Consumer complaint received 2026-04-27 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: FL

Complaint narrative:
On XX/XX/XXXX, my son, the primary borrower on this private student loan, filed XXXX XXXX bankruptcy. I remained the non filing co-signer on the account, and we live at the same address. Before this issue, the account had about XXXX years of perfect on time payment history. After the bankruptcy filing, Sallie Mae XXXX online portal access and canceled the existing autopay arrangement. At the same time, monthly statements and mailed notices stopped coming to our home. Neither my son nor I received clear notice or instructions explaining how payments were supposed to be made during that period. Online access was not restored until after discharge, and only after my son received a credit alert on XX/XX/XXXX and called customer service. That same day, a payment was made to bring the account current, and on XX/XX/XXXX, another payment was made to cover the XX/XX/XXXX payment. I did not begin receiving late notices until after online access had been restored and the delinquency had already been paid. Because we share the same address, it appears Sallie Mae may have stopped sending notices during the bankruptcy period, yet no explanation or alternative payment instructions were ever provided. As a result, the account fell behind without meaningful notice, and Sallie Mae later reported it as XXXX days late for XX/XX/XXXX. My son also had another student loan with a different servicer, XXXX, during the same period. That account was not handled in the same way and did not result in comparable late reporting, which makes XXXX XXXX handling of this account even harder to understand. Once access was restored and the delinquency became known, the account was promptly brought current and has remained in good standing since. In fact, after the XX/XX/XXXX payment brought the account current, the XX/XX/XXXX payment put the account XXXX month ahead. Even so, Sallie Mae refused to correct the XX/XX/XXXX late reporting. I disputed the matter, but the response did not address the central issue : this delinquency followed Sallie Maes own servicing actions, including disabling account access, canceling autopay, and stopping mailed communications, without giving either the borrower or the non filing co-signer a clear way to monitor the account and avoid delinquency. This has had a real impact on my life. On XX/XX/XXXX, I was forced to walk away from a home purchase because this derogatory mark affected my mortgage financing and created a serious risk that the transaction would not close. Since then, I have delayed my home search for about XXXX months while trying to fix this problem before moving forward. I have spent hours on the phone with Sallie Mae. I had my son write to its Customer Advocacy department. I sent multiple letters to Sallie Maes executive offices. I submitted disputes to all major credit bureaus.I also consulted with multiple law firms that handle FCRA matters to better understand my rights and how to address this dispute. Everything I have done has been an effort to limit the financial damage this reporting has caused. The harm has not been only financial. This has been deeply stressful. It has strained my relationship with my son and led to conflict within my family. At the same time, I am still living in housing that is not in livable condition, and my rent is expected to increase substantially. I understand this issue may take time to resolve, but the longer this reporting stays on our files, the more damage it causes. I respectfully ask for CFPBs help in requiring Sallie Mae to review this matter fairly and correct the XX/XX/XXXX late payment reporting. I am not asking for special treatment. I am asking Sallie Mae to address whether it is fair and accurate to continue reporting this delinquency when the missed payment followed Sallie Maes own servicing disruptions and lack of notice, rather than an ordinary failure or refusal to pay.

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