Consumer complaint received 2019-02-16
Company: AES/PHEAA
State: IN
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 began participating in Public Service Loan Forgiveness XX/XX/XXXX. The student loan servicer has mishandled my calculations about the number of PSLF payments I have made and will not respond with an updated count, which I first requested 14 months ago, and have continued to request. 

I keep meticulous records, copies of everything, and I should have XXXX qualifying payments as of XX/XX/XXXX. PSLF is not counting many of the eligible and qualifying payments I made. 

I first noticed the problem in XX/XX/XXXX, when they replied to my XX/XX/XXXX Employment Verification form I had submitted. The number of payments was lower than it should be - and was not the same as Fed Loan Servicing 's previous year response + the XX/XX/XXXX payments. Something was wrong. 

So I contacted XXXX XXXX XXXX 's PSLF Department in XX/XX/XXXX by phone. I was told I could ask for a recount, which I did. They said they could not tell me how long it would take. 

It has now been 14 months and I have still received no response from XXXX XXXX XXXX and PSLF. 

I have called monthly to check. I have asked if there is anything I can do to expedite this. I have asked how long this would take. I have spoken to a number of supervisors there. I have been told my request has been marked as " expedited '' or " escalated, '' but still no response. 

In XX/XX/XXXX, one customer service agent there told me I should re-send all my employment verification forms, which I did, with a letter explaining this and supplying the correct count of payments, per ECF, and asking for a response. Still no response. 

REcently I was told they incompletely transferred information from a previous loan servicer. Even though what is supposed to happen when you file your first ECF is that your loan is transferred to XXXX XXXX XXXX, they did not do that. Instead, my loan was, without my request, transferred from one provider to another, including XXXX. 

Why did they not immediately transfer all files and my loan to XXXX XXXX XXXX when I first began participating in PSLF and submited documentation? 
Why were some records incompletely transferred? What are they doing to fix their error? This had nothing to do with me, and is not something I am at all involved in. It seems to be an error on the part of PSLF and XXXX XXXX XXXX in conducting their work. 

In addition, I pointed out that those payments HAD formerly been being counted by XXXX XXXX XXXX and PSLF towards PSLF, until the XX/XX/XXXX ECF was submitted, and suddenly they stopped counting them. Why did they stop? They could not or would not tell me. When will I receive a response? They could not or would not tell me. I'm told they have to count the payments " by hand, '' and going through one month 's payment takes a person 30 minutes. 

Surely this is unreasonable for a national agency who has won the sole federal contract to be the provider for PSLF? 

Surely consumers should not have to wait more than one year for a simple response on a recount?? Surely someone should be able to tell me why they stopped counting payments that should be counted and that they formerly had counted? 

I would like a response from the PSLF and XXXX XXXX XXXX, and I would like the count of my payments to be accurate. I would like the opportunity to appeal or dispute if they are not, and have a response in a timely manner that is told at the start, not this open ended TBA situation. As I am less than 2 years away from the forgiveness period, by my calculations, I can not afford for PSLF and Fed Loan Servicing to delay for additional months or years.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation