Consumer complaint received 2018-03-29
Company: Navient Solutions, LLC.
State: IL
Product: Student loan
Sub-product: Federal student loan servicing
Issue: Dealing with your lender or servicer
Sub-issue: Received bad information about your loan

Complaint:
NAVIENT IS NEGLIGENT : ROBBED BORROWS OF THEIR ELIGIBILITY FOR PSLF PROGRAM!

-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- - For the past 10 years I have been counting down the years, months, and days until I could file my Public Service Loan Forgiveness materials to relieve me of the remaining balance given my qualifying year with XXXX XXXX XXXX. I have meticulously kept my file that includes the employer forms and the date I would become eligible.

When I recently contacted my loan servicer they stated that I could submit everything ONLY IF I had made payments under a SPECIFIC repayment plan AND only if all of my loans were consolidated. I was confident that I was in good shape though given my extensive discussions with my loan service provider over the past TEN YEARS beginning shortly after the PSLF Program was announced- but THEY NEVER MENTIONED THESE TWO VERY IMPORTANT qualifiers and advised me to stay with the non-profit sector and wait. In 2012 the Employer forms were made available but still NO MENTION of the need to have consolidated loans to qualify.

It turns out that I am making qualifying payments but my loans are NOT consolidated and therefore they said I am ineligible! I asked to take care of that so that I can be eligible and they stated that the 10 year countdown would start as of now and NOT as of when I initially inquired and qualified for the program. That means I have to start ALL OVER AGAIN due to my loan service provider 's failure to properly and fully inform and advise customers of the US Dept. of Education.

I am outraged and frustrated to say the least. My daughter is now going to college and I had planned on taking loans for her education now that mine would be forgiven as a result of my 10+ years in public service at a less than market rate salary. My career path was, in part, steered towards XXXX  jobs over the last few years to ensure I didn't lose my eligibility with the PSLF program! I've made significant and life changing decisions to remain a part of a program that I wasn't even qualified for because my loans service provider neglected to mention the need to consolidate.

The LOAN SERVICER needs to be held accountable and there needs to be reasonable exceptions made to this ADMINISTRATIVE issue ... at the end of the day, I had qualifying payments, I have never defaulted and I have put in 10+ years with non-profit organizations.

Even more incredulous, during my last call to my loan service provider NAVIENT, I was told that she needed to end the call because her shift had ended and that I should call back. This was an offshore operation in XXXX and I had to give my SS #, address etc ... to and they were giving scripted responses like a robot and TOTALLY AND COMPLETELY uninterested in really understanding and advising with accurate information- incompetence or SYSTEMIC EFFORTS TO LIMIT THE NUMBER OF LOANS APPROVED UNDER PSLF PROGRAM! Navient was negligent and thousands of us are suffering and paying the price.

I do intend to pursue this until there is fair and reasonable resolution for myself and the thousands of others affected by negligent loan servicers! I'm in touch with my State Representatives Office as well as the media on this matter. I am also going to form a coalition of people who have been robbed of their PSLF and we will protest, march and launch a social media awareness campaign until there is resolution.

HAVE YOU BEEN ROBBED OF YOUR RIGHT TO PSLF PROGRAM? JOIN THE FIGHT by emailing me at : XXXX.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation