Consumer complaint received 2024-04-27
Product: Student loan — Federal student loan servicing
Issue: Dealing with your lender or servicer — Problem with customer service
Company: MOHELA (NJ)

I have made several phone calls to my loan servicer, Mohela during the course of XXXX and this year XXXX with regard to receiving my student loan refund for payments I made during the COVID forbearance payment pause period ( XX/XX/XXXX - XX/XX/XXXX ). I submitted my first request via email for my reimbursement on XX/XX/XXXX, which was acknowledged by my initial servicer, XXXX before Mohela took over my loan. My request was submitted way in advance of the XX/XX/XXXX deadline. My loan was then passed from XXXX to Mohela. I made several phone calls to BOTH XXXX and Mohela to follow up on the status of the status of my reimbursement, and both servicers bounced me back and forth for months between the two of them, with each claiming that the other was responsible for the reimbursement. XXXX told me on XX/XX/XXXX that because Mohela now has my loans, they are responsible for the reimbursement. Another rep at XXXX then told me that that reimbursements were still being processed and to call back in a couple months to follow up. I called XXXX back and was informed that MOHELA was actually responsible for the reimbursement. I then called Mohela on XX/XX/XXXX ( 11 months after my request for reimbursement ) and they explain that because the payments I made during the covid pause were made to XXXX that XXXX was actually responsible for the reimbursent. Representatives AND senior account specialists at both locations did not know basic procedure and responsibility for this. I finally had a senior account manager at Mohela confirm that Mohela is in fact responsible for handling the reimbursement. However, that manager, XXXX advised that she had " nothing in the notes '' detailing the status of my reimbursement, apologized for the extreme delay of the disbursement, and explained that disbursements are supposed to be made within 6 months of the submitted request. She told me she personally would contact me in 2 weeks with a status update, but I never heard from again. I called Mohela back XX/XX/XXXX and was advised by senior manager that my loan was now elligible for forgiveness and that I has reached my XXXX payment in XX/XX/XXXX- which was not accurate, and has since been confirmed as error. The representative did not do her due diligence to see that I was not employed with a qualifying employer between XXXX - XXXX. This representative went on to explain to me that because my loan was now elligible for forgiveness, this was likely why my reimbursement was being held up administratively -- which still should not have happened because by law I am entiled to this reimbursement whether or not I had reached forgiveness. 
It is now XXXX  YEAR AND XXXX  MONTHS since I submitted my initial request for reimbursement of the funds I paid during the covid payment pause, and no one at Mohela will give me answers on the status of this. I have requested that this be expedited on 2 separate occassions because this has been an internal oversight/error on Mohela 's part. Still, nothing has been done. No comunication has been sent to me on the status of this. This is unacceptable and fradulent behavior and I am asking that my reimbursement be expedited immediately before I take legal action. Between XX/XX/XXXX - XX/XX/XXXX I paid {$7700.00}. on my student loan. This is the amount that is due me. 

I appreciate your urgent attention to this matter, XXXX XXXX