Consumer complaint received 2018-12-03
Product: Student loan — Federal student loan servicing
Issue: Struggling to repay your loan — Can't get other flexible options for repaying your loan
Company: Navient Solutions, LLC. (OH)

I am being threatened by default proceedings by Navient over my school loans. My complaint centers around Navient refusing the option to enroll in the Income-driven repayment plan afforded students in XXXX. I explained that I was earning NO income. Another important benefit for income-driven repayment plan is that for the first three years after enrollment, we would have been entitled to have the federal government pay part of the interest charges if we could not keep up. Furthermore, in all discussions ( or attempted discussions ) they did not return scheduled calls. I was constantly pushed towards forbearance and when I inquired about loan forgiveness, they said I didn't qualify. 
I was forced to give up XXXX due to a XXXX  case of XXXX XXXX/XXXX   that prevented me from doing many things especially XXXX. This was communicated to the loan administrators although it made no difference. In XX/XX/XXXX, my husband ( who I married well after I had taken out the student loans was diagnosed with late XXXX XXXX XXXX and XXXX XXXX XXXX. The XXXX had spread to his XXXX requiring the XXXX of XXXX XXXX in his XXXX XXXX and XXXX him XXXX. My husband is unable to earn an income. We are relying on Medicaid and have recently completed paperwork to qualify for SNAP and cash advances. 

I have had to become his XXXX XXXX XXXX and since he has been placed in XXXX I am no longer allowed to work ( under federal law ) or he will lose his insurance. When he lost his job, we were forced to take Medicaid. Our only source of income is a small Social Security Retirement of $ XXXX/month and a Medical Pension he receives from XXXX of around $ XXXX/month depending on the exchange rate  for a total of $ XXXX. We have had to sell items and rely on family to survive. No matter what discussion we held with Navient, they were simply not interested in knowing nor understanding they could not base his XXXX payments on a school loan payment for MY loan. IF I were to die, my spouse can NOT be held legally liable for these loans. I have, for years now, tried to play by their screwed up fake rules. I have called their customer service number too many times to count only to listen to a pre-recorded message that says to follow the prompts, choose the time and date when I would be available to receive a call back. So I would follow THEIR prompts schedule an appointment and wait with my phone in hand to receive a call ... .THEY NEVER CALLED! My full time " job '' now is to care for my husband. Physically, it is very demanding. When I have XXXX  with XXXX XXXX, and my husband has doctor appointments, I have to rely on friends to drive him to his appointments because I am unable. Physically, I will never be able to return to the classroom to teach. 
I am in no position to be able to make any form of payment to Navient and this plea has simply been ignored on numerous occasions. 

I have written to my Ohio Representative, Mr. XXXX. He contacted Navient and they responded with a letter. I was NOT writing my congressman to ask about " requesting information to repay my loan ''. I wrote him to explain how their deceitful policies and misguided information along with our catastrophic health issue with my husband will not allow me to repay these loans. I also explained to Congressman XXXX that I didn't believe it was fair NOR ethical that Federal Congress people and their families, if they have ever filed bankruptcy for an illness or job loss, they ARE allowed complete student loan forgiveness. They also claimed in the letter they'd " attempted '' to contact me numerous times. ( NONSENSE! ) They can't even return a PRE-SCHEDULED call generated from THEIR system.