Consumer complaint received 2025-01-29 00:00:00
Product: Student loan — Federal student loan servicing
Issue: Dealing with your lender or servicer — Received bad information about your loan
Company: MOHELA
State: MA

Complaint narrative:
Today I have spent over an hour and a half on the phone, the entirety of my call was recorded according to the agent i spoke with. The date of this call is XX/XX/XXXX and the time frame is approximately XXXX through XXXX. I have received an email on XX/XX/XXXX directly from federal student aid that explicitly authorizes SAVE borrowers, like myself, presently on a general forbearance ( which I never requested and was place in without my consent ), to apply for any other income driven repayment plan. I in fact applied for the XXXX plan on XX/XX/XXXX, which Mohela received on XX/XX/XXXX. To date they have not processed my application. Today, my call was eventually escalated to an agent with Mohela 's resolution department. Her name is XXXX and her employee ID number is XXXX. She informed me that Mohela has been instructed by the department of education to NOT PROCESS XXXX APPLICATIONS FOR THOSE PRESENTLY ON SAVE. She later acknowledge this was incorrect information and she was mistaken but that its hard to keep up with federal changes. It is Mohelas obligation to be up to date on federal updates. She further informed me the department of education instructed Mohela to NOT PLACE BORROWERS PRESENTLY STUCK ON SAVE WHO REQUEST A DIFFERENT XXXX PLAN IN A PROCESSING FORBEARANCE THAT COUNTS TOWARDS public service loan forgiveness. She was adamant about this. That position is in direct contradiction to an email I received from federal student aid on XX/XX/XXXX, which I can provide you. It is also in direct contradiction to information on XXXX 's website, which does not indicate ANYWHERE that SAVE BORROWERS are not entitled to the processing forbearance and are not entitled to have their XXXX applications reviewed or acted upon -- both of which XXXX told me today. Moreover, such an instruction from the department of education would be in direct violation of federal CMRs which state : " ( i ) Changing repayment plans. A borrower who is repaying under an IDR plan XXXX change at any time to any other repayment plan for which the borrower is eligible, except as otherwise provided.... '' This plainly allows borrowers to access and apply for income driven repayment plans at any time, but according to XXXX at Mohela, the Department of Education has told Mohela to not process XXXX applications for borrowers presently stuck on XXXX against their will and not allow a processing forbearance. XXXX informed me the only way I am entitled to a processing forbearance is if I requested to be placed on the standard repayment plan, which would require me to pay over {$2000.00} a month, which I can not afford, nor am I obligated to pay when on an income driven repayment plan. XXXX has been unable to provide me with any documentation, from anywhere, that states that the department of education instructed Mohela or any other agency to not place borrowers with a pending IDR application on a processing forbearance. I would encourage you to request to listen to the recorded call and review the federal student aid website which instructs SAVE borrowers that they are entitled to apply for an income driven repayment plan, they they are entitled to have mohela review that application, and that they are entitled to a processing forbearance.

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