Consumer complaint received 2022-08-02
Company: Navient Solutions, LLC.
State: FL
Product: Student loan
Sub-product: Private student loan
Issue: Struggling to repay your loan
Sub-issue: Can't get other flexible options for repaying your loan

Complaint:
In XX/XX/XXXX I applied to Navient to waive the balance of my private student loans based on my XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXXXXXX. 

XXXX ( for the federal student loans ) has an 'income-based repayment program ' and when I informed that company of my situation, and of my current lack of any income, they immediately placed me on a XXXX ' repayment program with an annual review of my income. I am awaiting a determination of social security XXXX ( which I also applied for in XX/XX/XXXX ) and in the interim I have no income and have had no income since XX/XX/XXXX. 

Navient has no 'income-based repayment ' program. I paid on all the loans for twelve ( 12 ) years straight from XX/XX/XXXX without missing a payment until XX/XX/XXXX when they stopped due to the pandemic. My income never returned and then I found out in mid/end XXXX that I have brain issues involving lesions, structural abnormalities and mental cognitive/processing deficiencies. 

I applied to Navient for the discharge of my private loans and had to send medical records- including a direct report from my board-certified neurologist - to their guarantor, XXXX XXXXXXXX XXXX I was informed via a teleconference with a XXXX XXXXXXXX representative in XX/XX/XXXX that their recommendation to Navient would be that I am truly totally and permanently XXXX. 

At the end of XXXX, I received two ( 2 ) letters, each dated XX/XX/XXXX, from Navient. XXXX letter acknowledges my total and permanent XXXX and waives a portion of the loans ( {$3800.00} ) entirely. The other letter states Navient is removing interest accrued and capitalized ( which there shouldn't have been any, as I never missed a payment throughout my repayment period until the pandemic ), is setting my interest rate at '0 % ' and then instead of waiving the remaining amount, Navient assigns a random amount due of {$17000.00}. Then the letter sets forth what sounds like a joke : If I can pay {$14000.00} within 30 days of the date of the letter - namely by XX/XX/XXXX - then it will waive the remaining amount due, ( thereby apparently saving me {$2600.00} ). 

Needless to say, with XXXX income I can not afford to pay any amount, and I find their response to be cruel. It is as if they acknowledge the total and permanent XXXX and then say, 'we don't care ; pay anyway. ' When I called the XXXX ' number on both letters ( the same number was on both ) I was told there was nothing they could do and that 'I signed a promissory note ' ( back in XXXX with XXXX XXXX and not Navient... ) and then gave me another number to call within Navient to possibly help. That number turned out to be their 'default ' department, and of course that department had no clue, as they had no record of my loans, as the loans have never been in default. 

I was then given the number for a federal aid group - XXXX - and when I called them, I was told they only address federal student loans and not private loans, and I was referred to this consumer financial protection bureau. Up until this time, I was unaware of this group 's existence. I am at a loss as to what else I can do. I have followed all directions given and was amazed that Navient can find me to be totally and permanently XXXX and yet still demand payment. I have no sources of income or family members who could help. I am single and without children. Social Security has informed me a decision to award XXXX might be made by XX/XX/XXXX. Meanwhile I am living off credit cards to keep food in the fridge and keep the lights on. 

I need this student loan XXXX based upon my total and permanent XXXX within the next thirty ( 30 ) days, by the end of XX/XX/XXXX, as it appears that Navient will be all too happy to destroy my credit rating when they receive no further payments from me, let alone a payment for five figures! 

Thank you for your time and attention to this matter.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation