Consumer complaint received 2024-08-08 00:00:00
Product: Student loan — Federal student loan servicing
Issue: Dealing with your lender or servicer — Trouble with how payments are being handled
Company: MOHELA
State: OR

Complaint narrative:
XXXX XXXX I consolidated my student loans. Prior to the consolidation I was on the SAVE plan. At the time of consolidation ( within the same application ) I selected to be placed again on the SAVE plan, once the consolidation went through. Both the consolidation application and the SAVE application show as received and 'in review ' on student aid.gov, and I was informed that my payments would be $ XXXX when I applied. 

On XX/XX/XXXX I received a letter in the mail from MOHELA stating that my payment would be due soon and that it would be {$370.00}. They had placed me on the " Level '' payment plan ( not income driven, which I qualify for and NEED ). The letter was backdated to XX/XX/XXXX and my payment was to be due mid XXXX ( less than 3 weeks away ). 

I called MOHELA immediately and was told that they had never received my SAVE application. I was instructed to reapply to SAVE. I did not follow through on this because I wanted my application date to remain the original date, as I was aware of the current court cases involving SAVE. I let the agent know that I would reach out the the federal student aid department. 

Immediately after the call to MOHELA, I went to studentaid.gov and spoke to a representative via chat. I was told that their records show my SAVE application is recorded as being sent and received, and that I should not reapply. I was told that I just needed to wait a little longer for it to be processed. The representative told me that MOHELA should have placed me in forbearance until the SAVE application had gone through. I called MOHELA back and passed along this information and the new representative knew what I was talking about and placed me into administrative forbearance. 

Fast forward to today. It is XX/XX/XXXX and my SAVE application still has not gone through. My account with MOHELA shows that my payment is due again soon, with the forbearance ending in 15 days. 

XX/XX/XXXX I placed a call to Federal Student Aid to check on the application status. I was told that everything looked good on their end. They confirmed that they for sure had sent the SAVE application ( at the same time as my consolidation application ). The agent confirmed the date the applications had been sent and that my payment amount should be less that {$200.00}. She reiterated that the problem is on MOHELA 's end and it's something they need to correct. Following the phone call I sent a message to MOHELA, and I have yet to hear back. 

During this time, since my account is not placed in SAVE, the way my interest accrues is handled differently and the possibility for the months in forbearance being included in my IDR count is not likely. I am being hurt financially by their inability to process paperwork in a timely manner. Please help me, I just want to be placed on the plan I was approved for during the application.

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