Consumer complaint received 2015-04-08
Company: SLM CORPORATION
State: GA
Product: Student loan
Sub-product: Non-federal student loan
Issue: Dealing with my lender or servicer
Sub-issue: Having problems with customer service

Complaint:
To Whom It May Concern : I am writing to express my extreme concern at Sallie Mae 's abhorrent customer service and loan application process. I was accepted into an XXXX program ( XXXX XXXX ). As such, Sallie Mae was the only XXXX loan servicing option. As far as I can tell, Sallie Mae has virtually no accountability to its customers- the students and parent borrowers shoulder all the responsibility for ensuring the proper handling of the loan application in a timely and polite manner. On no less than XXXX occasions, I have been deliberately mislead by Sallie Mae staff- not only does this slow down my application and distribution of a loan, but it decreases my belief that Sallie Mae can in fact handle my personal information with any security. My future is at risk- in more ways than XXXX, and that is simply unacceptable. Although students and parents are borrowing from Sallie Mae, we are still your clients and repaying that amount with interest. 


In no particular order, please find a list of grave mistakes that potentially impact the credit decision:1. Deliberate misinformation by Sallie Mae staff : a ) Sallie Mae staff upon requesting additional information, told us to fax a XXXX. When I called to determine if it were in the system, I was told it should have been uploaded. The staff member never mention uploading as an option. So now there is a faxed XXXX floating around in Sallie Mae HQ. 
b ) 3-5 business days ''. Each time I called, I was told it would be 3-5 business days, after 5 days I called and was again told " 3-5 business days ''. At this point in time I discovered that Sallie Mae staff had not even reviewed my file ; after review more information was needed causing an additional 3-5 day delay. 
c ) Not being truthful about opening hours. In a one week period, Sallie Mae staff mislead me about their offices being open XXXX. XXXX Further, the " days off on Sallie Mae 's websites, are in fact incorrect ''. 


2. In a decision letter, the reason cited was " non payment of student loans, serious delinquencies of 30 days ''. After a careful review of my credit history, this is nowhere to be found. My student loans are paid in full each month, except when in deferment - which should not be held against me. I am curious who 's information this was and why it was affecting my loan decision. 

3. Refusal to give extensions, every employee has a new answer. I have spoken to over XXXX employees. Each one has asked new questions, the same questions, and there never seems to be a record. This is a waste of time. Customers can not reach certain departments without being transferred. It seems that Sallie Mae wants to discourage customers from speaking to certain departments as much as possible. 

4. Inability to accurately record the personal information of loan applicants : in XXXX phone call, I learned that Sallie Mae staff had incorrectly input my information. Obviously, this can impact credit decisions. 

I am unclear about what type of training Sallie Mae employees go through, however, they all have access to social security numbers and other personally identifiable information ( PII ). Due to the lack of competence overall I have seen, I am unconvinced that my information and that of my co-signers is safe. 

At the very least, Sallie Mae owes it to its consumers to ensure person information is secure, the loan process is transparent, and that each loan applicant is receiving accurate information about deadlines, decisions, and opening hours. 

XXXX XXXX

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