Consumer complaint received 2021-11-05
Company: Nelnet, Inc.
State: MO
Product: Credit reporting, credit repair services, or other personal consumer reports
Sub-product: Credit reporting
Issue: Problem with a credit reporting company's investigation into an existing problem
Sub-issue: Difficulty submitting a dispute or getting information about a dispute over the phone

Complaint:
In XX/XX/XXXX Firstmark reported 90 days of missed payments for a student loan that was transferred to them in XX/XX/XXXX from XXXX XXXX. Firstmark Services initiated repayment status of this loan in XX/XX/XXXX however I did not receive notice of this until I started getting phone calls on XX/XX/XXXX at which point the payments were already 90 days overdue for a balance of {$300.00}. I discussed with Firstmark that I had not received any of their paper mail correspondence and had not received any phone calls or electronic communication until this point, so I had no way of knowing this change in status. I also explained that since I completed my degree in XX/XX/XXXX I should still be in a 6 month grace period until XX/XX/XXXX. I was told varying conflicting information from Firstmark representatives such as I had gaps in my enrollment ( no rep could consistently tell me when the gap was ) and that the 6 month grace period had been used prior to XX/XX/XXXX. They instructed me to contact the XXXX XXXX XXXX to verify my enrollment history and in the meantime I was placed in Return to Grace status on XX/XX/XXXX and told I did not need to worry about the payments or any adverse credit actions. I also provided Firstmark with documentation of my other private loans that were in the 6 month deferment status post degree completion to confirm that other lenders had not reported usage of this deferment status prior to XX/XX/XXXX. After the XXXX XXXX XXXX confirmed there were no gaps in my enrollment Firstmark changed their reasoning of why I was ineligible for 6 month deferment stating it was related to the terms of my loan and unrelated to my enrollment status. 

Had I had knowledge of and then failed to pay the balance then I would agree with their action of reporting to the credit bureau however, that is not the case. I am disputing their negative reporting on the basis that it is impossible for a borrower to pay a bill they never received and even more impossible for them to pay it on time. In addition to not receiving the bill I was never notified of the change in loan status and was under the impression I was still in my 6 month grace period that would have initiated upon graduation in XX/XX/XXXX. Firstmark is acting unfairly by reporting late payments despite their knowledge that I did not receive their correspondence and consistently has tried to create loop holes to justify their actions. As a lender they have the responsibility to provide me with accurate and timely information about my loan however every time I call I am told conflicting information regarding this 6 month grace period. When I request documentation of the information they are referencing they can't provide it. My current address has been listed on my Credit Report since XXXX as well as the mailing address I gave them for billing both which Firstmark would have had access to when they ran my credit report in XX/XX/XXXX. Instead they billed an old address from XXXX and made no other efforts to contact me until XXXX. I also have call logs to confirm Firstmark did not call prior to when the bill was already 120 days past due. This company didn't even give me the courtesy of calling me during the time frame when I could have made the payments and prevented negative credit history marks. Even if XXXX XXXX did not pass along that updated information at the time the loan was transferred in XX/XX/XXXX Firstmark made no efforts to verify the address they were billing or make sure it was up to date based on the records and Credit report they had available. For all I know those letters could have ended up at the North pole with Santa. To have my credit affected by a company who knows I did not receive their bills is unfair and frankly unethical. This loan company if nothing else has lost their ability to treat humans as humans and refuses to admit when they make mistakes even at the expense of their customers. If knowingly sending bills to the wrong address and then consistently changing your story about it, is the " best '' a company can do then they shouldn't be a company.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation