this program. My request is that Fed Loan Servicing issue me an updated PSLF qualifying payment update and that recertifications are handled expediently and do not require borrowers to go into forbearance or extend the life of their loan to wait for Fed Loan Servicing to recertify their monthly payment.
Company Response:
State: PA
Zip: 190XX
Submitted Via: Web
Date Sent: 2019-10-01
Company Response to Consumer: Closed with non-monetary relief
Timely Response: Yes
Consumer Disputed: N/A
Date Received: 2019-10-01
Issue: Dealing with your lender or servicer
Subissue: Trouble with how payments are being handled
Consumer Complaint: I recently got married so my income increased ; however, this caused my payment to triple under IDR. On XX/XX/XXXX 19, I contacted FedLoan and spoke with XXXX ( EID # XXXX ), who indicated that if I switched to REPAYE, my payment would only double, which was more manageable. XXXX and I discussed the " required '' month of forbearance where I would have to pay {$5.00} and I asked if there was a way to waive the month of forbearance and have the payment plan go into effect immediately. XXXX said she would request a waiver of the forbearance and have someone contact me to see if my payment plan could go into effect immediately. On XX/XX/XXXX19, I received my next bill from FedLoan indicating I would be billed for over {$1300.00} on XX/XX/XXXX19. Therefore, I contacted FedLoan again on XX/XX/XXXX 19 and spoke with XXXX ( EID # XXXX ) after being on hold for over 15 minutes. I asked XXXX about the status of changing my payment plan and she simply provided canned answers with no real explanations about why it would take at least another payment cycle to process the change in my payment plan. When I asked why I was forced into forbearance for a month, she did not provide any rationale behind the forbearance but simply stated it was required when changing payment plans. I have read the print on my application and understand that it states that but it does not make sense at all. It is obviously FedLoan making it impossible for borrowers to maxmize their payments under PSLF. XXXX was also extremely defensive when I asked questions about why this was taking so long seeing as I submitted the request a month before my next payment was due. She gave curt responses like, " There are thousands of requests received each day and we process them in the order in which they're received. '' XXXX also made an interesting point and said my plan change isn't even looked at until the forbearance is put into place, thereby delaying the process even more. It is absurd that the forced forbearance and new payment plan calculations can't be done at the same time. I am getting close to 120 payments under PSLF but FedLoan seems to be standing in my way more than anything.
Company Response:
State: TX
Zip: 763XX
Submitted Via: Web
Date Sent: 2019-10-01
Company Response to Consumer: Closed with explanation
Timely Response: Yes
Consumer Disputed: N/A
Date Received: 2019-10-01
Issue: Dealing with your lender or servicer
Subissue: Received bad information about your loan
Consumer Complaint: A student loan telemarketer called and said she could save me $ 15k - $ 20k on my student loans. All they ended up doing is raising my interest rate and putting me with a new lender.
Company Response:
State: OK
Zip: 74012
Submitted Via: Web
Date Sent: 2019-10-01
Company Response to Consumer: Closed with explanation
Timely Response: Yes
Consumer Disputed: N/A
Date Received: 2019-10-01
Issue: Communication tactics
Subissue: Used obscene, profane, or other abusive language
Consumer Complaint: To whom it may concern : Thank you for taking the time to review my complaint and PHEAA. I dont believe they are operating with the best interests of the consumer at heart. I feel they are using abusive tactics to squeeze money out of low income borrowers. My circumstances are a bit complicated and my story a long one. I appreciate your time and attention in advance. My student loans are not in great shape. For the past decade, ever since I moved to XXXX. Ive been trying to claw my way out of poverty. In XX/XX/XXXX, after undergoing months of garnishment and payment plans to bring my loans out of default, I consolidated my debt with XXXX. Or so I believed. A month or so after my consolidation was approved, I started getting calls about past due payments from two smaller loans one with XXXX and one with PHEAA. I thought perhaps it took a while to for the consolidation to set in. Then I tried calling all three servicers, thinking it must be a mistake. Each told me I had to call the other, sending me in circles. They insisted they couldnt communicate with each other to help resolve the situation. Not knowing what to do, the situation continued on. Finally, I learned I could see a list of all my loans online. Somehow, two loans I took out in XXXX were not included in the consolidation. I do feel I need to explain why my loans are a bit confusing. In XXXX, I was displaced by Hurricane Katrina and took out my loans from different sources while I temporarily attended XXXX University. While I know this doesnt excuse my poor handling of the loan, I hope you can see how that might make it hard to keep it all straight when undergoing severe financial hardship. As soon as I realized the loans werent included, I contacted all three companies to try to sort the situation out. XXXX gave me the quick clear answer that I need to fill out a form to add a loan. XXXX gave me a temporary forbearance, so Im up to date with them for the time being while I sort everything out. Then comes PHEAA. On XX/XX/XXXX I gave them a call. When I first got on the phone with an agent, I did my best to explain my confusion and requested to set up a payment plan. His first request was the entire amount of the loan. His lowest offer was still double what my budget would realistically allow me to pay. When I have him my budget, he outwardly scoffed and me and said, We would get more from garnishment. We would get more from garnishment. Of my own accord, I called PHEAA to do my best to make a bad situation right and Im met with the options of paying more than I can afford or having them take even more out of my paycheck. This hardly seems to be in my best interest. I asked to speak with his supervisor who basically told me the same thing, so I asked to speak to his supervisor, who told me the same thing. We can get more from garnishment. PHEAAs actions tell me that getting their money back at the rate they set is more important than my ability to function in a very expensive city with a wide spread affordable housing crisis. 60,000 people are on the streets and there but for the grace of god go I. Ive been slowly in the process of declaring bankruptcy for about 5 years. Sending the lawyer money when I can. I dont have wiggle room. But they can get more from garnishment. After 45 minutes of unrelenting, I talked the guy down another {$30.00} a month less. Still a little less than twice what I can afford, but Ill make it work. I pay the agreed upon amount and it is my understanding that this payment plan takes me out of the threat of wage garnishment. This was my understanding until today, XX/XX/XXXX. I called PHEAA in order to make my next payment, which I understood to be due on XX/XX/XXXX, please see attached paperwork. The automated system quoted my outstanding balance as {$800.00} more than the paperwork I received in the mail ( approximately {$4600.00}, rather than {$3800.00} ), changed the due date to XX/XX/XXXX and directed me to the wage garnishment division, despite the fact that I am not officially late in any payment in this plan. It seems to me they were dishonest with me when setting up the payment plan, or I would not have been directed to the garnishment division. It seems even stranger that this loan would see a 22 % increase in a single month, despite my calling before my due date. It seems that their bottom line holds more importance to them than the struggling consumer when it comes to repayment. Having the loan in garnishment also prevents me from adding it to my major loan consolidation with XXXX. I know I am not the only borrower struggling with massive amounts of student debt. I feel I was mislead and forced into a corner and I feel this is abusive behavior. Im sure Im not the only person being received with such blatant disregard. Thanks again for your time and consideration. Please let me know if I can submit any other supporting material. Sincerely, XXXX XXXX
Company Response:
State: CA
Zip: 90037
Submitted Via: Web
Date Sent: 2019-10-01
Company Response to Consumer: Closed with explanation
Timely Response: Yes
Consumer Disputed: N/A