Consumer complaint received 2015-04-01
Company: LOAN TO LEARN
State: NV
Product: Student loan
Sub-product: Non-federal student loan
Issue: Dealing with my lender or servicer
Sub-issue: Trouble with how payments are handled

Complaint:
In 2006, I took out a {$5000.00} loan for school through a private loan company called Loan to Learn. I did not have a solid credit history so they ask for a co-signer. My mother agreed to co-sign the loan so that I could go to college. The interest rate was outrageous ( 30 % ) but at that time I did n't think I had any other options. I made regular monthly payments on the loan for about XXXX years. At that time, my mother was filing for bankruptcy and we were told to stop making payments on the account because it would be included in the bankruptcy. 

At the time I stopped making payments, I had been making payments to repay the loan for XXXX years and the balance was over what was originally borrowed. I was contacted many times by the company and was told by a man, supposedly in charge of repayments or something, that there was no way the debt would be discharged in the suit and that I needed to make a payment of I would be at risk of being sued. I started repayments again but at that time the account was in collections and being handed by a collection company whose name escapes me. Being a person of integrity, I set up a repayment plan with that company and had the payments automatically taken from my account so that I would n't run the risk of forgetting a payment. 

After about XXXX months, I started to get calls from another collection agency claiming I had n't been making payments on my Loan to Learn debt. Confused, I asked who I had been making payments to, since they were not going to the correct people. The collection agent said he did n't know but I needed to start paying now. I was frustrated and exhausted from trying to do the right thing and getting nowhere. After a little research into payments to the original collection agency, I discovered that that company had stopped taking payment after XXXX months and failed to let me know. I was again, behind on my payments to this company. I refused to start another payment plan with this new collection agency since there was no assurance my payments would be made or that I would ever get this debt paid off. 

Shortly after that, I received a statement from a company called XXXX who apparently bought Loan to Learn and all of it 's debtors. I have refused to pay them as well. On my credit report it shows the debtor 's name as Loan to Learn, not XXXX. So to whom do I owe my hard earned money? I went to talk to a lawyer about a possible bankruptcy and was told there was no guarantee that he would be able to eradicate my debt so he advised me to go a different route. 

It 's been almost XXXX years since I took out this loan to attend classes at a XXXX college and I now have an outstanding debt of over {$7000.00} with this company. The really surprising part is that I am almost positive that I have paid pretty close to the original amount borrowed at this point in my payment history with this company. With the interest rate and the fees, I feel like I will never be able to pay this debt and it 's ridiculous to think that companies like this are able to do business. I am a good person who pays her bills on time. My XXXX and I want to get married and we want to start a family but none of this can happen with this debt unresolved. I just want to move on with my life but this financial mistake has endlessly followed me. I do n't wish this experience on anyone and I hope my story helps the next XXXX.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation