Consumer complaint received 2018-04-20
Company: Riverwalk Financial Corporation
State: AZ
Product: Student loan
Sub-product: Private student loan
Issue: Dealing with your lender or servicer
Sub-issue: Don't agree with the fees charged

Complaint:
Hello, My name is XXXX XXXX and I currently reside in XXXX, Arizona. I am writing to you to explain and hopefully resolve and/or alleviate my financial debt situation which occurred after attending XXXX XXXX in Colorado, which closed for business as of XX/XX/XXXX. 
I enrolled in XXXX XXXX Online Program in XX/XX/XXXX to pursue a XXXX XXXX in XXXX XXXX XXXX. I took classes in pursuit of this degree from XX/XX/XXXX-XX/XX/XXXX and was XXXX semesters away from graduating with my degree. In XX/XX/XXXX of XX/XX/XXXX, I was informed by a counselor from XXXX XXXX that I had exhausted all of my Federal Student Loan options and that I was ineligible to receive any more financial aid toward my XXXX XXXX. I was given the option that if I wanted to continue my studies that I would have to pay out of pocket to finish the remaining two semesters I had to complete my XXXX in XXXX XXXX XXXX, or I could switch to an XXXX XXXX in XXXX XXXX and get financial aid to complete the 3 remaining classes that I would need to satisfy the requirements for an XXXX in XXXX XXXX. After hearing these options, and not having the financial ability to pay out of pocket at the time to complete my XXXX XXXX, I agreed to obtain my XXXX XXXX. At that time, I was unaware that XXXX XXXX would be closing their doors as of XX/XX/XXXX. I believe XXXX XXXX misled me and lied to me about my options about finishing my XXXX XXXX. I believe the school knew that they were closing and they left me with an enormous amount of financial debt, and without the option to finish my original degree choice of XXXX XXXX XXXX. The school switched my major to an XXXX in XXXX XXXX which I had very little experience in and knowledge of upon completion of my degree as this was not the degree I was pursuing during the years I attended XXXX XXXX. 
I recently reviewed my financial paperwork I had signed with XXXX XXXX I noticed my initial XXXX  in XXXX XXXX should have cost $ XXXX in total to finish the program. I took many classes beyond the XXXX XXXX in XXXX XXXX in pursuit of my XXXX XXXX. I only have an XXXX XXXX in XXXX XXXX which has equaled approximately $ XXXX in Federal Student Loans. An XXXX XXXX in XXXX XXXX   from XXXX XXXX should have cost me $ XXXX ( as per my signed paperwork ) but I ended up paying twice the amount because the school closed. Currently, I am on an income based repayment plan with XXXX. After hearing that XXXX XXXX closed their doors in XX/XX/XXXX of XX/XX/XXXX, I tried to discharge my Federal Loans, given that I believe I was misled and treated unfairly by this school. I was told that because I wasnt enrolled at the school within 120 days of them closing, that I was unable to get my loans discharged. I wasnt enrolled in XXXX after I finished my XXXX XXXX because I was told I had exhausted my federal student loans and I would have to pay out of pocket to continue my XXXX. At the time, I was not able to afford the out of pocket expenses of finishing my degree, so I was trying to save money in order to continue my XXXX XXXX of XXXX XXXX XXXX. XXXX did not give me any information or options to continue my XXXX until after they had closed their doors in XX/XX/XXXX. I believe I have been treated unfairly by XXXX XXXX. I took so many classes at XXXX and only ended up with an XXXX XXXX. I could have only been in debt with $ XXXX if I originally wanted to get an XXXX XXXX, but yet I am left with over $ XXXX in debt because the school closed. 
But this is not all In addition to the school misleading me, I had a private loan taken out by XXXX XXXX on my behalf, which I never agreed to. In XX/XX/XXXX of XX/XX/XXXX, not even a month after finishing my classes, I received a call from XXXX XXXX XXXX. Apparently, XXXX XXXX took the liberty of adding on top of my Federal Student Loan of $ XXXX, an additional $ XXXX for a private loan. Doing research, I became informed that on the XXXX XXXX there is a settlement going out because students at XXXX XXXX were misled and wronged to get into this XXXX program and I feel that I was a victim of as well. 
I spoke with XXXX XXXX XXXX regarding the issue I had with this supposed private loan that XXXX XXXX took out on my behalf. I believe this loan is fraudulent. I was unaware of its existence and they have not sent me any paperwork to verify that this loan exists. I asked them to provide documentation about this loan, and they sent me all the paperwork I initially signed with XXXX claiming that my private loan with them is legitimate and that if I dont pay {$25.00} bi-weekly then I would get my wage garnished. Also, they told me that if I agreed to make these payments that they would lower my amount owed from $ XXXX to roughly $ XXXX. Being worried about possible wage garnishment, I agreed to pay the XXXX bi-weekly and have been making regular payments to them for the past two years. 
Yesterday, XX/XX/XXXX, I looked at my XXXX XXXX  report and it showed there was a recent hit on my report from XXXX XXXX XXXX resulting in a deduction of XXXX points on my credit score, even though I have agreed with the payment they claim I owe, and have been paying regularly {$50.00} payments per month for about 2 years. I have paid around {$1200.00} in total to XXXX  XXXX   XXXX XXXX I believe this is a scam. I think that I was somehow added onto this loan, but I never signed any paperwork or agreed to it. I have reviewed my paperwork sent from XXXX from XXXX and took time to review the fine print and noticed that there are no documents or signed agreements showing that I got into this XXXX program or even any amount that was funded towards this program. 
I am reaching out to figure out the next steps I can take to resolve and or hopefully alleviate my financial debt situation as a result of attending XXXX XXXX. I would like to see if there is a possibility to discharge what I believe is a fraudulent loan with XXXX XXXX XXXX and get refunded everything I have paid to them. I also want to see if there is a way to discharge or reduce my federal loan. I was lied to by XXXX XXXX and was bated into getting my XXXX XXXX just so I wouldnt have an easy time discharging my federal loan. XXXX XXXX knew they were closing their doors and I believe I was treated unfairly as a result of their closure. Also, I know that there is a settlement open with XXXX about this XXXX  program and was wondering if it is possible to be a part of this settlement. Thank you for your understanding and I hope I can resolve this situation and alleviate the financial burden this has placed upon me while I was trying to further my educational pursuits. I appreciate your help addressing these matters. 

Thank you. 
XXXX XXXX

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation