Date Received: 2018-05-30
Issue: Dealing with your lender or servicer
Subissue: Received bad information about your loan
Consumer Complaint: I have been trying to qualify for the PSLF program. I have worked in the non-profit industry for 12 years, all the while paying back my student loans. I have the correct loan type, the correct employment, have made over 120 payments since XX/XX/2007, and believed to have the correct repayment plan. XXXX thinks otherwise, however. They say I have made 1 correct payment in the past 12 years, but when I ask them to look into my repayment plan they don't provide me with any more information. I have asked for a list of payments, all the info they are working with, but get little to no response at all.
Company Response:
State: CA
Zip: 94501
Submitted Via: Web
Date Sent: 2018-05-30
Company Response to Consumer: Closed with explanation
Timely Response: Yes
Consumer Disputed: N/A
Date Received: 2018-05-30
Issue: Dealing with your lender or servicer
Subissue: Need information about your loan balance or loan terms
Consumer Complaint: Ive had nothing but problems with pheaa from the beginning. They always made sure I was unable to get ahead of the loan, refused to work with me paying back the loan after I lost my job, and even did an illegal wage detachment against me without notifying me and began this wage garnishment on me just after 2weeks if starting a new job and being without empl Yment for a few months. After losing my job this past XXXX, I contacted them asking them to work with me and they wouldnt budge, I informed the customer service rep that I had no means to keep up with payments and they didnt care, the rep actually stated, well thats why we get people incomes returns. The conversation ended with the rep telling me to inform them when I find a job so they can continue garnishment. After that I never heard anything except getting balance statement with added interest included. The last statement I received was XXXX invoice and it stated that I owed over {$11000.00} and XXXX was projected costs. Turns out I would be filing ladt years and this years income taxesSo I assumed I owed {$9000.00} to pheaa if paid off with with taxes. I was wrong!! Turns out Pheaa quickly learned I was claiming 2 income tax return years, and in midst XXXX, they send me a letter demanding immediate full payment, claiming I was late in repayment ( I wasnt though because theyve made me pay about {$9000.00} in garnishment in a yrs time ). In this letter it said I owed al ost {$120000.00} and payment needed to be made in full. I was supposed to receive {$9700.00} back from XXXX return and {$7000.00} for XXXX return. While my taxes are being processed, I am awarded loan consolidation amongst XXXX to and pheaa both and included all of them in consolidation. I get approved for this but also find out that Not only did PHEAA take my entire {$2000.00} return of {$7000.00} but also took nearly {$3000.00} of my {$2000.00} return. NOT ONLY THIS but THEY ALSO got XXXX to buy my loans from them so all the money that pheaa has taken and robbed from me, A total of over {$20000.00}, but the amt that I had originally owed them ( {$15000.00} ) hasnt changed. I STILL OWE EVERY PENNY as if I never paid a cent to them.
Company Response:
State: PA
Zip: 166XX
Submitted Via: Web
Date Sent: 2018-05-30
Company Response to Consumer: Closed with explanation
Timely Response: Yes
Consumer Disputed: N/A
Date Received: 2018-05-29
Issue: Dealing with your lender or servicer
Subissue: Trouble with how payments are being handled
Consumer Complaint: OnXX/XX/XXXXI called AES customer service to inquire about having the paid ahead status removed from my account. The representative instructed me to send an email requesting the removal. Two weeks later I received a call from another representative that an email was not an accepted form of communication for this request and I would need to mail or fax a letter. In XX/XX/XXXXI faxed a letter with the following message : I am requesting to have the paid ahead status removed from my account. OnXX/XX/XXXX I called AES to verify that the paid ahead status had been removed. I was informed that it had indeed been taken off. However, when an extra payment was made that month the payment was again moved ahead. Again I contacted AES and another representative told me that the paid ahead status was only removed one time, even though my letter did not say one time. It has now been 3 months and I have not been able to get the paid ahead status removed from my account permanently.
Company Response:
State: AR
Zip: 729XX
Submitted Via: Web
Date Sent: 2018-05-29
Company Response to Consumer: Closed with non-monetary relief
Timely Response: Yes
Consumer Disputed: N/A
Date Received: 2018-05-29
Issue: Dealing with your lender or servicer
Subissue: Trouble with how payments are being handled
Consumer Complaint: XXXX ( Fedloan ) owes me {$38.00} for overpayment I made when paying off my student loan. You have until this Friday to XXXX me my check or you are getting a greeting from the State of California. You and I are still not done. When I said I would stay on your XXXX until the very end. I meant it. Thank you for my final payment notices, now give me my money you XXXX XXXX XXXX I should tack on compounded interest daily, should I make it {$100.00} for non- payment, you are two months behind.
Company Response:
State: CA
Zip: 916XX
Submitted Via: Web
Date Sent: 2018-05-29
Company Response to Consumer: Closed with explanation
Timely Response: Yes
Consumer Disputed: N/A
Date Received: 2018-05-29
Issue: Dealing with your lender or servicer
Subissue: Received bad information about your loan
Consumer Complaint: I have been dealing with XXXX since I graduated in XX/XX/XXXX. I had the loan in forbearance for several years, and each year they either lost the paperwork, did not calculate my forbearance period correctly, etc. Furthermore, I have consistently asked for information on consolidating my loans ( several times in writing ), but despite promises of sending me the information, I am still waiting almost 5 years later. Looking for consolidation information on their website is impossible, and any attempts to search for " XXXX XXXX '' and " consolidation '' leads to links resulting in an Error 404 page. In XX/XX/XXXX I applied for an income driven repayment plan ( IDR ). This was granted on XX/XX/XXXX and my new monthly payments were {$69.00} per month. In XX/XX/XXXX, I discovered, through one of my credit cards, that XXXX had declared my loan in default. When I called XXXX to find out what was going on, it took them almost an hour to determine that their system had bumped me out of the repayment plan *2 hours* after it had been granted and the confirmation email sent out. Yet I was never notified that I had been removed from the plan. They themselves acknowledged the payment plan and that I had paid it on-time and in full. But instead of fixing the acknowledged problem, I know have to go through this process of disputing it with them. They applied a forbearance period from XX/XX/XXXX through XX/XX/XXXX, using up all of my allotted forbearance time -- this was done without my permission. In the meantime, I am now off of the plan with no forbearance left, and they are continuing to show my payments as being in default.
Company Response:
State: NH
Zip: 03820
Submitted Via: Web
Date Sent: 2018-05-29
Company Response to Consumer: Closed with non-monetary relief
Timely Response: Yes
Consumer Disputed: N/A
Date Received: 2018-05-26
Issue: Dealing with your lender or servicer
Subissue: Problem with customer service
Consumer Complaint: The issue at hand is one of timely response of the lender to borrowers inquiry. A response from the lender is still outstanding as of this complaint submission. In summary, the borrower began graduate studies during the autumn of XX/XX/XXXX. The enrollment triggered a deferment effective XX/XX/XXXX on borrowers student loans which were secured to fund XXXX education. Borrower contacted servicer on XX/XX/XXXX to request removal of deferment in order to continue progress towards the 120 qualified payments required for Public Service Loan Forgiveness. Borrower continued to submit full and timely monthly loan payments. Deferment was removed with retro effective date XX/XX/XXXX and loans were returned to repayment status. Borrower then submitted an Employment Certification Form on XX/XX/XXXX to ensure continued compliance with XXXX guidelines and accuracy of qualified payment tracking. Servicer responded on XX/XX/XXXX certifying 7 payments for the period XX/XX/XXXX XX/XX/XXXX. Borrower believes the correct number of qualified payments to be 11 for the period XX/XX/XXXX - XX/XX/XXXX, and that the payments shown in Table 1 were excluded as qualified payments. Borrower contacted Servicer on XX/XX/XXXX to initiate review of the 4 payments shown in Table 1 and was told to allow 90 days in order for the completion of the review. Per page 37 of the document titled CFPB XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX, the servicer must respond to borrower inquiries within a reasonable time period which is further specified to be within 30 days. The servicer has not responded in over 90 days to an inquiry involving a recent time period, a small number of payments, and limited analysis of policy and procedures. Further, the borrower contacted the servicer on XX/XX/XXXX to check status on the review and to inform the servicer that a response was expected within 90 days of XX/XX/XXXX. The borrower requests the assistance of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau towards a response from the servicer. Table 1 : Payments in Question Date of Payment - Amount - Due Date of Payment - Number of Days from Due Date to Date of Payment XX/XX/XXXX - {$76.00} - XX/XX/XXXX - 13 XX/XX/XXXX - {$76.00} - XX/XX/XXXX - 6 XX/XX/XXXX - {$76.00} - XX/XX/XXXX - 2 XX/XX/XXXX - $ XXXX - XX/XX/XXXX - 0 *New payment amount based on Income-Driven Repayment plan recertification Table 2 : Criteria for Qualifying Payments A payment is considered as qualified if it is made : After XX/XX/XXXX While employed full-time at a qualifying employer Under a qualifying repayment plan On-time ( no later than 15 days after the scheduled due date ) Each month, satisfying the installment amount due for that month in full When the loan is being actively billed, and is not in a default status
Company Response:
State: IL
Zip: 60035
Submitted Via: Web
Date Sent: 2018-05-26
Company Response to Consumer: Closed with explanation
Timely Response: Yes
Consumer Disputed: N/A
Date Received: 2018-05-26
Issue: Dealing with your lender or servicer
Subissue: Trouble with how payments are being handled
Consumer Complaint: I have nearly {$400000.00} in student loan debt processed by XXXX. In XX/XX/XXXX I had requested to change my income driven payment option from income based repayment to Pay As You Earn repayment. The process placed me in forbearance for greater than 1 year and I had lost XXXX payments toward public service loan forgiveness. I was not informed that this income based repayment transition would take up to 1 year and that my interest would capitialize during the forbearance process. I have requested a detailed account of all my payments in XX/XX/XXXX, despite many repeated phone calls I have not yet received my payment audit nor an explanation why I was in forbearance for 1 years for a simple payment option switch. Each time I call I am told nothing can be done and to call back in a month. This has been dragging out for over a year. This is unacceptable of a government organization.
Company Response:
State: NY
Zip: 11572
Submitted Via: Web
Date Sent: 2018-05-26
Company Response to Consumer: Closed with explanation
Timely Response: Yes
Consumer Disputed: N/A
Date Received: 2018-05-25
Issue: Struggling to repay your loan
Subissue: Can't get other flexible options for repaying your loan
Consumer Complaint: I have submitted an Income Based Repayment Plan ( IBR ) request four straight times since XX/XX/XXXX. The first was a renewal. I included my latest tax return and a letter, as I have done since XX/XX/XXXX. It was denied because I did not include my federal income tax return as notified on XX/XX/XXXX. I explained that I dont file federal income tax return because I dont live in the United States. I wrote a letter and resubmitted a new IBR payment request, explaining that I dont file for federal taxes. I also had to explain what my monthly gross income was, since according to the customer service representative, they simply cant divide the annual gross income by 12. They also keep asking me for paystubs, which I cant provide, because as I have explained so many times, i am XXXX XXXX. And so, once again, on XX/XX/XXXX, my IBR plan was denied because I did not include my federal income tax return. On XX/XX/XXXX, a third IBR request was denied because my tax return does not show my gross pay, asking me for pay stubs or a letter from my employer. Once more, I AM XXXX XXXX. This I explained in my letter. XXXX XXXX, keeps nit picking at my IBR requests and finding excuses to not accept my IBR requests where everytime, I have included my most recent available tax return and where they can find how much I make a year and divde it accordinlgy to reach a monthly gross income. XXXX XXXX is being capricious and arbitrary in making their decisions to not accept my IBR requests. The problems started last year, when my XX/XX/XXXX approved expired. Since XX/XX/XXXX, I have been losing my automatic forbearance periods on each request that is denied. I demand that XXXX process my IBR requests, since every time, I have provided them with my tax return and a letter explaining what my gross income is. I also want my automatic forbearance time credited back to my account.
Company Response:
State: PR
Zip: 00926
Submitted Via: Web
Date Sent: 2018-05-25
Company Response to Consumer: Closed with explanation
Timely Response: Yes
Consumer Disputed: N/A
Date Received: 2018-05-25
Issue: Problem with a credit reporting company's investigation into an existing problem
Subissue: Their investigation did not fix an error on your report
Consumer Complaint: Student loan reprting is deceptive and destructive in the way they report to the credit bureaus. This appears to be a common problem that I am surprised hasn't been addressed. I took out 4 parent plus loans which have all been in deferment until recently. The problem is on all 4 loans they show a high credit of only the original loan amount. Interest accrues and the amount I owe is correct on the report however with the high credit only being the actual amount of the original loan amount on the credit report takes away available credit and show the loans are collectively negative by about 130 % of the original amount. This is destroying credit reports from all students. Once the loans go into repayment then the loan is set and should reflect the original loan amount plus interest as a high credit because it is. That should be your high credit because that is actual. This is deceptive practices. I have sent certified letter to XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX PA XXXX and they are standing by their reporting. Also sent certified letters to the credit reporting agencies. I have all the documentation to provide.
Company Response:
State: NC
Zip: 28273
Submitted Via: Web
Date Sent: 2018-05-25
Company Response to Consumer: Closed with explanation
Timely Response: Yes
Consumer Disputed: N/A
Date Received: 2018-05-25
Issue: Dealing with your lender or servicer
Subissue: Problem with customer service
Consumer Complaint: I am enrolled in the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program. My loan is serviced by XXXX XXXX XXXX ; all access is through their website XXXX. At the beginning of XX/XX/XXXX, I submitted my request to continue income driven repayments. To do this, I completed the survey on the website and completed the paperwork as it directed. I was not aware that what I submitted constituted a change in my repayment plan. After submission, I checked my repayment schedule and saw that the request had not been processed. After a phone call around XX/XX/XXXX, I was told that since it was a change in plan, I had not submitted the correct paperwork and needed to resubmit. This, despite filling out the paper the website directed me to complete. A new set of paperwork was completed and uploaded electronically. After another couple of weeks, my payment had not changed. It was now approaching XX/XX/XXXX. I called again, and was told that I had not marked a box on Page 4, that is required for changing plans. Again, I was not aware that changing plans was my request. Also, the form ( as I read it ) says to request a new payment amount. On the phone, I was told that this could be as low as {$5.00} ; no amounts are listed on the form. I asked for the {$5.00} amount on the phone, which was granted. Everything was now proceeding. My first payment of XX/XX/XXXX would be taken out of my bank account in XX/XX/XXXX ( fully six months into the new year ). On XX/XX/XXXX, I received notification that my request had expired and that my payment would now be the full amount and that paperwork had to be redone. Upon calling, I was informed that the {$5.00} payment had to be mailed ( in spite of everything being set up as autopay ), and since that didn't happen, everything was revoked. Once again, I had to request the payment to be delayed ( now until XX/XX/XXXX ) so that the paperwork can be completed again. The timetable for PSLF is sensitive, understandably. I have made every effort to make payments in 2018. The PHEAA has devised a plan to effectively delay my payments -- and my eventual completion of PSLF -- by 6+ months. In the mean time, interest continues to accrue on my loans, making my indebtedness greater. Each time I call, I am given new and different information by the operator -- being to ask for a later payment on-line, being able to request a payment as low as {$5.00}, etc. PHEAA staff act as though they are allowed to only share one piece of information per call. Each time, you believe you are finally being given the " correct '' information ; each operator says as much with " I'm sorry sir, I don't know who told you that, but this is what you need to do. '' And each time, something is still wrong, incomplete, or incorrect with the information being given.
Company Response:
State: SD
Zip: 57103
Submitted Via: Web
Date Sent: 2018-05-25
Company Response to Consumer: Closed with explanation
Timely Response: Yes
Consumer Disputed: N/A