Date Received: 2023-03-29
Issue: Dealing with your lender or servicer
Subissue: Received bad information about your loan
Consumer Complaint: I began the repaying my loans in XXXX, I began teaching in XXXX as well. I learned about the PSLF program in XXXX, I was sadly denied because I had the wrong loan type. I began paying in XXXX and never missed a month. I learned about the Waiver in XXXX of XXXX, I consolidated my loans into Direct loans with XXXX XXXX XXXX and verified my employment. I was well over the 120 payments at this point and was actually making payments during the pause. My loans transferred over to Mohela in XXXX, yet I still was never give credit for the payment I have made. My loans sat with Mohela with zero movement and no waiver being applied. I reached out to Mohela through Chat last week and was told I was denied by accident and they would push my form back through. The next day I received a payment tracker showing only 1 payment qualifies and told it will take 90 days for payments to update. My loans have beyond satisfied the PSLF program, I never missed a payment for 19years, yet my paperwork was lost and not applied.
Company Response: Company believes it acted appropriately as authorized by contract or law
State: CA
Zip: 92596
Submitted Via: Web
Date Sent: 2023-03-29
Company Response to Consumer: Closed with non-monetary relief
Timely Response: Yes
Consumer Disputed: N/A
Date Received: 2023-03-29
Issue: Dealing with your lender or servicer
Subissue: Received bad information about your loan
Consumer Complaint: I am currently in the PSLF program. My loan was transferred to Mohela in XXXX of XXXX. When the loan showed up at Mohela it was missing the months between XX/XX/XXXX and XX/XX/XXXX. 22 months didn't come across. They didn't show up in either the Eligible or Ineligible counts. As of XX/XX/XXXX I am currently at XXXX Eligible payments not counting those missing months. I will be at XXXX Eligible payments once those months appear. I have contacted Mohela multiple times since XXXX of last year trying to get those months to appear so I can apply for the PSLF program. The only answer I'm getting is be patient. They will show up. In XXXX I was on the phone with a specialist for quite some time. He filled out a form for me and stated that would take care of it for sure. 2 weeks ago that form was dismissed as a duplicate request. Nothing was done. No one there can tell me why. I was scheduled to hit my 120 months in the PSLF program one month after my loan transferred. My loan should already be discharged. Please help. Thanks
Company Response: Company believes it acted appropriately as authorized by contract or law
State: ID
Zip: XXXXX
Submitted Via: Web
Date Sent: 2023-03-29
Company Response to Consumer: Closed with explanation
Timely Response: Yes
Consumer Disputed: N/A
Date Received: 2023-03-29
Issue: Dealing with your lender or servicer
Subissue: Problem with customer service
Consumer Complaint: I filed a TEPSLF and PSLF application with MOHELA on XX/XX/XXXX. This certification certified my employment with the Social Security Administration from XX/XX/XXXX to the date of the application filing XXXX XXXX ( I have attached a copy ). I patiently waited for the Department of Education to certify my qualifying payments -- which just happened yesterday XX/XX/XXXX. I have 127 qualifying payments per that official count, however, MOHELA claims that only 119 of those are counted toward forgiveness because they do not have employment certification for the XX/XX/XXXX payment which would put me at 120 payments and therefore mean that my loans are completely forgiven under TEPSLF/PSLF. Thus, the failure to process my paperwork submitted nearly six months ago is what is standing between me and having my loans forgiven nearly 8 months ago.
Company Response: Company believes it acted appropriately as authorized by contract or law
State: CA
Zip: 93401
Submitted Via: Web
Date Sent: 2023-03-29
Company Response to Consumer: Closed with non-monetary relief
Timely Response: Yes
Consumer Disputed: N/A
Date Received: 2023-03-29
Issue: Dealing with your lender or servicer
Subissue: Trouble with how payments are being handled
Consumer Complaint: I consolidated my federal student loans in 2022 during the PSLF special waiver window. My loans originally and correctly were displayed on the MOHELA website as one consolidated loan. MOHELA subsequently separated the consolidated loan into a " subsidized '' portion and " unsubsidized '' portion, which is itself not congruent with a single consolidated loan. My primary complaint is that MOHELA displays different qualifying payment counts for the " subsidized '' loan ( 83 payments ) and the " unsubsidized '' loan ( 99 payments. Even if separated into two separate loans, as part of the legal terms of consolidation these two loans should each have 99 eligible payments -- the same number. I've contacted MOHELA customer service multiple times about this and they indicate by phone that the loans will eventually have the same higher payment count. However, they give no timeline of when this will happen, they give no reason why the number is different, they offer no formal process for how I can make this request, and they do not communicate this in writing. At the moment the incorrect payment count would represent 16 additional months of repayment. Thank you for your help in requesting for MOHELA to update the payment count to the highest eligible for each loan ( currently 99 eligible and verified payments ). The attachment shows correspondence from MOHELA that shows differing qualifying payment counts for the subsidized and unsubsidized loans. This was after a recent review of my loans on the same problem I submitted to the CFPB.
Company Response: Company believes it acted appropriately as authorized by contract or law
State: NY
Zip: 11226
Submitted Via: Web
Date Sent: 2023-03-29
Company Response to Consumer: Closed with non-monetary relief
Timely Response: Yes
Consumer Disputed: N/A
Date Received: 2023-03-29
Issue: Dealing with your lender or servicer
Subissue: Problem with customer service
Consumer Complaint: I have submitted previously approved by XXXX XXXX PSLF forms for my time at Department of Commerce. The form was already part of my counts from XXXX. Mohela is requiring that I recertify all of them again FOR ALL employers, which is not in line with DOE policy. I complied and submitted the forms. They have denied my Commerce Form. I didnt realize that despite clicking the box that says this is a government agency, the manager completed the form in entirety. I have since reached out multiple times to get someone to rectify it and Im waiting for a review from their complaints board since nobody responded. The form does say this is a government agency. They state its for profit since she filled the whole form out. I had provided XXXX XXXX the documentation to show that I worked there, including XXXX and XXXX and they approved it prior to sending my file to MOHEALA. The form actually says this is a government agency, the form says Department of Commerce, I have provided XXXX and XXXX to Mohela as well, and the manager said she was going to fix the form so the rest of it isnt considered since she filled the whole form out. The denial is a blatant disregard for what management told me they would resolve. I called back to Mohela and asked them to review. A manager took 1.5 hours to get on the phone and during both the 1st call to management and the follow up call the manager accepted my XXXX and my XXXX to prove that I worked there during that time, and has submitted it to be approved. Both calls the manager stated that this should have been approved. Both times the review process has denied it again despite allowance of alternative documentation. On the StudentAid.GOV site it says : What kind of documentation do I need to keep to show that I worked for a qualifying Public Service Loan Forgiveness ( PSLF ) employer while making the required 120 payments on my XXXXXXXX XXXX ( s )? | XXXX XXXX XXXX In some cases, the PSLF servicer may require additional documentation about your qualifying employment. Therefore, you should keep records that identify your employer, show your dates of employment with that employer, confirm that you were a full-time employee, and demonstrate that your employer meets the definition of a qualifying employer. For example, documents that would support your employment are IRS XXXX forms and pay stubs. You should retain as many documents supporting your qualifying employment as possible. In addition, you can reach out to your employer to request any additional supporting documents. Mohela accepted and approved my XXXX and my XXXX but then denied the form? I have spent countless hours during the work day to reach these managers who continue to provide false information and do not see through any follow up on these forms. The first manager told me it would be completed in 3-5 days, after 4 months i called back since it was not completed and thats how I got manager 2. They also have said that they have already counted my periods of forbearance on my account and gave me XXXX, which is inaccurate. XXXX had already provided an estimate of counts to myself and to Mohela and they do not want to honor that. I have provided it multiple times and Mohela refuses to acknowledge. This is not what I thought was going to be the process after properly doing this for years. I have certified my employment annually as required and now Im being expected to follow some new process to recertify work I have already spent YEARS doing.
Company Response: Company believes it acted appropriately as authorized by contract or law
State: VA
Zip: 22150
Submitted Via: Web
Date Sent: 2023-03-29
Company Response to Consumer: Closed with explanation
Timely Response: Yes
Consumer Disputed: N/A
Date Received: 2023-03-27
Issue: Dealing with your lender or servicer
Subissue: Problem with customer service
Consumer Complaint: I have 126 eligible payments toward PSLF and have submitted qualifying ECFs for all of them since XX/XX/XXXX and due to MOHELA errors, am still awaiting my loan forgiveness that I should have been eligible for six months ago. Details as follows : I submitted my initial application for PSLF program to MOHELA on XX/XX/XXXX with four ECFs covering my qualifying employment from XX/XX/XXXX to XX/XX/XXXX. After a 90 day wait, only the top form for my most recent employer was approved from XX/XX/XXXX to XX/XX/XXXX. I called on XX/XX/XXXX and spoke with MOHELA rep, XXXX, and was told that the other three forms could be seen and everything looked correct and qualifying on them but that they had been unfortunately " missed '' and she was going to resubmit with notes that these forms were previously missed and unfortunately that meant another 90 day wait. In XXXX, my loans finally moved from XXXX to MOHELA for servicing and I went ahead and submitted another ECF for my current employer to get the months from XX/XX/XXXX to XX/XX/XXXX included since that should qualify me for forgiveness. On XX/XX/XXXX, the forms that were resubmitted on XX/XX/XXXX and my form from XX/XX/XXXX were marked cancelled as " duplicates '' which is obviously inaccurate. I called and spoke with XXXX who said she would submit for re-processing, again " marking '' them as being missed, etc. I asked if this would mean another 90 day wait period, and she said hopefully not, so I asked for a supervisor to make sure. I was on hold for 45 minutes and then spoke with XXXX who told me that XXXX put in for a 3-5 day reprocessing which is the most expedited review they can do and assured me that the ECFs were marked as needing to be looked at for expedited re-processing due to their errors. On XX/XX/XXXX, these most recent resubmissions showed in my account online as cancelled and as processed. I did an online chat with MOHELA rep, XXXX, who tells me that my updated form for my current employer has been approved and employment is now certified from XX/XX/XXXX to XX/XX/XXXX. When I ask about the former three employer forms, she tells me she can see they still have not been processed. She says she's going to resubmit them again, and AGAIN tells me she is " marking '' them as being reprocessed several times and asking for expedited reprocessing but it could take up to 14 days. She can not put me through to a supervisor via chat and says I'd need to call for that. On XX/XX/XXXX, the most recent submission from XX/XX/XXXX says processed in my online account. I get on chat with MOHELA rep, XXXX, who tells me that she can see the three forms have STILL NOT BEEN PROCESSED and that there's no indication as to why and that the " notice '' that is pending is just an updated payment count. She suggests I call for a supervisor since she can see how many times I have tried to address this issue. I call and speak with MOHELA rep, XXXX, who attempts to tell me that the forms have been processed and approval will take 7-10 days to show up in the system. When I ask if she can see that they actually reviewed the forms and that they are in for approval, she tells me, " well, they weren't denied, '' which I tell her is not the same thing. She again tries to tell me that there would be no way to know if they've been processed for 7-10 days and I ask for a supervisor. After an hour on hold, I speak with XXXX, who tells me that, in fact, my three ECFs that they have had on file since XX/XX/XXXX have still not been reviewed/processed. He offers to resubmit them again and " mark them '' as an ongoing issue. When I push back on this because it will be the FIFTH time these forms have been submitted, four of which are due to their errors, he tells me that he is resubmitting to the customer advocacy team and that this is different than the regular processing team that was reviewing them previously and it should be resolved in 3-5 business days. When I mention asking for another supervisor, he tells me that due to call volume he would not be able to put me through to another supervisor. Every customer service representative has been as nice/polite as can be, but ultimately they have provided inaccurate and unhelpful information and the team at MOHELA has failed to review the same forms FIVE times now, holding up my loan forgiveness which I have earned via public service. This is shameful.
Company Response: Company believes it acted appropriately as authorized by contract or law
State: FL
Zip: 32127
Submitted Via: Web
Date Sent: 2023-03-27
Company Response to Consumer: Closed with non-monetary relief
Timely Response: Yes
Consumer Disputed: N/A
Date Received: 2023-03-27
Issue: Dealing with your lender or servicer
Subissue: Trouble with how payments are being handled
Consumer Complaint: I reached 120 payments for PSLF and mailed my application to Mohela in XX/XX/XXXX. Mohela denied my application in XX/XX/XXXX stating that I have not yet made 120 payments, which is not accurate. I now have well over 120 qualifying payments. I called 3 different times in XX/XX/XXXX and was told 3 different answers, stating that it still takes time for the payments to be counted. I called again in XXXX and someone said they would send my account for review. In XXXX there was still no progress, so I called again and the woman said the last person sent it for review incorrectly. This new person sent it for review again. After a few weeks, 6 of my payments were correctly counted. However, I am still missing payments from my qualifying employer ( the XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX ) from XXXX XXXX XXXX. One payment from XX/XX/XXXX was counted, but I am still missing 9 payments. I have called Mohela 6-7 times over the last 2-3 months to get this issue resolved, with no resolution. I am constantly placed on hold and having my time wasted. My forgiveness application was complete, organized, accurate and concise, and Mohela was still not competent enough to properly process my application or my payment counts. I have spent hours and hours on the phone with Mohela with no resolution.
Company Response: Company believes it acted appropriately as authorized by contract or law
State: IL
Zip: 60706
Submitted Via: Web
Date Sent: 2023-03-27
Company Response to Consumer: Closed with explanation
Timely Response: Yes
Consumer Disputed: N/A
Date Received: 2023-03-27
Issue: Dealing with your lender or servicer
Subissue: Received bad information about your loan
Consumer Complaint: I submitted a XXXX employment certification form on XX/XX/2022 to Mohela. Recently, the status of the document changed from processing to " duplicate form '', yet my eligible XXXX count was not updated to reflect the months that would have been covered through the form. I received no notice from Mohela about why that was so I had to contact them only to be told that the application was actually denied and not a " duplicate '' because the signature used was electronic and not hand written. I work XXXX and so does my employer, so obtaining a hand written signature is both logistically complicated and tedious. My previous loan servicer had no such requirement nor does Mohela communicate this requirement outright to borrowers when filling out the form. This seems to be purposefully complicating the process and Mohela should be practicing the same standards as other loan services, otherwise, they are purposefully making it so borrowers are less able to obtain forgiveness.
Company Response: Company believes it acted appropriately as authorized by contract or law
State: CA
Zip: 92805
Submitted Via: Web
Date Sent: 2023-03-27
Company Response to Consumer: Closed with non-monetary relief
Timely Response: Yes
Consumer Disputed: N/A
Date Received: 2023-03-27
Issue: Credit monitoring or identity theft protection services
Subissue: Billing dispute for services
Consumer Complaint: To Whom It May Concern, The loan company saying I owe for the student loan is a scam. We're not sure where to go from here to pursue this dispute. I do have documents of the research and correspondence we have made so far of the various companies that have received my payments in which, you can find that those that received the most payments are in ongoing lawsuits. The most current company, MOHELA, that says they are in charge of my student loan has put a lien against me which is putting a hold on us qualifying for a home loan. Even if I could just pay it off AGAIN I wouldn't know where to pay it to. I was paying to the companies in good faith all these years that where in charge of my student loan at the time. So, who do I believe? Do you know of any action that I can take to resolve this problem? Any help you can offer would be greatly appreciated. Thank you, XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX, I am hesitant of sending this because to me that just wakes up the company MOHELA to start harassing me again. I would like this whole thing looked into. MOHELA just ignored me when I sent them the letter and documents in the first place.
Company Response: Company believes it acted appropriately as authorized by contract or law
State: MT
Zip: 590XX
Submitted Via: Web
Date Sent: 2023-03-27
Company Response to Consumer: Closed with explanation
Timely Response: Yes
Consumer Disputed: N/A
Date Received: 2023-03-27
Issue: Dealing with your lender or servicer
Subissue: Trouble with how payments are being handled
Consumer Complaint: On XX/XX/2023 I requested a student loan payment refund in the amount of {$1300.00} from Mohela under the Covid 19 payment pause. On XX/XX/XXXX, I checked my account with Mohela and my balance had increased by the refund amount. On Friday, XX/XX/XXXX I reached out to Mohela through their web chat and was told that the request has completed processing and was sent to the US Treasury. The representative could not give me an exact date that it completed processing. The representative stated that I could reach out to the US Treasury to check on the status. I reached out to them and that representative told me that they do not have anything in my name for a refund payment. I called Mohela and spoke to a representative. She stated that there is no way to see the status of the refund request and that I would have to wait another 60-90 days. My complaint is that they are keeping my money with little communication or accountability. Mohela is not consistent in their response and provides no written documentation on the status of important financial transactions. They appear to be moving the goalpost on their timelines, which is causing financial anxiety and pressure.
Company Response: Company believes it acted appropriately as authorized by contract or law
State: MN
Zip: 553XX
Submitted Via: Web
Date Sent: 2023-03-27
Company Response to Consumer: Closed with explanation
Timely Response: Yes
Consumer Disputed: N/A