Consumer complaint received 2021-10-06
Company: AES/PHEAA
State: OH
Product: Student loan
Sub-product: Federal student loan servicing
Issue: Dealing with your lender or servicer
Sub-issue: Problem with customer service

Complaint:
To Whom It May Concern : I am writing to request assistance. I am imploring you to help me. I have been a faithful public servant for over ten years and I am frustrated by a broken public student loan forgiveness program. I know this complaint will not shock you, as this program has been in the news lately, and the XXXX program was passed in XXXX to address these issues. 

I will start off with a little bit about myself. I come from a family of humble means and was the first member of my family to graduate from college. I was raised by a single mother who wanted more for her children, then she herself had, and therefore instilled in us the importance of a college degree. I graduated high school and proceeded to the XXXX XXXX  XXXX for XXXX, taking out student loans to finance my education. I graduated in four years with a XXXX degree while working XXXX jobs. I took the XXXX and was granted admission the XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX. I attended XXXX XXXX  at night in order to work full time during XXXX XXXX I also took out student loans to finance my XXXX XXXX  education. I worked full time during the last three years of XXXX XXXX  as a XXXX XXXX for the XXXX XXXX XXXX. Unfortunately, when I graduated XXXX XXXX in XXXX the economy was drastically different than when I entered XXXX XXXX  in XXXX. I witnessed some of the top students in my XXXX XXXX class not be able to secure employment. Luckily for me, due to my performance and work ethic I was offered a job at the XXXX XXXX  XXXX as an XXXX XXXX XX/XX/XXXX after I passed the bar exam. Upon, my hiring as a public service servant making a meager salary of $ XXXX a year I was panicked about how I would be able to afford the {$100000.00} debt that I had accumulated due to my higher education. I researched many options. I agonized over how I would one day get married and have kids due to this enormous debt hanging over my head. 

Through my research I identified the public student loan forgiveness program. I spent hours researching and making sure that I knew every inch of the Law, and that I did everything correctly to qualify. I made sure to consolidate my loans to a direct loan and to get on the correct payment plan. I knew that if I made the decision to pursue this route, I would be incurring significant interest charges and that I would be committing to public service and therefore less compensation for the next 10 years. 

Over the next ten years, I made every payment timely and I certified my employment throughout that time. I did everything correctly to qualify for PSLF while serving my community. Over the last six months I have spent countless hours on the phone and tracking down documentation to prove to Fedloan Servicing that my loans qualify for forgiveness. This has been met with extreme frustration. 

Fedloan Servicing was not counting nineteen payments that I made early in the program in XXXX and XXXX. Through many hours of conversation and research, I was told by Fedloan to request bank statements to prove I made the payments. I went and paid over a hundred dollars to get these records pulled from the archives of my bank. I then provided them to Fedloan Servicing. I was told my payment count was under review for months. 

I finally filed a complaint with the Department of Education in XXXX. I was thrilled to log in to Fedloans website in early XXXX and see that Fedloan Servicing had updated my student loan payment count and that I qualify for forgiveness ( see attached screenshot ). I excitedly called Fedloan and was told I needed to file out one final certification, which was done immediately, and then I needed to wait for final notification of forgiveness. I even received written notification of this update to my payment count via correspondence on XX/XX/XXXX ( see attached correspondence ). 

Every day for weeks I have anxiously logged into Fedloan waiting for this final notice. Imagine my dismay when I wake up this morning and see the correspondence ( dated XX/XX/XXXX ) from Fedloan, stating I do not qualify for forgiveness and now setting my payment count at 98 payments under XXXX. I immediately was sick to my stomach and have been distressed all day over this correspondence. 

I need help. I have attempted to do everything right in life to make a better life for myself and give back to my community. I have followed ALL the rules and documented everything extensively. If I, a XXXX XXXX can not navigate this system, it is severely broken. I am begging for assistance. I need help from someone with more power to intervene in this situation. I am XXXX years old and have not had children due to this debt. I am also extremely nervous about Fedloan Servicing transferring my records at the end of this year, as my discrepancy in payment count was blamed on my prior servicer. 

Please assist in any way you can. Please feel free to reach me at ( XXXX ) XXXX and XXXX. 

Thank you. 

XXXX XXXX XXXX

Company response to consumer: Closed with monetary relief