Consumer complaint received 2018-02-01
Company: American Student Assistance
State: MA
Product: Student loan
Sub-product: Federal student loan servicing
Issue: Dealing with your lender or servicer
Sub-issue: Problem with customer service

Complaint:
XX/XX/XXXX Dear Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, I XXXX XXXX XXXX am applying to your office for help with resolving a billing dispute with my student loan servicer American Student Assistance ( XXXX  ) and their agent XXXX XXXX XXXX ( XXXX ). My Dispute involves two issues ; 1. Overpayment to XXXX XXXX XXXX, 2. American Student Assistances mishandling of my account from its inception. 
In the spring of XXXX while still attending XXXX XXXX I was erroneously sent notice to start payments on my federal student loans. I appealed this action to the US Dept. of Education ( USDE ) and for two years we went back and forth trading documents. In the fall of XXXX while waiting on a decision from the USDE I received a notice from XXXX that they were about to attach my pay check for being in default of my student loans even though I was in the process of resolving my USDE dispute. I received no notice from the USDE regarding any default of my student loans. Once youre in the default status the USDE doesnt want to acknowledge you anymore and refers you back to XXXX  whos only interested in charging you fees. So from XX/XX/XXXX through XX/XX/XXXX I ended up making 101 continuous on time {$300.00} a month payments to XXXX. ( See XXXX XXXX ) In the spring of XXXX I was let go by XXXX XXXX IT division and replaced by three contract employees in a cost saving move by the new owners at XXXX XXXX. Unfortunately approximately XXXX other IT Professionals in the XXXX area were also let go by a large IT outsource company at the same as a precursor to the coming Great Recession. With no IT jobs available and numerous competitions for what might be available I went to XXXX XXXX for a XXXX   XXXX. While applying for a new USDE student loans I was surprised to find out that after making101 continuous on time educational loan rehabilitation payments of {$300.00} a month to XXXX I was still in default. Well of course I notified XXXX  immediately explaining my predicament of being in default while also supposedly having rehabbed my original USDE loan. I talked and corresponded to XXXX  agent XXXX XXXX to explain how I was wrongly put into default in the first place and all the payments I made to XXXX. Not surprisingly XXXX XXXX said there was nothing she could do about the original default issue but she did apologize for the default status and curiously she awarded me a {$6000.00} waiver in existing collection costs/fees ( see XXXX XXXX ) towards my remaining balance of {$12000.00} after she talked to her supervisor. So to summarize I was in a USDE loan default for a loan that was started prematurely and I was still in default after making 101 rehabbed payments but I was still awarded {$6000.00} for being in default, interesting. XXXX XXXX removed my default status after 8 years of continuous payments and placed my account with their agent XXXX with my new payments to begin when I completed my full time XXXX degree at XXXX XXXX. According to my conversations with XXXX XXXX my balance on XX/XX/XXXX was {$12000.00} minus the award of {$6000.00} for a final balance of {$6700.00}. 
Dispute 1. Overpayment to XXXX XXXX Services. 
Of course XXXX tried to start repayments as soon as possible such as XX/XX/XXXX while I was starting at XXXX XXXX. It took months of phone calls and correspondences from myself and XXXX XXXX to explain to XXXX that I was supposed to have a deferment while attending XXXX XXXX and they finally recognized my status after approx. 6 months. From XX/XX/XXXX through XX/XX/XXXX I contacted XXXX numerous ( XXXX ) times to get a starting balance of my rehabbed USDE loan so as to confirm what XXXX XXXX had stated. I would call XXXX and talk to folks with a foreign accent which was fine because I understood them clearly and they knew what I said and the information I needed. Unfortunately I never received the information I requested even though I would review my contact information every time. Before I even graduated in XX/XX/XXXX I received a payment coupon book from XXXX ( see XXXX   XXXX XXXX ) starting in XXXX of XXXX in the amount of {$160.00} a month. Because I like round figures and I wanted to pay this loan off faster I increased my payments to {$200.00} a month. Again I contacted XXXX   about my account balance status and I seemed to talk to the same folks every time with the same result which was almost no result. After over 3 years of calling I finally received some paper work from XXXX ( see XXXX XXXX   XXXX, XXXX, XXXX and XXXX ) with a promised 36 month account history that shows only 4 payments. From XX/XX/XXXX until XX/XX/XXXX for a total of 50 months I called XXXX on a monthly basis and I never received a monthly or yearly statement and not even a XXXX tax statement except for the one statement with 4 vague pages from XX/XX/XXXX XXXX see XXXX XXXX XXXX, XXXX, XXXX and XXXX ). When I contacted XXXX about this serious issue I was told to contact XXXX directly because it wasnt their concern. I guess they forgot about the assistance part of their name. 
Getting anything from XXXX wasnt exactly my priority during the years XXXX through XXXX, getting a job was the priority. Nobody was hiring in the medical field, the IT field and even XXXX XXXX wasnt hiring. Id send resumes and even drop them off in person and youd swear you could hear them being deleted or dropped in the circular file as you walked out the door. Nobody seems to want to hire the older worker and every year is another year older and the law doesnt protect you. So after more than 4 years and 50 payments I put pen to paper to figure out that I overpaid XXXX. My USDE loan Balance in XX/XX/XXXX was {$12000.00} minus my XX/XX/XXXX award of {$6000.00} brings my starting XXXX balance to {$6700.00}. I made 50 payments to XXXX for the amount of {$9900.00} which to me means I overpaid ( see XXXX XXXX XXXX ) XXXX by approx. {$3100.00}. Since I couldnt get XXXX or even XXXX to respond to me inquiries for even just basic account information and since my simple math demonstrated that I surely overpaid XXXX I did the only reasonable thing I could think of to get their attention. I stopped making payments. What a response from XXXX, they sold my account ( see XXXX XXXX XXXX and XXXX ) to XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX ( XXXX ). So I called XXXX to explain my situation and they didnt know I stopped paying XXXX, They had a different balance than I had, {$5600.00}, they had no payment paperwork or for that matter any paperwork on my account from XXXX and they didnt really seem concerned. So I sat on my hands and waited for them to call for a payment. It took 6 months for both XXXX and XXXX to call. 
In XXXX of XXXX I contacted XXXX XXXX ( no last names given ) to discuss my account status and the fact that I overpaid XXXX. XXXX stated that XXXX had no information regarding any of my payments to XXXX and didnt know why XXXX sold my account to XXXX. ( According to news reports XXXX was banned from any USDE contracts because of highly questionable practices. ) While I was on the phone with him XXXX contacted XXXX supervisory accountant XXXX who after more than hour ( 90 minutes ) of searching XXXX   files couldnt find any of my payment information or even information about the transfer of my account to XXXX. Mind you they had my account since XXXX, over 7 years. So XXXX and I moved on to XXXX and talked to XXXX in purchases and accounts. XXXX had my account since the beginning of XXXX so they surely knew what my balance was, how much I paid to XXXX since XXXX and what my future payments were. XXXX couldnt even tell us what was on the paperwork they had sent me to make payments to them. Remember XXXX represented XXXX the guarantor of the loan who supposedly had to approve the transfer of my account from XXXX to XXXX. XXXX had a right to this information even if they didnt want to give me the information. To say that XXXX was as frustrated as I was an understatement. He was mad and was going to get to bottom of this and would get back to me in a few days. Finally, someone who understood my situation and would get some straight answers for me on my account. So I thought. I dont remember hearing back from XXXX but I did make multiple calls back to XXXX  talking to different representatives and having to continuously repeat my account scenario. After repeated XXXX request during these same months in XXXX I called XXXX again and explained my situation to XXXX representative XXXX. She reviewed my account information and stated that I was probably owed more than the approximately {$3100.00} by XXXX and really didnt have a high opinion of ACS. She gave me a deferment for XXXX so as I wouldnt keep getting bills On XX/XX/XXXX I talked to a XXXX XXXX at XXXX who took my information again and requested I forward any pertinent documents to him and he stated that he had more authority to look into my situation. Not hearing from them for more than six months I called back and XXXX XXXX said he never received my mailed documents but interestingly XXXX XXXX did receive the docs I sent her by mail in XXXX. So here I go again sending documentation that for the most part they already have or should be able to access but this time I sent it electronically through their email response system acknowledged by some XXXX XXXX who states that XXXX will contact me in 24 hours but they never did. I received a response from XXXX on XX/XX/XXXX denying my request ( see XXXX XXXX  XXXX and XXXX ) by XXXX representative XXXX XXXX. I responded to XXXX XXXX on XX/XX/XXXX by reapplying my dispute with additional information and pointing out that XXXX   never answered many of my queries including XXXX balances. XXXX according to their rules is supposed to get back to me within 24 hours with an acknowledgment but they never did and I havent had a call from them since. 
After not hearing from XXXX since XX/XX/XXXX I received a notice from the US Dept of the Treasury that they would be deducting 15 % of my monthly Social Security pymt ( See XXXX XXXX XXXX ). 
In summary in XX/XX/XXXX I was placed with XXXX by XXXX after miraculously coming out of an 8 year USDE default even though I made 101 regular on-time payments for which ASA waived {$6000.00} from my account. My balance in XX/XX/XXXX was XXXX minus {$6000.00} waived by XXXX for a new balance of {$6700.00}. XXXX tried to start my payments immediately in XX/XX/XXXX while I was in deferment but this was quickly corrected by XXXX XXXX of XXXX. I never received any documentation at the start of my relationship with XXXX reflecting my account balance or any other documentation you might expect when starting a loan repayment plan. The only items I received from XXXX  were payment coupon books. My coupon payment was for {$160.00} but I paid {$200.00} a month to pay off my balance sooner. I made 50 regular on-time payments and every time I made a payment I would call XXXX to get a balance and/or an update to my account. During the more than four years and 50 payments I made to XXXX I never received a monthly or yearly statement or even a 1098 tax document that the IRS requires to show interest payments. The only paperwork I received From XXXX  was from XXXX that showed 5 payments that didnt look correct and showed no overall account balance. I paid XXXX 50 payments in the amount of {$9900.00} on an original balance of {$6700.00} resulting in an over payment of {$3100.00}. I have been trying to recoup this overpayment since XXXX of XXXX to no avail. Im seeking your assistance with recovering my overpayment and in dealing with the non-compliance of my request for my account documentation. 
Dispute 2 American Student Assistances ( XXXX ) mishandling of my account from its inception. 
As stated previously in the spring of XXXX while still attending XXXX XXXX I was erroneously sent a notice to start payments on my federal student loans. I appealed this action to the US Dept. of Education ( USDE ) and for two years we went back and forth trading documents. In the fall of XXXX while waiting on a decision from the USDE I received a notice from XXXX  that they were about to attach my pay check for being in default of my student loans even though I was in the process of resolving my USDE dispute. I received no notice from the USDE regarding any default of my student loans. Once youre in the default status the USDE doesnt want to acknowledge you anymore and refers you back to ASA whos only interested in charging you fees. So from XX/XX/XXXX through XX/XX/XXXX I ended up making 101 continuous on time {$300.00} a month payments to XXXX. ( See XXXX XXXX XXXX ). 
According to American Student Assistances policy if you make 9 continuous payments your loan is considered rehabilitated and no longer in default with your account transferred to a collection agency. After 101 continuous payments to XXXX nothing ever happened to my account except to garner increased fees and penalties that benefited XXXX. In the 9 years of making payments to XXXX I never received one notice regarding their rehab policy. In the 9 years of making payments I never received one monthly or yearly statement regarding my loan balances. In the 9 years of making payments to XXXX   I never received one notice regarding interest payments to report to the IRS. 
. While applying for a new USDE student loan in XXXX I was surprised to find out that after making101 continuous on time educational loan rehabilitation payments of {$300.00} a month to XXXX I was still in default. Well of course I notified XXXX immediately explaining my predicament of being in default while also supposedly having rehabbed my original USDE loan. I talked and corresponded to XXXX agent XXXX XXXX to explain how I was wrongly put into default in the first place and all the payments I made to XXXX. Not surprisingly XXXX XXXX said there was nothing she could do about the original default issue but she did apologize for the default status and curiously she awarded me a {$6000.00} waiver in existing collection costs/fees ( see XXXX  XXXX ) towards my remaining balance of {$12000.00} after she talked to her supervisor. So to summarize I was in a USDE loan default for a loan that was started prematurely and I was still in default after making 101 rehabbed payments but I was still awarded {$6000.00} for being in default, interesting. XXXX XXXX removed my default status after 8 years of continuous payments and placed my account with their agent XXXX with my new payments to begin when I completed my full time XXXX  degree at XXXX XXXX. According to my conversations with XXXX XXXX my balance on XX/XX/XXXX was {$12000.00} minus the award of {$6000.00} for a final balance of {$6700.00}. 
In XXXX of XXXX I contacted XXXX  XXXX ( no last names given ) to discuss my account status and the fact that I overpaid XXXX. XXXX stated that XXXX had no information regarding any of my payments to XXXX and didnt know why XXXX sold my account to XXXX. ( According to news reports XXXX was banned from any USDE contracts because of highly questionable practices. ) While I was on the phone with him XXXX contacted ACSs supervisory accountant XXXX who after more than hour ( 90 minutes ) of searching ACSs files couldnt find any of my payment information or even information about the transfer of my account to XXXX. Mind you they had my account since XXXX, over 7 years. So XXXX and I moved on to XXXX and talked to XXXX in purchases and accounts. XXXX had my account since the beginning of XXXX so they surely knew what my balance was, how much I paid to XXXX since XXXX and what my future payments were. XXXX couldnt even tell us what was on the paperwork they had sent me to make payments to them. Remember XXXX represented ASA the guarantor of the loan who supposedly had to approve the transfer of my account from XXXX to XXXX. XXXX had a right to this information even if they didnt want to give me the information. To say that XXXX was as frustrated as I was an understatement. He was mad and was going to get to bottom of this and would get back to me in a few days. Finally, someone who understood my situation and would get some straight answers for me on my account. So I thought. I dont remember hearing back from XXXX but I did make multiple calls back to XXXX  talking to different representatives and having to continuously repeat my account scenario. After repeated XXXX request during these same months in XXXX I called XXXX again and explained my situation to XXXX representative XXXX. She reviewed my account information and stated that I was probably owed more than the approximately {$3100.00} by XXXX and really didnt have a high opinion of ACS. She gave me a deferment for XXXX so as I wouldnt keep getting bills On XX/XX/XXXX I talked to a XXXX XXXX at XXXX who took my information again and requested I forward any pertinent documents to him and he stated that he had more authority to look into my situation. Not hearing from them for more than six months I called back and XXXX XXXX said he never received my mailed documents but interestingly XXXX XXXX did receive the docs I sent her by mail in XXXX. So here I go again sending documentation that for the most part they already have or should be able to access but this time I sent it electronically through their email response system acknowledged by some XXXX XXXX who states that XXXX  will contact me in 24 hours but they never did. I received a response from ASA on XX/XX/XXXX denying my request ( see XXXX XXXX XXXX and XXXX ) by XXXX representative XXXX XXXX. I responded to XXXX XXXX on XX/XX/XXXX by reapplying my dispute with additional information and pointing out that ASA never answered many of my queries including XXXX balances. XXXX according to their rules is supposed to get back to me within 24 hours with an acknowledgment but they never did and I havent had a call from them since. What they did do was move my account from XXXX to XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX 
After not hearing from XXXX or XXXX XXXX since XX/XX/XXXX I received a notice from the US Dept of the Treasury that they would be deducting 15 % of my monthly Social Security pymt ( See XXXX XXXX XXXX ). 
So in summary I was placed inappropriately in default inXXXX by the USDE which Im not even going to repeat my dispute here. While waiting on my dispute decision from the USDE I received a notice from ASA that they were about to attach my pay check for being in default of my student loans even though I was in the process of resolving my USDE dispute. I received no notice from the USDE regarding any default of my student loans. Once youre in the default status the USDE doesnt want to acknowledge you anymore and refers you back to XXXX   whos only interested in charging you fees. So from XX/XX/XXXX through XX/XX/XXXX I ended up making 101 continuous on time {$300.00} a month payments to ASA ( See XXXX XXXX ). According to American Student Assistances policy if you make 9 continuous payments your loan is considered rehabilitated and no longer in default with your account transferred to a collection agency. After 101 continuous payments to XXXX nothing ever happened to my account except to garner increased fees and penalties that benefited XXXX. In the 9 years of making payments to XXXX I never received one notice regarding their rehab policy. In the 9 years of making payments I never received one monthly or yearly statement regarding my loan balances. In the 9 years of making payments to XXXX   I never received one notice regarding interest payments to report to the IRS. 
I XXXX XXXX XXXX am filing this complaint because I feel I was egregiously and incompetently treated by American Student Assistance who failed to follow their own policies regarding USDE defaulted loans overcharged me for their own enrichment. Im hoping youll be able to help me with this issue. Please see all the attached documents in support of my complaint. 
Sincerely, XXXX XXXX XXXX

Company public response: Company has responded to the consumer and the CFPB and chooses not to provide a public response
Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation