Consumer complaint received 2018-09-24
Company: AES/PHEAA
State: OH
Product: Student loan
Sub-product: Federal student loan servicing
Issue: Dealing with your lender or servicer
Sub-issue: Received bad information about your loan

Complaint:
I received a letter from XXXX XXXX / XXXX XXXX ( I'm not sure which, both are included on the letterhead ) dated XX/XX/2018, advising me that XXXX XXXX  is transferring the loan on XX/XX/2018 to American Education Services ( AES ). The letter states I need to begin sending payment to AES on XX/XX/2018. 

I sent my payment to AES on XX/XX/2018 using the account number provided on the letter I referenced above. 

In XXXX I began receiving past due notices from AES. When I called and indicated what I had done, they advised me the account I supplied ( which was the one on the letter I received ) did not exist. In fact, they said the account was not setup on system until XX/XX/XXXX ( yet I was told to begin paying them on XX/XX/XXXX ). They said they could not post the payment, were mailing me a refund check for the payment ( {$140.00} ),  and that upon receipt I was to endorse the check and mail it back to them. I questioned this approach, and asked if I should just deposit the check and make another payment. The rep told me not to do that, and advised that by endorsing the check and mailing it back in that would assure me that the payment was applied at the original time I made it. I called back one other time to get the mailing address, and reconfirmed with another rep that I should endorse and mail versus depositing and making a payment, and the 2nd rep affirmed what I had originally been told, so I complied. 

Subsequent weeks pass and I continue to receive past due notices in the mail, past due notices via email, and so I called back to check on the status of the payment being applied. I'm told at that time no one could find record of the check I mailed back in, and that the advice I had received to endorse the check and mail it back was erroneous. I'm also told that I have a late fee. 

After multiple phone calls, I finally received the refund check again on XX/XX/XXXX for the payment I submitted on XX/XX/XXXX. I deposited that check and made the payment of {$140.00} on XX/XX/XXXX. 

I called back today ( XX/XX/XXXX ) to ensure any and all late fees have been removed from my account. I'm told I have a total of {$10.00} in late fees on my account, and that a request for the late fees to be removed has been in process since XX/XX/XXXX. The fact that after having been through all of the above which is documented on my account and the lender can't credit {$11.00} in late fees over the course of 30+ days is absurd. 

I also learned that through the transition of this loan, that my minimum payment due has been increased by $ XXXX/month. That also doesn't seem to be a fair practice. 

As a consumer, I did nothing wrong, I did not ask for this loan to be transferred to another lender, and yet I've had late fees sitting on my account for 30+ days ( likely accruing additional interest ) and also somehow had my minimum payment due increased by $ XXXX/month. This is not fair business practices.

Company response to consumer: Closed with monetary relief