Consumer complaint received 2015-09-03
Product: Student loan — Non-federal student loan
Issue: Dealing with my lender or servicer — Having problems with customer service
Company: Navient Solutions, LLC. (OH)

I have a number of private loans through Navient, and manage my account online. I used them when they were still XXXX XXXX, while attending a few schools in XXXX ( XXXX XXXX College, XXXX, XXXX, XXXX University, XXXXXXXX, but XXXX University, XXXX, XXXX ) as well as graduate school XXXX XXXX University, a completely online institution ). In the XX/XX/XXXX XXXX of my private loans was taken off the website. I should have called then but did not, and it was a few months before it showed back up, but it was under Federal Loans XXXX which are set at {$0.00} because of my IBR ). Since there was no explanation for the absence of the private loan and the appearance of this significantly higher federal loan, we began calling to find out what was going on. After a couple months of asking if it was still private or federal ( because if Private, why did the rate jump beyond the " interest only '' amount and if Federal, why is it not set to {$0.00} for the IBR ), in XX/XX/XXXX a representative admitted that this was a private loan, even though they moved it under the heading of Federal, and even though it was private, it had been taken out of the " interest only '' plan it was under previously. At this point they had played a shell-game over the location and type of loan, obstructed my inquiries, and removed it from any repayment plan without notifying me, multiplying the payments beyond what my husband and I could afford. 
It took until XX/XX/XXXX for a loan manager to give any explanation to us about what happened A YEAR EARLIER. By this time, even if Navient was willing to work with us, the amount had grown out of control, and they were STILL unwilling to help us, even though it all started with their action. They claimed to have options, but none of them could fit our tight budget, nor were they close to the prior " interest only '' plan. 
My husband and I tried to keep lines of communication open, but found no assistance on their end. In fact, their policy of changing loan managers for client accounts on a regular basis made it worse. One month we might talk with a very helpful person who tries to explain the situation to us and find resolution. However, the next person we speak with might be rude, unhelpful, and tell us different information than the previous person, making it impossible to get a clear story from them about what needs to happen with the loan. It is also very convenient that when we ask questions about the previous call, the notes typed into the record by the previous representative seem to miss any of the information we recall that would be helpful or pertinent to a resolution. 
The collections calls started in XX/XX/XXXX to my husband and parents ( my parents being co-signers XXXX. They frequently accuse us of not making any contact with them, when at times we have contacted them multiple times a month. They have bullied my parents into paying money neither we nor they have to give XXXX our family of XXXX is low enough in income all our federal loans are under IBR, we are XXXX recipients, and we are on food stamps, in spite of my husband 's efforts to find better employment for almost 2 years XXXX. In a recent call to my mother, they acted as if I have not been keeping any of my private loans current, which is a lie that can be proved through my online account access, and attempted to get all of the money from her. We have sought resolution only to be given repayment amounts that are far beyond our ability to pay, and one representative who kept twisting my husband 's words hung up on him. The worst part is the inconsistency whereby we have been told different stories, sometimes given promises or signs of hope, only to be made out as if we are criminals in later conversations, all stemming from actions they took over a year ago.