Consumer complaint received 2023-11-09
Company: MOHELA
State: OR
Product: Student loan
Sub-product: Federal student loan servicing
Issue: Dealing with your lender or servicer
Sub-issue: Trouble with how payments are being handled

Complaint:
**Please disregard my previous complaint XXXX and replace it with this complaint. ** On XX/XX/23, I received a notification via email from Studentaid.gov that I missed a loan payment so on XX/XX/23, I spent 2 hours and 18 minutes on the phone with Mohela until my call was dropped ( 90 % of call was hold time and I never received a callback ). I had attempted to learn why my account had a delinquent status and the representative spent over an hour trying to figure out why before she stated it was an interest balance from a loan in the amount of {$18.00}. I indicated numerous times that I had autopay set up and it paid what I thought was the total balance due ( {$380.00} ). The representative 's response was the same, " it can take one to two months for autopay to become active. '' I originally filed for the SAVE IBR on XX/XX/23 and then sent an updated SAVE IBR on XX/XX/23, both have never left pending status and when it came time for the interest payment to be paid on XX/XX/23, it was paid fully in the amount of {$380.00}, or at least so I thought. 

I was enrolled in autopay and so my understanding was that my entire payment was made and did not owe anything additional for XXXX. I could not get Mohela to explain why the {$18.00} amount was not included in my autopay pymt. 

On XX/XX/23, I was on the phone for over 5 hours ( 97 % of time on hold - before they hung up on me without warning ). At one point during my call, the representative stated that I " was in administrative forbearance, '' but later relayed a message from their supervisor that " because my bill was sent on XX/XX/23, the required 21 days notice was provided and I did not meet eligibility for administrative forbearance. '' I did not receive any notification for this bill. 

I made a request to the customer representative to speak with a supervisor four or more times before I was finally placed on a two hour hold which resulted in Mohela disconnecting the call without notice ( total of over 5 hours on the XXXX call and over XXXX hours in less than 24 hours ).

It appears that Mohela made a billing error on my account as they failed to provide a bill in the amount of {$18.00}. The rep I was speaking with on XXXX stated that it should have also been emailed on XX/XX/23 so I asked them to forward me the email but there was no email notification to send. Instead, they emailed me the billing statement with a billing date of XX/XX/23, but they were unable to provide me any verification that it was actually sent to me and I did not receive it. I checked my US Mail Informed Delivery and no mail from Mohela was received within a seven days of XX/XX/23. 

They also stated that notification should have been sent via secure message but there was no record of it. Finally, they stated that the notice was sent as a secure message on XX/XX/23, which I said that was only one day before my payment was due ( not the obligatory 21 days ) and the representative did not respond.

I have been diligently making my student loan payments for many years and made an interest payment via autopay in the amount of {$380.00} on XX/XX/23. It makes zero sense that I would avoid paying {$18.00} which would put my account into delinquency.

Mohela has failed to adequately address my concerns and has consumed hours of my life with undue burdensome holdtimes and poor and ineffective communication. I'm afraid that my credit score will be impacted and have also lost faith that Mohela can competently perform any further duties as my loan servicer. 

Please provide more oversight over this poorly run loan servicer or allow borrowers with Mohela to change loan servicers.

Company public response: Company believes it acted appropriately as authorized by contract or law
Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation