Consumer complaint received 2024-07-30 00:00:00
Product: Student loan — Private student loan
Issue: Problem with a company's investigation into an existing problem — Their investigation did not fix an error on your report
Company: SLM CORPORATION
State: NE

Complaint narrative:
I am writing to file a formal complaint against Sallie Mae for misreporting my student loan payment status, resulting in inaccurate information on my credit report and significant financial harm. 

Details of the Incident : Loan Deferment : - I have been paying on a private Sallie Mae loan since XXXX 
- My Sallie Mae payments had been on auto-pay for several months without and positive payment history issue prior to this occurrence. 
- My Sallie Mae student loan was deferred while I was temporarily attending University. 
- Sallie Mae confirmed over the phone with me it uses automated clearinghouse technology to set loans on and off payments, and my loans were thus paused. 

Error in Payment Due Notification : - Due to a clearinghouse " bug '' or " error '' the agent stated my auto-pay was active but not triggering since the bug. I suddenly had 3 months of payments due in XXXX without any phone calls or notices to me. 
- I confirmed on a phone call with an agent from Sallie Mae in XXXX that I had not received any notice and I was told if I paid that week there would be no credit reporting ; payment was then made. She stated letters had been mailed but myself and 2 others residing at that address monitoring mail never saw letters from Sallie Mae in the time we lived there. Only 1 phone call was ever attempted to my number by Sallie Mae, which was the phone call I picked up and learned about this problem. 

Payment Made : - I promptly remedied the situation by paying in full the amount allegedly owed in XXXX in excess of {$600.00}. 

Erroneous Deferral and Reporting : - Despite making the payment in XXXX as asked by the agent over the phone, my loans were placed on deferral again. 
- My credit report showed a 60-day late payment for XXXX, with no previous late payments ( i.e., it went from XXXXr Current to January 60 Day Unpaid ).

- Sallie Mae representatives continued stating when contacted that they " didn't report that '' or " reported you're paid '' when I contacted them multiple times to report and identify the error. 
Damages : - This incorrect 60-day late payment has lowered my credit score by nearly 50 points, affecting my pending mortgage application. 
- The financial impact of having to correct this error caused irreparable harms. 

Dispute Process and Lack of Resolution : - I opened multiple disputes with Sallie Mae and Credit Bureaus. 
- Each time, I was not contacted by Sallie Mae or the Credit Bureaus, and the disputes were eventually marked " Resolved '' with no real change. 

Request for Resolution : I request the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau ( CFPB ) to : - Investigate Sallie Mae 's handling and reporting of my student loan payments. 
- Ensure the correction of the inaccurate 60-day late payment on my credit report.

- Hold Sallie Mae accountable for failing to provide notice and proper dispute resolution.

Company public response: Company believes complaint is the result of an isolated error
Company response to consumer: Closed with non-monetary relief