Consumer complaint received 2024-03-05
Product: Student loan — Federal student loan servicing
Issue: Struggling to repay your loan — Problem with your payment plan
Company: MOHELA (MD)

My loan servicer for PSLF is MOHELA. 

On XX/XX/XXXX, I submitted my IDR application for the new SAVE plan, in addition, on XX/XX/XXXX I paid {$300.00} for my bill that was to be due on XX/XX/XXXX. 

In XXXX, I saw that my account was put into XXXX  while my new IDR application was being processed. I called and was told at the time that the money I paid for the XX/XX/XXXX bill would be applied to my next bill, and that my XXXX would end on XX/XX/XXXX, to be paid for the first bill on XX/XX/XXXX, and the money paid for XXXX would be applied to the XX/XX/XXXX bill once my plan was recalculated. 

When I checked in XXXX to see if my plan had been recalculated, it was marked as still processing, though I had a non-IDR bill due for over {$800.00} on XX/XX/XXXX. I called in and they told me that it was a mistake, and that my accounts would be put in administrative forbearance until my IDR was processed, and that it is taking a long time currently. They extended my XXXX until XX/XX/XXXX. 

When I checked in again in XXXX to see if my plan had been recalculated, it still had not, and I called in again, and was placed on yet another administrative XXXX until XX/XX/XXXX. 

During each of these calls, I was reassured that the months of forbearance would count toward my PSLF, as the need for XXXX was not my fault. 

I checked in, again, in XXXX, and saw that my bill would be {$500.00} due on XX/XX/XXXX, though some loans were still in XXXX while others were not and my IDR application was still processing. I called in again, and they re-opened and re-submitted the application that I had sent in on XX/XX/XXXX so that it could be processed again, and told me that if nothing had happened within 10 business days, to call back and be put on XXXX again until it was re-calculated. 

After 10 business days, the IDR application still had not yet processed, and the bill was due XX/XX/XXXX. I called in again on XX/XX/XXXX, and finally reached someone who could help me. They let me know that they will add a XXXX to my account until XX/XX/XXXX, and that my bill on XX/XX/XXXX would be {$300.00} as my IDR was almost completed or had just been processed but my account had not yet been updated in the online system. I clarified that the extra month of XXXX would still count toward my PSLF, and they told me yes, and then I asked if the money I had paid in XXXX of XXXX would be counting toward my XX/XX/XXXX bill and they also said yes. I clarified again that I would have nothing due on XX/XX/XXXX, and they said that nothing would be due as I would be on XXXX 

I checked my account today, and I have an overdue bill from XX/XX/XXXX for {$500.00} and a bill due on XX/XX/XXXX for {$300.00}. 

Not only was my account not put into forbearance, so it looks as though I missed a payment, the {$300.00} that I had paid in XXXX was not applied to my XXXX bill. My credit history is perfect - I have never missed a car or credit card payment to date and I am furious that their incompetence will leave a mark on my record. In addition, I am incredibly unhappy that it seems my payment from XX/XX/XXXX has been lost. 

Finally, MOHELA has been impossible to reach, each time I called in XXXX, I would wait on hold for over an hour, just to reach someone and be told that they couldn't help and that the next person who could help me would be about a 2-3 hour wait. They told me to call back in the mornings as wait times are less, which is a nice idea in theory, but I do work in an elementary school and can not just leave my students to fend for themselves while I wait endlessly on hold. I was able to reach someone the morning of XX/XX/XXXX, and this is when I believed all issues to have been resolved.