Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.Due to the fact that we have no knowledge or have ever received any of the Notices of Guaranty Transfer sent on 10/6/2014, other notices sent on 10/15/2014, including Request for Administrative Review, & Notice Prior to Wage Withholding. Because to my understanding, Ed Financial Services, had placed these loans under Deferment or Forbearance.
[To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, we would like to know your view on the matter.]
Regards,
[redacted]
Thank you for contacting us on behalf of Mr. [redacted] and for providing us the opportunity to address hisconcern regarding his loan that is serviced by Great Lakes. Mr. [redacted]’s concern as we understand it is thatany delinquencies reported to the credit bureaus prior to his loan default be removed...
from his credit report.Great Lakes is required by the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended (HEA) to report the status of allserviced student loan accounts to the nationwide Credit Reporting Agencies (CRAs). Additionally, the FairCredit Reporting Act requires that this information is reported accurately and objectively. Please also notethat we are audited to ensure our compliance with these requirements.It is important to note that the credit reporting benefit Mr. [redacted] received upon the successful rehabilitationof his loan was the removal of the default status from his credit bureau report. Any delinquencies reportedprior to his default were not to be impacted by the rehabilitation.With this in mind, we reviewed Mr. [redacted]’s account to verify the accuracy of the information we reportedtoward his credit files, and to ensure no errors were made that would lead to, or result in, inaccuratedelinquency reporting (such as misapplication of payments). This review confirmed that no such errors weremade and that the information reported to the CRAs by Great Lakes is accurate. For this reason, eventhough we empathize with Mr. [redacted]’s situation, no adjustments will be made to our past credit reporting.Although we are unable to make any adjustments to the information reported toward Mr. [redacted]’s creditfiles, please make note that Myfico.com indicates that individuals who were delinquent in the past are ableto improve their FICO score by paying their loans on time, and the longer an individual pays on time, themore their FICO score should increase.I understand that this is not the answer Mr. [redacted] was hoping for, and apologize for any frustration he hasexperienced. If he has any additional questions or concerns, he may contact our Borrower ServicesDepartment by phone at ###-###-####, by email at [redacted], or by mailing:
Dear Ms. [redacted]: Thank you for contacting us on behalf of Ms. [redacted] and for providing us the opportunity to address her concerns regarding her loan that is guaranteed by Great Lakes Higher Education Guaranty Corporation (Great Lakes). Your request has been forwarded to our office for review...
and response. Ms. [redacted]’s concern as we understand it is that she had understood no payments would be taken via Administrative Wage Garnishment (AWG). We are happy to report that Great Lakes’ Collection Support Department has agreed to remove the AWG and are in the process of notifying Ms. [redacted]’s employer to stop the garnishment immediately. We have included a copy of the letter they have sent to Ms. [redacted]. We again thank you for contacting us and for giving us an opportunity to be of assistance. If additional information is required, please by all means, contact us. You can reach our office between 7:00 am and 4:30 pm Monday through Friday at ###-###-####, or by email at [email protected]. Sincerely, [redacted]Great Lakes Higher EducationOmbudsman Specialist
Thank you for contacting us on behalf of Ms. [redacted] and for providing us theopportunity to address her request to no longer report her student loan, which we service onbehalf of the U.S. Department of Education (ED), to the nationwide Credit Reporting Agencies(CRAs).Concerning credit...
reporting, it is important for Ms. [redacted] to be aware that The HigherEducation Act of 1965, as amended, requires that Great Lakes report the status of all servicedstudent loan accounts to the nationwide CRAs. Additionally, the Fair Credit Reporting Act requiresthat this information is reported accurately and objectively. Please note that we are audited toensure our compliance with these requirements.Regrettably, due to the aforementioned reasons, we are unable to honor Ms. [redacted]’srequest to no longer report her loan to the CRAs. Moving forward, until her loan obligation issatisfied, we will continue reporting pieces of data to the CRAs including; her current status, thedate her loan was opened, her balance, and the amount and date of her last payment.Additionally, we also report the type of loan, demographic information, and her obligation towardsthe loan.At the present time, as Ms. [redacted] referenced, her loan is being reported to the CRAs asdeferred, as she is currently in her grace period until June 13, 2016.I hope Ms. [redacted] finds the information provided helpful. If she has any questions orconcerns, she may contact our Borrower Services Department at ###-###-####,[redacted], or the address below:[redacted]
[redacted]
[redacted]
Thank you for contacting us on behalf of Ms. [redacted] and for providing us the opportunity to address her concern regarding the phone calls she has been receiving from Great Lakes.Great Lakes currently services one Direct Loan Program (DLP) Parent PLUS loan on behalf of the U.S. Department of...
Education (ED) for Ms. [redacted]. Ms. [redacted]’s DLP loan is a federal loan. As such, Great Lakes is contractually obligated to abide by all federal guidelines set forth by her lender, ED, and the terms and conditions of her Master Promissory Note, or loan agreement. Any communication we have with Ms. [redacted] about a past due loan balance is our attempt to help her resolve a difficult situation.With attention to the phone calls Ms. [redacted] has received, it’s important for us to share that the DLP regulations require us to contact, by mail and telephone, any borrower whose student loan account is past due. Additionally, other laws that interfere with our ability to comply with the DLP regulations are preempted by the DLP regulations. This means that we are not subject to any state or federal law that would interfere with our ability to perform the due diligence required by the DLP regulations. Therefore, in order for us to remain in compliance with ED’s due diligence requirements, if Ms. [redacted]’s account remains past due, she will continue receiving phone calls. Our records indicate that we did make five unanswered calls on three different days to reach her last month, all were in the afternoon.We apologize that Ms. [redacted] finds our calls frustrating. However, it is important for her to understand that when we contact her regarding her past due student loan, we are trying to help. Depending on her circumstances, there may be options to resolve the delinquency on her loan. Please know that calls will cease once her account is current, and calls occur less frequent when we speak with her.It is also important to point out that if Ms. [redacted] finds her monthly payment unaffordable; there are numerous repayment and assistance options available to help her manage her account. To review these options, we encourage her to visit our website, mygreatlakes.org, or contact our Borrower Services Department, which she mentioned she planned on doing during a conversation she had with us on April 19, 2016. Please note that we would be happy to work with her to find an option that best fits her current situation and brings her account current.We understand that the repayment of student loans can be a strenuous process and hope Ms. [redacted] finds the information provided helpful. We are here to assist her with the repayment of her loan in any way that we can. If she has any additional questions or concerns, she may contact our Borrower Services Department by phone at ###-###-####, through email at [email protected], or by mailing:Great LakesP.O. Box 7860Madison, WI 53707Sincerely,
Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
Negative on their response. I have spoken to Great Lakes most definitely more than three times. Furthermore, my initial contact was prior to March 2015. When I reviewed my bank statements, I noticed the first payment was debited from my account on March 20th. The agreement we have took several weeks to put in place. So the initial phone calls would have taken place in February, where I was told six months to reinstate credit. This leads me to believe that Great Lakes doesn't have a grasp on the facts of this particular situation. Moreover, I was told in a recent phone call, was that it may take 6-9months because they are *under staffed*. I'm not sure why I should be punished, because of their employment practices. Never have I been told 9-12 months. Is this some sort of bait and switch policy? And if it does take the nine months they *claim* I was told, October would be the 9th month and my credit would be brought current next week??? So I suppose my next step is to pull my cell phone records from the last year, to prove that Great Lakes and I spoke at length, or take this to a higher authority.Regards,
[redacted]
Dear Mr. [redacted]:Thank you for contacting us on behalf of Mr. [redacted]. [redacted] and for providing us theopportunity to further address his concerns about his student loan that isguaranteed by Great Lakes Higher Education Guaranty Corporation (Great Lakes)and serviced by [redacted]. His concern as weunderstand it is that he feels he was told that the default claim would beremoved from his credit file after he made his sixth loan payment under the authorizedrehabilitation program.Our office requested that TSI review their call logs for any and all conversationsthey may have had with Mr. [redacted] at or around the time his rehabilitation wasset up. TSI had three phone contacts with Mr. [redacted] in the past year all of which wererecorded. Our office reviewed all threeof the calls and in none of them was there a mention of the credit historybeing purged after six months. Of thethree there was one where credit reporting was discussed.During the March 12, 2015 call in which the loan rehabilitation program was outlined,the TSI Representative explained that rehabilitation lasts nine to twelvemonths. He also explained that after sixmonths TIV benefits are reinstated, which means at that time Mr. [redacted] would becomeeligible for new student loans. The TSIRepresentative went on to explain that in nine to twelve months the defaultclaim on Mr. [redacted]’s credit report would be expunged.Mr. [redacted] asked for clarification on the credit reporting and the TSIRepresentative explained that nothing could be done to remove the default claimfrom the credit reporting until Mr. [redacted] has completed the program in nine totwelve months.With that being said, Great Lakes is required by the Higher Education Act of 1965,as amended, and it’s implementing regulations to report defaulted student loanaccounts to the nationwide consumer reporting agencies until the conclusion of rehabilitation. While we realize that this was not Mr. [redacted]’s desired outcome, we do assure you thathis request was given a complete and objective review. We sincerely apologizefor the frustration he has experienced and we hope this information will behelpful to him. If you require futureassistance from our office, you can reach us between 8:00 am and 4:30 pm Mondaythrough Friday at ###-###-####, or by email at [redacted]. Sincerely,[redacted]Great Lakes Ombudsman Office
I think it is safe to say that Great Lakes doesn't take this serious. I don't believe them sending me a letter is going to address nor fix the problems, however, I also understand that there isn't much the Revdex.com can do, its very unfortunate that companies like Great Lakes don't take this serious and have no problem making things complicated for the consumer.
Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
[To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, we would like to know your view on the matter.]
Regards,
[redacted]
Complaint ID: [redacted]
Great Lakes ID: [redacted]...
Dear
Mr. [redacted]:
Thank
you for contacting us on behalf of Ms. [redacted] and for providing us the opportunity
to address her concern regarding the issues she has experienced with the
processing of her Income-Driven Repayment plan and her interest capitalizing.
After
receiving Ms. [redacted]’s concern we reviewed our records which indicated that
she seems to have resolved her concern during a follow-up conversation with our
Borrower Services Department on July 1, 2015. Our records also confirmed that
the capitalized interest Ms. [redacted] referenced has been reversed.
At
the present time, Ms. [redacted]’s account is in an Income-Based Repayment plan. Based on her income and family size, her monthly payment is $222.76, with
her next payment being due by August 9, 2015. Please note that if she would
ever like to discuss alternative repayment or assistance options, we would be
happy to work with her to find an option that best fits her current situation.
If
Ms. [redacted] has any additional questions or concerns, she may contact our
Borrower Services Department by phone at ###-###-####, through email at [redacted], or by
mailing:
Great Lakes
[redacted]
[redacted]
Sincerely,
Aimee S[redacted]
[redacted]
Great
Lakes Educational Loan Services Inc.
Thank you for your follow up on behalf of Ms. [redacted] and for again providing us the opportunity to address her concern pertaining to the delinquencies reported toward her credit files.After reviewing our records, it appears that the Great Lakes’ Ombudsman have contacted Ms. [redacted] directly to address her concern.If Ms. [redacted] has any additional questions or concerns she may contact the Great Lakes’ Ombudsman directly at ###-###-####, or our Borrower Services Department by phone at ###-###-####, by email at [email protected], or by mail to the address below:Great LakesP.O. Box 7860Madison, WI 53707Sincerely,[redacted]
Thank you for contacting us on behalf of Ms. [redacted] and for providing us theopportunity to address her concern regarding the deferment status on her Parent PLUS loan, withthe U.S. Department of Education (ED), taken out on behalf of her son, [redacted].Upon receiving Ms. [redacted]’s...
concern, we reviewed our records and were unable to locate anyphone calls within the month of June as she referenced. Although our records did not reflect anyphone calls during June, we were able to confirm that we spoke with Ms. [redacted] on July 14 and20th, at which time she submitted a request to end the Student Enrollment Deferment (July 14)and asked that we not place any additional Student Enrollment Deferments on her accountmoving forward (July 20). We can confirm that both of Ms. [redacted]’s requests have beenprocessed.After speaking with Ms. [redacted] on July 14, 2016, as noted above, the deferment was removedfrom her account and a new payment scheduled was issued on July 31, 2016. The terms of Ms.[redacted]’s payment schedule calls for monthly payments of $50 which are due on the 11th of eachmonth beginning in September. Since Ms. [redacted] enrolled in Auto Pay, her monthly paymentamount will be electronically pulled from her designated bank account.It is important for Ms. [redacted] to understand that when she completed her loan application, shestated she wanted her account placed into deferment when her son was eligible for the In-SchoolDeferment. As such, since we did not receive a request from Ms. [redacted] to end her defermentprior to July 14, 2016, we are unable to refund the interest that has accrued since May as sherequested.We apologize for any frustration Ms. [redacted] has experienced and hope she finds the informationprovided helpful. If she has any questions or concerns, she may contact our Borrower ServicesDepartment by phone at ###-###-####, by email at [email protected], or by mail tothe address below:Great LakesP.O. Box 7860Madison, WI 53707Sincerely,[redacted]
us on behalf of Ms. Amy [redacted] and for providing us the opportunity toaddress her concern regarding payments withdrawn automatically from her bank account for herstudent loan account with the U.S. Department of Education (ED), as she believes the paymentswere withdrawn without her consent.In order to fully address Ms. [redacted]’s concern, we must first point out that, to completeenrollment in Auto Pay, our automated payment processing system, it is necessary for a borrowerto agree to the terms and conditions of Auto Pay. For convenience, we have attached a copy ofthe Auto Pay Terms and Conditions. In addition, prior to beginning enrollment, a borrower isprovided important information to consider and opportunity to review frequently asked questions.Importantly, within the terms and conditions and frequently asked questions, information isprovided prior to enrollment indicating that all accounts in repayment status will be withdrawnthrough Auto Pay.Upon review of Ms. [redacted]'s account, we have verified that she enrolled in Auto Pay on January7, 2015 through her online account on our website, mygreatlakes.org. At the time she signed upfor Auto Pay, her due date was the 18th of each month for her loan under lender number762581(“Loan 1”). This loan entered repayment status immediately after her In-school defermentconcluded as it had previously utilized its one-time 6-month grace.Ms. [redacted]’s loan account under lender number [redacted] (“Loan 2”) entered repayment status onJanuary 28, 2016 following the expiration of its grace period. On February 2, 2016, a paymentschedule was emailed to inform Ms. [redacted] that her additional loan account required a $50.00payment on the 11th of each month beginning in March 2016. Her billing statement emailed onFebruary 24, 2016 provided notification that her Auto Pay would begin pulling the $50.00 paymentfor Loan 2 on March 11, 2016. Our records confirm that Ms. [redacted] spoke with a Specialized Account Manager on August 22,2016 regarding the $50.00 withdrawals from her bank account through Auto Pay. We havereviewed the activity of the call and confirmed that she did not agree with the Auto Paywithdrawals that had taken place for her Loan 2 from March 2016 through August 2016. Whilespeaking with the manager, the offer was made to deactivate Ms. [redacted]’s Auto Pay; however,Ms. [redacted] declined.During the call, Ms. [redacted] and the manager discussed the possibility of an Economic Hardshipdeferment to postpone payments if Ms. [redacted] qualified. Due to her interest in applying for thedeferment, she asked the manager to apply a 60-day forbearance to temporarily postponepayments and to allow her sufficient time to submit her deferment request form and required proofof income. The 60 day forbearance was set to expire on October 20, 2016. Once the form andrequired proof of income was received, it was determined that Ms. [redacted] did not meet thefederal guidelines for the deferment. We were, therefore, unable to apply the Economic Hardshipdeferment to her account.Following the October 20 expiration of her forbearance, Ms. [redacted] was emailed a new paymentschedule for both of her accounts on October 24, 2016 which indicated that her total $159.14would be due on the 4th of each month beginning in December 2016. Subsequently, her billingstatement was emailed and mailed to her on November 13, 2016 indicating that her Auto Paywould withdraw the total $159.14 payment on December 4, 2016.We apologize for any frustration Ms. [redacted] has experienced, but hope this provides asatisfactory explanation of what occurred and why. If she has any questions or concerns, she maycontact our Borrower Services Department by phone at ###-###-####, by email at[redacted], or by mail to the address below:Great Lakes[redacted]
Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me. I do not expect this company to come forward and take responsibility for the misinformation given to me by their representative. Legally they have nothing compelling them to do so and so this is how it stands. It's just unfortunate in my eyes that this type of action can go on and leave the consumer of their services to suffer for their ineptitude.
Regards,
Kevin [redacted]
[redacted]
Lead Trade Practice Consultant
Revdex.com of Wisconsin
10101
W Greenfield Ave #125
Milwaukee
WI 53214
Complaint ID: [redacted]
Great Lakes ID: [redacted] ...
Dear
Mr. [redacted]:
Thank
you for contacting us on behalf of Ms. [redacted] and for providing us the
opportunity to address her concern in regard to the $50 payment applied to her
account on April 27, 2015.
When
a borrower sends a payment through their financial institution’s bill-pay
service, they are typically provided an “estimated arrival date,” we presume to
help the borrower budget their account. The majority of financial institutions
employ a vendor to process their bill-pay transactions, as is the case with Ms.
[redacted]’s financial institution. For these transactions, Ms. [redacted]’s
financial institution, Chase Bank, utilizes IPAY technologies.
Prior
to a vendor sending a payment to the intended payee, they must first clear the
payment with borrower’s financial institution. Regarding Ms. [redacted]’s April 27th
$50 payment, we were able to use the information from our system, as well as
the payment transaction information Ms. [redacted] provided from Chase Bank, to
breakdown and provide the following details about the processing of her
payment:
April
23, 2015:
Payment sent by Chase Bank to IPAY Technologies.
April
23, 2015:
IPAY Technologies receives the transmission at 9:07 pm ET.
April
24, 2015:
IPAY Technologies clears payment with Chase Bank.
April
27, 2015:
Great Lakes applies payment after receiving it from IPAY Technologies.
To
provide information as shown on our system, outlining April 27, 2015 as the
date we received her payment, our initial response to Ms. [redacted]’s inquiry is
attached. Based on the aforementioned information and attached documents, Ms.
[redacted]’s payment was applied correctly on April 27, 2015.
Unfortunately,
because IPAY Technologies lists the payment effective date as April 24, 2015,
as shown on the attached summary statement provided by Ms. [redacted], it does not
confirm that Great Lakes received the payment. It appears that this date
correlates with the date Chase Bank debited the funds from her account. Please
reference the disclaimer at the top of the transaction summary she provided,
which states:
“As a courtesy to
this customer, please note the date the payment was sent and the expected
arrival date. If you received the payment after the expected arrival date, the
delay may be due to factors beyond our customer’s control (e.g., mail
processing if the payment was sent by U.S. Mail.”
I
hope Ms. [redacted] finds the information provided helpful. If she has any
questions or concerns, she may contact our Borrower Services Department at
(800) 236-4300, [email protected], or the address below:
Great Lakes
PO Box 7860
Madison, WI 53707
Sincerely,
[redacted]
Supervisor – Contact Escalation
Great
Lakes Educational Loan Services Inc.
[redacted]Lead Trade Practice ConsultantRevdex.com of Wisconsin10101 W Greenfield Ave #125Milwaukee WI 53214 Complaint ID: [redacted]Reference ID: 91--0312258 Dear Ms. [redacted], Thank you for contacting us on behalf of Mr. [redacted] and...
for providing us the opportunity to address his concern regarding his student loan. Mr. [redacted] ’s concern as we understand it is that he would like to enter into a loan rehabilitation in order to resolve the default on his Great Lakes Higher Education Guaranty Corporation (Great Lakes) Stafford loan and to avoid Administrative Wage Garnishment (AWG). By way of some background, on February 8, 2016, Great Lakes, as the guarantor, paid a default claim to the servicer of the loan, Navient Solutions LLC (Navient). This was the result of their not receiving payment(s), or a completed request for deferment or forbearance to prevent Mr. [redacted] loan from defaulting. Based on the terms of his signed Promissory Note, when his student loan defaulted, the balance became due and payable in full. Subsequently Mr. [redacted] loan has been assigned to Great Lakes Collection Support for servicing. In an effort to assist, we reviewed the National Student Loan Data System (NSLDS), which is the U.S. Department of Education’s (ED’s) central repository that houses all federal student loan information. It appears Mr. [redacted] may benefit from a student loan consolidation under the William D. Ford Consolidation Program since he already has other loans held by ED. For additional information on this program, Mr. [redacted] can call ###-###-#### or visit their website at http://www.loanconsolidation.ed.gov/ Regarding the consolidation option as previously mentioned, at the present time, the AWG orders preclude Mr. [redacted] Great Lakes loans from being included in any consolidation. However, we have subsequently reviewed your account with Great Lakes Collection Support, and they arrived at a possible solution. If Mr. [redacted] were to choose to consolidate, he would need to call Great Lakes Collection Support and set up a recurring monthly payment of $139. After the receipt of the first payment, Great Lakes would stop the AWG and allow Mr. [redacted] up to 60 days to proceed with the consolidation. In the meantime the AWG order will remain in place. It is important to note that Mr. [redacted] will be charged a fee of 18.5% of the outstanding principal and interest balance on your defaulted loans he consolidates them. Another option for Mr. [redacted] to consider is loan rehabilitation. His loan may be rehabilitated out of default after he enters into a Rehabilitation Agreement and voluntarily makes 9 consecutive on-time payments over a 10 month period as required. After he has made the sixth payment he may qualify for additional Title IV financial aid. The successful rehabilitation of his defaulted student loan(s) will result in the following:- Removal of his student loan(s) from default status- Removal of the default status reported by Great Lakes to the nationwide consumer reporting agencies- Eligibility for new financial aid to return to school- Eligibility for all remaining periods of deferment or forbearance It is important to note that on July 1, 2014, new regulations concerning AWG for defaulted borrowers went into effect ( 34 CFR § 682.410(b)(9)). The regulations contain special requirements for borrowers who enter rehabilitation agreements while subject to AWG orders. Guarantors “must continue” AWG “until [a] borrower makes five qualifying monthly payments under the rehabilitation agreement” but then must suspend AWG “when the agency receives a borrower’s fifth qualifying payment under a loan rehabilitation agreement, unless otherwise directed by the borrower” (34 CFR §§ 682.405(a)(3)(i), 682.410(b)(9)(V)). For more information on all of the aforementioned options, we strongly urge Mr. [redacted] to contact Great Lakes Collection Support Department. He may reach a Loan Counselor at ###-###-####. The phone lines are open until 4:45 PM CST. We apologize for the frustration Mr. [redacted] has experienced with the entire default process and we hope that this information will be helpful to him. We again thank you for contacting us and for giving us an opportunity to be of assistance. If additional information is required, please by all means, contact us. You can reach our office between 7:00 am and 4:30 pm Monday through Friday at ###-###-####, or by email at [email protected]. Sincerely,
[redacted]Great Lakes Higher EducationOmbudsman Specialist
Thank you for contacting us on behalf of Ms. Tina [redacted]. We appreciate the opportunity toaddress her concern regarding the difficulty she experienced while attempting to recertify herIncome-Driven Repayment (IDR) plans, as well as the higher payment due for her loan accountand the amount of...
interest being charged.We are pleased to confirm Ms. [redacted]’ IDR recertification has been approved based on her selfcertificationreceived on December 27, 2017. Her new total IDR monthly payment is $58.99beginning in February 2018.Notification of Ms. [redacted]’ new payment schedule will be emailed within the next seven to tenbusiness days. It will also be viewable in her mygreatlakes.org online account.All IDR plans require borrowers to recertify their family size and income annually, or every 12months, to ensure their IDR payment is always based on their current financial circumstances.Notification is provided approximately 90 days prior to the expiration of the current 12-monthpayment schedule to allow the borrower sufficient time to submit a completed IDR form and proofof their current income.If the needed documentation is not received by the renewal date, a borrower will see a higherpayment due for their student loans which is not based on their family size and income. As Ms.[redacted]’ renewal date was October 30, 2017 and her twelfth reduced payment was on December3, 2017, a higher payment was due for January 2018.Upon receiving her electronic recertification request submitted via www.studentloans.gov onNovember 8, 2017, Great Lakes began providing notifications that documentation of Ms. [redacted]’current income was needed. Her first self-certifying statement was received on December 12,2017; however, it was not dated and did not provide an accurate statement of her income. As aresult, additional information was requested. The information needed was identified within ouremailed correspondence dated December 22, 2017. Regarding the interest being charged for Ms. [redacted]’ Stafford Loan accounts, federal studentloans are simple interest loans, meaning interest accrues daily. The calculation used to determinethe amount of interest accruing per day is as follows:Total Unpaid Principal Balancex Interest RateDivided by 365 or 366 (Days in a Year)Interest accrual is outlined in Ms. [redacted]’ attached Master Promissory Notes. Additionalinformation about interest accrual may also be viewed via the Federal Student Aid’s website athttps://studentaid.ed.gov/sa/types/loans/interest-rates. Interest is accruing on her loans inaccordance with student loan regulations.When an IDR plan recertification is not completed by the scheduled renewal date, accruedinterest is required to be capitalized and added to the principal balance. For Ms. [redacted]’ review,we have attached a copy of the Income-Driven Repayment Plans: Questions and Answers.Questions 39 and 40 on page 20 provide information regarding annual recertification. Because thecapitalization was completed in accordance with the terms and conditions of the IDR plans, it willnot be reversed.We apologize for the frustration Ms. [redacted] experienced and hope the information provided ifhelpful. If she has any questions or concerns, she may contact our Borrower Services Departmentby telephone at ###-###-#### (please note that some calls may be monitored or recorded forquality assurance purposes), by email at [email protected], or by mail to the addressbelow:Great Lakes[redacted]Sincerely,Janet [redacted]Great Lakes Educational Loan Services, Inc.
Thank you for contacting us on behalf of Ms. [redacted] and for providing us the opportunity to address her concern, which is for Great Lakes to remove the adverse information reported toward her credit files.I’m pleased to advise that Ms. [redacted] request for an adjustment to the data we reported...
has been approved and we are removing the May 2014 delinquency, the only delinquency reported on her loan, from her credit history. This positive adjustment will be reflected in our May 2016 reporting to the following Credit Reporting Agencies (CRAs): Experian, Equifax, TransUnion and Innovis.Hopefully the CRAs will promptly display this change to Ms. [redacted]’ credit files, but it is important to be aware of the fact that each individual agency determines when the adjusted data will display on their credit files.I hope the information provided alleviates Ms. [redacted]’ concern. If she has any questions or concerns she may contact our Borrower Services Department at ###-###-####, [redacted], or the address below:Great LakesP.O. Box 7860Madison, WI 53707Sincerely,[redacted]
Thank you for contacting us on behalf of Mr. Douglas [redacted]
and for providing us the opportunity to address his concern regarding the
credit reporting completed by Great Lakes on his student loan account with the
U.S. Department of Education (ED), as he states that a representative he spoke
to...
informed him that it would be removed. To ensure a full and objective review, we listened to the
last two phone calls that Mr. [redacted] had with our Borrower Services Department
to verify whether or not he was informed that the adverse information would be
removed from his credit files. These calls took place on January 21, 2015 and
August 23, 2016. Our review confirmed that the August 23, 2016 conversation was
not regarding credit reporting, as he called to make a change to his due date,
but the January 21, 2015 conversation did specifically involve his concern.
During this conversation he was informed that Great Lakes reviewed our past
credit reporting, which was confirmed as accurate, and that for this reason, we
were unable to make any adjustments to our past credit reporting. Nevertheless, after receiving Mr. [redacted]’ recent inquiry, we
again reviewed the credit reporting done toward his account to verify the
accuracy of the information reported toward his credit files. This was done to
ensure no errors were made that led to, or resulted in, inaccurate delinquency
reporting (such as misapplication of payments). Our additional review again
confirmed that no such errors were made and that our credit reporting is
accurate. As a result, even though we empathize with his situation, we are
unable to make any adjustments to our past credit reporting. Please keep in mind that the Higher Education Act of 1965
requires Great Lakes to report the status of all serviced student loan accounts
to the nationwide Consumer Reporting Agencies. In addition, the Fair Credit
Reporting Act requires this information is reported accurately and objectively.
Great Lakes is audited to ensure our compliance with these requirements. We understand this is not the answer Mr. [redacted] was hoping for, and apologize for any frustrationhe has experienced. If he has additional questions or concerns, he may contact our BorrowerServices Department by phone at ###-###-####, by email at [redacted], or bymailing:Great Lakes[redacted]
Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
I have reviewed all three credit reports as of today, and they are not updated correctly. Yes, both loans were transferred! One loan is with Navient (and the loan is current) and the other loan is with EDSOUTH/GLELSI (and the loan is current); however, I no longer have a loan with Sallie Mae as they were transferred. The date the loans originated was 9/1/2004, the date the loan was transferred to Sallie Mae was 8/1/2012. I no longer have a loan with them! My report should not show anything reporting derogatory as the loan is transferred to the new servicers. I have attached a screenshot of my Transunion report and you can clearly see the information is not correct per their statement. In addition, my Experian report (not attached) is showing both loans as defaulted and opened with Sallie Mae! Also, the alternate loan (not shown on the screenshot) is showing "THE DEBT IS BEING PAID THROUGH INSURANCE"; This is false information! The FCRA act advises all information must be reported accurately!IF this is not corrected I will be filing a lawsuit!
Regards,
[redacted]
Thank you for your follow up on behalf of Mr. [redacted]. We appreciate the opportunity toaddress his additional concerns.Attached is a copy of Mr. [redacted]’s current payment schedule. Since Direct Loan Servicing Center(DLSS/ACS) generated the original payment schedule, not Great Lakes, we are unable...
to providea copy. However, the attached payment schedule does detail the interest rate and estimates thetotal amount he will pay over the life of the loan, presuming he remains on this payment schedule.Federal student loans are simple interest loans, meaning interest accrues daily based upon theoutstanding principal balance. As it states on Mr. [redacted]’s attached payment schedule, all amountsto be repaid are only estimates. On page 2, Payment of Interest, it states: “The amount of theregular payment is based upon the assumption that all payments will be made on the scheduleddue dates. The total interest payable during the repayment period, may be more or less thanprojected by this Payment Schedule, depending upon whether you pay earlier or later thanscheduled. The amount of the final payment indicated in the “Repayment Terms” section will beadjusted upward or downward to reflect the balance due based upon the dates the paymentswere actually received.”As previously advised, Mr. [redacted]’s current payment schedule will allow him to satisfy his loanwithin the repayment term required by the terms and conditions of his loan. However, as with anysimple interest rate loan, Great Lakes cannot guarantee that additional changes to his paymentamount would not be necessary in the future.We empathize with Mr. [redacted]’s dissatisfaction concerning the time frame it took to identify that thepayment schedule his loan transferred with was incorrect. We have shared this frustration with hislender, the U.S. Department of Education (ED).We apologize for any inconvenience this has caused Mr. [redacted]. Should he have any questions orconcerns regarding the information provided, he may contact our Borrower Services Departmentby phone at ###-###-####, through email at [redacted], or by mailing [redacted]
Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.Due to the fact that we have no knowledge or have ever received any of the Notices of Guaranty Transfer sent on 10/6/2014, other notices sent on 10/15/2014, including Request for Administrative Review, & Notice Prior to Wage Withholding. Because to my understanding, Ed Financial Services, had placed these loans under Deferment or Forbearance.
[To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, we would like to know your view on the matter.]
Regards,
[redacted]
Thank you for contacting us on behalf of Mr. [redacted] and for providing us the opportunity to address hisconcern regarding his loan that is serviced by Great Lakes. Mr. [redacted]’s concern as we understand it is thatany delinquencies reported to the credit bureaus prior to his loan default be removed...
from his credit report.Great Lakes is required by the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended (HEA) to report the status of allserviced student loan accounts to the nationwide Credit Reporting Agencies (CRAs). Additionally, the FairCredit Reporting Act requires that this information is reported accurately and objectively. Please also notethat we are audited to ensure our compliance with these requirements.It is important to note that the credit reporting benefit Mr. [redacted] received upon the successful rehabilitationof his loan was the removal of the default status from his credit bureau report. Any delinquencies reportedprior to his default were not to be impacted by the rehabilitation.With this in mind, we reviewed Mr. [redacted]’s account to verify the accuracy of the information we reportedtoward his credit files, and to ensure no errors were made that would lead to, or result in, inaccuratedelinquency reporting (such as misapplication of payments). This review confirmed that no such errors weremade and that the information reported to the CRAs by Great Lakes is accurate. For this reason, eventhough we empathize with Mr. [redacted]’s situation, no adjustments will be made to our past credit reporting.Although we are unable to make any adjustments to the information reported toward Mr. [redacted]’s creditfiles, please make note that Myfico.com indicates that individuals who were delinquent in the past are ableto improve their FICO score by paying their loans on time, and the longer an individual pays on time, themore their FICO score should increase.I understand that this is not the answer Mr. [redacted] was hoping for, and apologize for any frustration he hasexperienced. If he has any additional questions or concerns, he may contact our Borrower ServicesDepartment by phone at ###-###-####, by email at [redacted], or by mailing:
Dear Ms. [redacted]: Thank you for contacting us on behalf of Ms. [redacted] and for providing us the opportunity to address her concerns regarding her loan that is guaranteed by Great Lakes Higher Education Guaranty Corporation (Great Lakes). Your request has been forwarded to our office for review...
and response. Ms. [redacted]’s concern as we understand it is that she had understood no payments would be taken via Administrative Wage Garnishment (AWG). We are happy to report that Great Lakes’ Collection Support Department has agreed to remove the AWG and are in the process of notifying Ms. [redacted]’s employer to stop the garnishment immediately. We have included a copy of the letter they have sent to Ms. [redacted]. We again thank you for contacting us and for giving us an opportunity to be of assistance. If additional information is required, please by all means, contact us. You can reach our office between 7:00 am and 4:30 pm Monday through Friday at ###-###-####, or by email at [email protected]. Sincerely, [redacted]Great Lakes Higher EducationOmbudsman Specialist
Thank you for contacting us on behalf of Ms. [redacted] and for providing us theopportunity to address her request to no longer report her student loan, which we service onbehalf of the U.S. Department of Education (ED), to the nationwide Credit Reporting Agencies(CRAs).Concerning credit...
reporting, it is important for Ms. [redacted] to be aware that The HigherEducation Act of 1965, as amended, requires that Great Lakes report the status of all servicedstudent loan accounts to the nationwide CRAs. Additionally, the Fair Credit Reporting Act requiresthat this information is reported accurately and objectively. Please note that we are audited toensure our compliance with these requirements.Regrettably, due to the aforementioned reasons, we are unable to honor Ms. [redacted]’srequest to no longer report her loan to the CRAs. Moving forward, until her loan obligation issatisfied, we will continue reporting pieces of data to the CRAs including; her current status, thedate her loan was opened, her balance, and the amount and date of her last payment.Additionally, we also report the type of loan, demographic information, and her obligation towardsthe loan.At the present time, as Ms. [redacted] referenced, her loan is being reported to the CRAs asdeferred, as she is currently in her grace period until June 13, 2016.I hope Ms. [redacted] finds the information provided helpful. If she has any questions orconcerns, she may contact our Borrower Services Department at ###-###-####,[redacted], or the address below:[redacted]
[redacted]
[redacted]
Thank you for contacting us on behalf of Ms. [redacted] and for providing us the opportunity to address her concern regarding the phone calls she has been receiving from Great Lakes.Great Lakes currently services one Direct Loan Program (DLP) Parent PLUS loan on behalf of the U.S. Department of...
Education (ED) for Ms. [redacted]. Ms. [redacted]’s DLP loan is a federal loan. As such, Great Lakes is contractually obligated to abide by all federal guidelines set forth by her lender, ED, and the terms and conditions of her Master Promissory Note, or loan agreement. Any communication we have with Ms. [redacted] about a past due loan balance is our attempt to help her resolve a difficult situation.With attention to the phone calls Ms. [redacted] has received, it’s important for us to share that the DLP regulations require us to contact, by mail and telephone, any borrower whose student loan account is past due. Additionally, other laws that interfere with our ability to comply with the DLP regulations are preempted by the DLP regulations. This means that we are not subject to any state or federal law that would interfere with our ability to perform the due diligence required by the DLP regulations. Therefore, in order for us to remain in compliance with ED’s due diligence requirements, if Ms. [redacted]’s account remains past due, she will continue receiving phone calls. Our records indicate that we did make five unanswered calls on three different days to reach her last month, all were in the afternoon.We apologize that Ms. [redacted] finds our calls frustrating. However, it is important for her to understand that when we contact her regarding her past due student loan, we are trying to help. Depending on her circumstances, there may be options to resolve the delinquency on her loan. Please know that calls will cease once her account is current, and calls occur less frequent when we speak with her.It is also important to point out that if Ms. [redacted] finds her monthly payment unaffordable; there are numerous repayment and assistance options available to help her manage her account. To review these options, we encourage her to visit our website, mygreatlakes.org, or contact our Borrower Services Department, which she mentioned she planned on doing during a conversation she had with us on April 19, 2016. Please note that we would be happy to work with her to find an option that best fits her current situation and brings her account current.We understand that the repayment of student loans can be a strenuous process and hope Ms. [redacted] finds the information provided helpful. We are here to assist her with the repayment of her loan in any way that we can. If she has any additional questions or concerns, she may contact our Borrower Services Department by phone at ###-###-####, through email at [email protected], or by mailing:Great LakesP.O. Box 7860Madison, WI 53707Sincerely,
Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
Negative on their response. I have spoken to Great Lakes most definitely more than three times. Furthermore, my initial contact was prior to March 2015. When I reviewed my bank statements, I noticed the first payment was debited from my account on March 20th. The agreement we have took several weeks to put in place. So the initial phone calls would have taken place in February, where I was told six months to reinstate credit. This leads me to believe that Great Lakes doesn't have a grasp on the facts of this particular situation. Moreover, I was told in a recent phone call, was that it may take 6-9months because they are *under staffed*. I'm not sure why I should be punished, because of their employment practices. Never have I been told 9-12 months. Is this some sort of bait and switch policy? And if it does take the nine months they *claim* I was told, October would be the 9th month and my credit would be brought current next week??? So I suppose my next step is to pull my cell phone records from the last year, to prove that Great Lakes and I spoke at length, or take this to a higher authority.Regards,
[redacted]
Dear Mr. [redacted]:Thank you for contacting us on behalf of Mr. [redacted]. [redacted] and for providing us theopportunity to further address his concerns about his student loan that isguaranteed by Great Lakes Higher Education Guaranty Corporation (Great Lakes)and serviced by [redacted]. His concern as weunderstand it is that he feels he was told that the default claim would beremoved from his credit file after he made his sixth loan payment under the authorizedrehabilitation program.Our office requested that TSI review their call logs for any and all conversationsthey may have had with Mr. [redacted] at or around the time his rehabilitation wasset up. TSI had three phone contacts with Mr. [redacted] in the past year all of which wererecorded. Our office reviewed all threeof the calls and in none of them was there a mention of the credit historybeing purged after six months. Of thethree there was one where credit reporting was discussed.During the March 12, 2015 call in which the loan rehabilitation program was outlined,the TSI Representative explained that rehabilitation lasts nine to twelvemonths. He also explained that after sixmonths TIV benefits are reinstated, which means at that time Mr. [redacted] would becomeeligible for new student loans. The TSIRepresentative went on to explain that in nine to twelve months the defaultclaim on Mr. [redacted]’s credit report would be expunged.Mr. [redacted] asked for clarification on the credit reporting and the TSIRepresentative explained that nothing could be done to remove the default claimfrom the credit reporting until Mr. [redacted] has completed the program in nine totwelve months.With that being said, Great Lakes is required by the Higher Education Act of 1965,as amended, and it’s implementing regulations to report defaulted student loanaccounts to the nationwide consumer reporting agencies until the conclusion of rehabilitation. While we realize that this was not Mr. [redacted]’s desired outcome, we do assure you thathis request was given a complete and objective review. We sincerely apologizefor the frustration he has experienced and we hope this information will behelpful to him. If you require futureassistance from our office, you can reach us between 8:00 am and 4:30 pm Mondaythrough Friday at ###-###-####, or by email at [redacted]. Sincerely,[redacted]Great Lakes Ombudsman Office
I think it is safe to say that Great Lakes doesn't take this serious. I don't believe them sending me a letter is going to address nor fix the problems, however, I also understand that there isn't much the Revdex.com can do, its very unfortunate that companies like Great Lakes don't take this serious and have no problem making things complicated for the consumer.
Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
[To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, we would like to know your view on the matter.]
Regards,
[redacted]
July 6, 2015
[redacted]
[redacted]
[redacted]
[redacted]
[redacted] [redacted]
Complaint ID: [redacted]
Great Lakes ID: [redacted]...
Dear
Mr. [redacted]:
Thank
you for contacting us on behalf of Ms. [redacted] and for providing us the opportunity
to address her concern regarding the issues she has experienced with the
processing of her Income-Driven Repayment plan and her interest capitalizing.
After
receiving Ms. [redacted]’s concern we reviewed our records which indicated that
she seems to have resolved her concern during a follow-up conversation with our
Borrower Services Department on July 1, 2015. Our records also confirmed that
the capitalized interest Ms. [redacted] referenced has been reversed.
At
the present time, Ms. [redacted]’s account is in an Income-Based Repayment plan. Based on her income and family size, her monthly payment is $222.76, with
her next payment being due by August 9, 2015. Please note that if she would
ever like to discuss alternative repayment or assistance options, we would be
happy to work with her to find an option that best fits her current situation.
If
Ms. [redacted] has any additional questions or concerns, she may contact our
Borrower Services Department by phone at ###-###-####, through email at [redacted], or by
mailing:
Great Lakes
[redacted]
[redacted]
Sincerely,
Aimee S[redacted]
[redacted]
Great
Lakes Educational Loan Services Inc.
Thank you for your follow up on behalf of Ms. [redacted] and for again providing us the opportunity to address her concern pertaining to the delinquencies reported toward her credit files.After reviewing our records, it appears that the Great Lakes’ Ombudsman have contacted Ms. [redacted] directly to address her concern.If Ms. [redacted] has any additional questions or concerns she may contact the Great Lakes’ Ombudsman directly at ###-###-####, or our Borrower Services Department by phone at ###-###-####, by email at [email protected], or by mail to the address below:Great LakesP.O. Box 7860Madison, WI 53707Sincerely,[redacted]
Thank you for contacting us on behalf of Ms. [redacted] and for providing us theopportunity to address her concern regarding the deferment status on her Parent PLUS loan, withthe U.S. Department of Education (ED), taken out on behalf of her son, [redacted].Upon receiving Ms. [redacted]’s...
concern, we reviewed our records and were unable to locate anyphone calls within the month of June as she referenced. Although our records did not reflect anyphone calls during June, we were able to confirm that we spoke with Ms. [redacted] on July 14 and20th, at which time she submitted a request to end the Student Enrollment Deferment (July 14)and asked that we not place any additional Student Enrollment Deferments on her accountmoving forward (July 20). We can confirm that both of Ms. [redacted]’s requests have beenprocessed.After speaking with Ms. [redacted] on July 14, 2016, as noted above, the deferment was removedfrom her account and a new payment scheduled was issued on July 31, 2016. The terms of Ms.[redacted]’s payment schedule calls for monthly payments of $50 which are due on the 11th of eachmonth beginning in September. Since Ms. [redacted] enrolled in Auto Pay, her monthly paymentamount will be electronically pulled from her designated bank account.It is important for Ms. [redacted] to understand that when she completed her loan application, shestated she wanted her account placed into deferment when her son was eligible for the In-SchoolDeferment. As such, since we did not receive a request from Ms. [redacted] to end her defermentprior to July 14, 2016, we are unable to refund the interest that has accrued since May as sherequested.We apologize for any frustration Ms. [redacted] has experienced and hope she finds the informationprovided helpful. If she has any questions or concerns, she may contact our Borrower ServicesDepartment by phone at ###-###-####, by email at [email protected], or by mail tothe address below:Great LakesP.O. Box 7860Madison, WI 53707Sincerely,[redacted]
Thank you for contacting...
us on behalf of Ms. Amy [redacted] and for providing us the opportunity toaddress her concern regarding payments withdrawn automatically from her bank account for herstudent loan account with the U.S. Department of Education (ED), as she believes the paymentswere withdrawn without her consent.In order to fully address Ms. [redacted]’s concern, we must first point out that, to completeenrollment in Auto Pay, our automated payment processing system, it is necessary for a borrowerto agree to the terms and conditions of Auto Pay. For convenience, we have attached a copy ofthe Auto Pay Terms and Conditions. In addition, prior to beginning enrollment, a borrower isprovided important information to consider and opportunity to review frequently asked questions.Importantly, within the terms and conditions and frequently asked questions, information isprovided prior to enrollment indicating that all accounts in repayment status will be withdrawnthrough Auto Pay.Upon review of Ms. [redacted]'s account, we have verified that she enrolled in Auto Pay on January7, 2015 through her online account on our website, mygreatlakes.org. At the time she signed upfor Auto Pay, her due date was the 18th of each month for her loan under lender number762581(“Loan 1”). This loan entered repayment status immediately after her In-school defermentconcluded as it had previously utilized its one-time 6-month grace.Ms. [redacted]’s loan account under lender number [redacted] (“Loan 2”) entered repayment status onJanuary 28, 2016 following the expiration of its grace period. On February 2, 2016, a paymentschedule was emailed to inform Ms. [redacted] that her additional loan account required a $50.00payment on the 11th of each month beginning in March 2016. Her billing statement emailed onFebruary 24, 2016 provided notification that her Auto Pay would begin pulling the $50.00 paymentfor Loan 2 on March 11, 2016. Our records confirm that Ms. [redacted] spoke with a Specialized Account Manager on August 22,2016 regarding the $50.00 withdrawals from her bank account through Auto Pay. We havereviewed the activity of the call and confirmed that she did not agree with the Auto Paywithdrawals that had taken place for her Loan 2 from March 2016 through August 2016. Whilespeaking with the manager, the offer was made to deactivate Ms. [redacted]’s Auto Pay; however,Ms. [redacted] declined.During the call, Ms. [redacted] and the manager discussed the possibility of an Economic Hardshipdeferment to postpone payments if Ms. [redacted] qualified. Due to her interest in applying for thedeferment, she asked the manager to apply a 60-day forbearance to temporarily postponepayments and to allow her sufficient time to submit her deferment request form and required proofof income. The 60 day forbearance was set to expire on October 20, 2016. Once the form andrequired proof of income was received, it was determined that Ms. [redacted] did not meet thefederal guidelines for the deferment. We were, therefore, unable to apply the Economic Hardshipdeferment to her account.Following the October 20 expiration of her forbearance, Ms. [redacted] was emailed a new paymentschedule for both of her accounts on October 24, 2016 which indicated that her total $159.14would be due on the 4th of each month beginning in December 2016. Subsequently, her billingstatement was emailed and mailed to her on November 13, 2016 indicating that her Auto Paywould withdraw the total $159.14 payment on December 4, 2016.We apologize for any frustration Ms. [redacted] has experienced, but hope this provides asatisfactory explanation of what occurred and why. If she has any questions or concerns, she maycontact our Borrower Services Department by phone at ###-###-####, by email at[redacted], or by mail to the address below:Great Lakes[redacted]
Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me. I do not expect this company to come forward and take responsibility for the misinformation given to me by their representative. Legally they have nothing compelling them to do so and so this is how it stands. It's just unfortunate in my eyes that this type of action can go on and leave the consumer of their services to suffer for their ineptitude.
Regards,
Kevin [redacted]
May 5, 2015
[redacted]
Lead Trade Practice Consultant
Revdex.com of Wisconsin
10101
W Greenfield Ave #125
Milwaukee
WI 53214
Complaint ID: [redacted]
Great Lakes ID: [redacted] ...
Dear
Mr. [redacted]:
Thank
you for contacting us on behalf of Ms. [redacted] and for providing us the
opportunity to address her concern in regard to the $50 payment applied to her
account on April 27, 2015.
When
a borrower sends a payment through their financial institution’s bill-pay
service, they are typically provided an “estimated arrival date,” we presume to
help the borrower budget their account. The majority of financial institutions
employ a vendor to process their bill-pay transactions, as is the case with Ms.
[redacted]’s financial institution. For these transactions, Ms. [redacted]’s
financial institution, Chase Bank, utilizes IPAY technologies.
Prior
to a vendor sending a payment to the intended payee, they must first clear the
payment with borrower’s financial institution. Regarding Ms. [redacted]’s April 27th
$50 payment, we were able to use the information from our system, as well as
the payment transaction information Ms. [redacted] provided from Chase Bank, to
breakdown and provide the following details about the processing of her
payment:
April
23, 2015:
Payment sent by Chase Bank to IPAY Technologies.
April
23, 2015:
IPAY Technologies receives the transmission at 9:07 pm ET.
April
24, 2015:
IPAY Technologies clears payment with Chase Bank.
April
27, 2015:
Great Lakes applies payment after receiving it from IPAY Technologies.
To
provide information as shown on our system, outlining April 27, 2015 as the
date we received her payment, our initial response to Ms. [redacted]’s inquiry is
attached. Based on the aforementioned information and attached documents, Ms.
[redacted]’s payment was applied correctly on April 27, 2015.
Unfortunately,
because IPAY Technologies lists the payment effective date as April 24, 2015,
as shown on the attached summary statement provided by Ms. [redacted], it does not
confirm that Great Lakes received the payment. It appears that this date
correlates with the date Chase Bank debited the funds from her account. Please
reference the disclaimer at the top of the transaction summary she provided,
which states:
“As a courtesy to
this customer, please note the date the payment was sent and the expected
arrival date. If you received the payment after the expected arrival date, the
delay may be due to factors beyond our customer’s control (e.g., mail
processing if the payment was sent by U.S. Mail.”
I
hope Ms. [redacted] finds the information provided helpful. If she has any
questions or concerns, she may contact our Borrower Services Department at
(800) 236-4300, [email protected], or the address below:
Great Lakes
PO Box 7860
Madison, WI 53707
Sincerely,
[redacted]
Supervisor – Contact Escalation
Great
Lakes Educational Loan Services Inc.
[redacted]Lead Trade Practice ConsultantRevdex.com of Wisconsin10101 W Greenfield Ave #125Milwaukee WI 53214 Complaint ID: [redacted]Reference ID: 91--0312258 Dear Ms. [redacted], Thank you for contacting us on behalf of Mr. [redacted] and...
for providing us the opportunity to address his concern regarding his student loan. Mr. [redacted] ’s concern as we understand it is that he would like to enter into a loan rehabilitation in order to resolve the default on his Great Lakes Higher Education Guaranty Corporation (Great Lakes) Stafford loan and to avoid Administrative Wage Garnishment (AWG). By way of some background, on February 8, 2016, Great Lakes, as the guarantor, paid a default claim to the servicer of the loan, Navient Solutions LLC (Navient). This was the result of their not receiving payment(s), or a completed request for deferment or forbearance to prevent Mr. [redacted] loan from defaulting. Based on the terms of his signed Promissory Note, when his student loan defaulted, the balance became due and payable in full. Subsequently Mr. [redacted] loan has been assigned to Great Lakes Collection Support for servicing. In an effort to assist, we reviewed the National Student Loan Data System (NSLDS), which is the U.S. Department of Education’s (ED’s) central repository that houses all federal student loan information. It appears Mr. [redacted] may benefit from a student loan consolidation under the William D. Ford Consolidation Program since he already has other loans held by ED. For additional information on this program, Mr. [redacted] can call ###-###-#### or visit their website at http://www.loanconsolidation.ed.gov/ Regarding the consolidation option as previously mentioned, at the present time, the AWG orders preclude Mr. [redacted] Great Lakes loans from being included in any consolidation. However, we have subsequently reviewed your account with Great Lakes Collection Support, and they arrived at a possible solution. If Mr. [redacted] were to choose to consolidate, he would need to call Great Lakes Collection Support and set up a recurring monthly payment of $139. After the receipt of the first payment, Great Lakes would stop the AWG and allow Mr. [redacted] up to 60 days to proceed with the consolidation. In the meantime the AWG order will remain in place. It is important to note that Mr. [redacted] will be charged a fee of 18.5% of the outstanding principal and interest balance on your defaulted loans he consolidates them. Another option for Mr. [redacted] to consider is loan rehabilitation. His loan may be rehabilitated out of default after he enters into a Rehabilitation Agreement and voluntarily makes 9 consecutive on-time payments over a 10 month period as required. After he has made the sixth payment he may qualify for additional Title IV financial aid. The successful rehabilitation of his defaulted student loan(s) will result in the following:- Removal of his student loan(s) from default status- Removal of the default status reported by Great Lakes to the nationwide consumer reporting agencies- Eligibility for new financial aid to return to school- Eligibility for all remaining periods of deferment or forbearance It is important to note that on July 1, 2014, new regulations concerning AWG for defaulted borrowers went into effect ( 34 CFR § 682.410(b)(9)). The regulations contain special requirements for borrowers who enter rehabilitation agreements while subject to AWG orders. Guarantors “must continue” AWG “until [a] borrower makes five qualifying monthly payments under the rehabilitation agreement” but then must suspend AWG “when the agency receives a borrower’s fifth qualifying payment under a loan rehabilitation agreement, unless otherwise directed by the borrower” (34 CFR §§ 682.405(a)(3)(i), 682.410(b)(9)(V)). For more information on all of the aforementioned options, we strongly urge Mr. [redacted] to contact Great Lakes Collection Support Department. He may reach a Loan Counselor at ###-###-####. The phone lines are open until 4:45 PM CST. We apologize for the frustration Mr. [redacted] has experienced with the entire default process and we hope that this information will be helpful to him. We again thank you for contacting us and for giving us an opportunity to be of assistance. If additional information is required, please by all means, contact us. You can reach our office between 7:00 am and 4:30 pm Monday through Friday at ###-###-####, or by email at [email protected]. Sincerely,
[redacted]Great Lakes Higher EducationOmbudsman Specialist
Thank you for contacting us on behalf of Ms. Tina [redacted]. We appreciate the opportunity toaddress her concern regarding the difficulty she experienced while attempting to recertify herIncome-Driven Repayment (IDR) plans, as well as the higher payment due for her loan accountand the amount of...
interest being charged.We are pleased to confirm Ms. [redacted]’ IDR recertification has been approved based on her selfcertificationreceived on December 27, 2017. Her new total IDR monthly payment is $58.99beginning in February 2018.Notification of Ms. [redacted]’ new payment schedule will be emailed within the next seven to tenbusiness days. It will also be viewable in her mygreatlakes.org online account.All IDR plans require borrowers to recertify their family size and income annually, or every 12months, to ensure their IDR payment is always based on their current financial circumstances.Notification is provided approximately 90 days prior to the expiration of the current 12-monthpayment schedule to allow the borrower sufficient time to submit a completed IDR form and proofof their current income.If the needed documentation is not received by the renewal date, a borrower will see a higherpayment due for their student loans which is not based on their family size and income. As Ms.[redacted]’ renewal date was October 30, 2017 and her twelfth reduced payment was on December3, 2017, a higher payment was due for January 2018.Upon receiving her electronic recertification request submitted via www.studentloans.gov onNovember 8, 2017, Great Lakes began providing notifications that documentation of Ms. [redacted]’current income was needed. Her first self-certifying statement was received on December 12,2017; however, it was not dated and did not provide an accurate statement of her income. As aresult, additional information was requested. The information needed was identified within ouremailed correspondence dated December 22, 2017. Regarding the interest being charged for Ms. [redacted]’ Stafford Loan accounts, federal studentloans are simple interest loans, meaning interest accrues daily. The calculation used to determinethe amount of interest accruing per day is as follows:Total Unpaid Principal Balancex Interest RateDivided by 365 or 366 (Days in a Year)Interest accrual is outlined in Ms. [redacted]’ attached Master Promissory Notes. Additionalinformation about interest accrual may also be viewed via the Federal Student Aid’s website athttps://studentaid.ed.gov/sa/types/loans/interest-rates. Interest is accruing on her loans inaccordance with student loan regulations.When an IDR plan recertification is not completed by the scheduled renewal date, accruedinterest is required to be capitalized and added to the principal balance. For Ms. [redacted]’ review,we have attached a copy of the Income-Driven Repayment Plans: Questions and Answers.Questions 39 and 40 on page 20 provide information regarding annual recertification. Because thecapitalization was completed in accordance with the terms and conditions of the IDR plans, it willnot be reversed.We apologize for the frustration Ms. [redacted] experienced and hope the information provided ifhelpful. If she has any questions or concerns, she may contact our Borrower Services Departmentby telephone at ###-###-#### (please note that some calls may be monitored or recorded forquality assurance purposes), by email at [email protected], or by mail to the addressbelow:Great Lakes[redacted]Sincerely,Janet [redacted]Great Lakes Educational Loan Services, Inc.
Thank you for contacting us on behalf of Ms. [redacted] and for providing us the opportunity to address her concern, which is for Great Lakes to remove the adverse information reported toward her credit files.I’m pleased to advise that Ms. [redacted] request for an adjustment to the data we reported...
has been approved and we are removing the May 2014 delinquency, the only delinquency reported on her loan, from her credit history. This positive adjustment will be reflected in our May 2016 reporting to the following Credit Reporting Agencies (CRAs): Experian, Equifax, TransUnion and Innovis.Hopefully the CRAs will promptly display this change to Ms. [redacted]’ credit files, but it is important to be aware of the fact that each individual agency determines when the adjusted data will display on their credit files.I hope the information provided alleviates Ms. [redacted]’ concern. If she has any questions or concerns she may contact our Borrower Services Department at ###-###-####, [redacted], or the address below:Great LakesP.O. Box 7860Madison, WI 53707Sincerely,[redacted]
Thank you for contacting us on behalf of Mr. Douglas [redacted]
and for providing us the opportunity to address his concern regarding the
credit reporting completed by Great Lakes on his student loan account with the
U.S. Department of Education (ED), as he states that a representative he spoke
to...
informed him that it would be removed. To ensure a full and objective review, we listened to the
last two phone calls that Mr. [redacted] had with our Borrower Services Department
to verify whether or not he was informed that the adverse information would be
removed from his credit files. These calls took place on January 21, 2015 and
August 23, 2016. Our review confirmed that the August 23, 2016 conversation was
not regarding credit reporting, as he called to make a change to his due date,
but the January 21, 2015 conversation did specifically involve his concern.
During this conversation he was informed that Great Lakes reviewed our past
credit reporting, which was confirmed as accurate, and that for this reason, we
were unable to make any adjustments to our past credit reporting. Nevertheless, after receiving Mr. [redacted]’ recent inquiry, we
again reviewed the credit reporting done toward his account to verify the
accuracy of the information reported toward his credit files. This was done to
ensure no errors were made that led to, or resulted in, inaccurate delinquency
reporting (such as misapplication of payments). Our additional review again
confirmed that no such errors were made and that our credit reporting is
accurate. As a result, even though we empathize with his situation, we are
unable to make any adjustments to our past credit reporting. Please keep in mind that the Higher Education Act of 1965
requires Great Lakes to report the status of all serviced student loan accounts
to the nationwide Consumer Reporting Agencies. In addition, the Fair Credit
Reporting Act requires this information is reported accurately and objectively.
Great Lakes is audited to ensure our compliance with these requirements. We understand this is not the answer Mr. [redacted] was hoping for, and apologize for any frustrationhe has experienced. If he has additional questions or concerns, he may contact our BorrowerServices Department by phone at ###-###-####, by email at [redacted], or bymailing:Great Lakes[redacted]
Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
I have reviewed all three credit reports as of today, and they are not updated correctly. Yes, both loans were transferred! One loan is with Navient (and the loan is current) and the other loan is with EDSOUTH/GLELSI (and the loan is current); however, I no longer have a loan with Sallie Mae as they were transferred. The date the loans originated was 9/1/2004, the date the loan was transferred to Sallie Mae was 8/1/2012. I no longer have a loan with them! My report should not show anything reporting derogatory as the loan is transferred to the new servicers. I have attached a screenshot of my Transunion report and you can clearly see the information is not correct per their statement. In addition, my Experian report (not attached) is showing both loans as defaulted and opened with Sallie Mae! Also, the alternate loan (not shown on the screenshot) is showing "THE DEBT IS BEING PAID THROUGH INSURANCE"; This is false information! The FCRA act advises all information must be reported accurately!IF this is not corrected I will be filing a lawsuit!
Regards,
[redacted]
Thank you for your follow up on behalf of Mr. [redacted]. We appreciate the opportunity toaddress his additional concerns.Attached is a copy of Mr. [redacted]’s current payment schedule. Since Direct Loan Servicing Center(DLSS/ACS) generated the original payment schedule, not Great Lakes, we are unable...
to providea copy. However, the attached payment schedule does detail the interest rate and estimates thetotal amount he will pay over the life of the loan, presuming he remains on this payment schedule.Federal student loans are simple interest loans, meaning interest accrues daily based upon theoutstanding principal balance. As it states on Mr. [redacted]’s attached payment schedule, all amountsto be repaid are only estimates. On page 2, Payment of Interest, it states: “The amount of theregular payment is based upon the assumption that all payments will be made on the scheduleddue dates. The total interest payable during the repayment period, may be more or less thanprojected by this Payment Schedule, depending upon whether you pay earlier or later thanscheduled. The amount of the final payment indicated in the “Repayment Terms” section will beadjusted upward or downward to reflect the balance due based upon the dates the paymentswere actually received.”As previously advised, Mr. [redacted]’s current payment schedule will allow him to satisfy his loanwithin the repayment term required by the terms and conditions of his loan. However, as with anysimple interest rate loan, Great Lakes cannot guarantee that additional changes to his paymentamount would not be necessary in the future.We empathize with Mr. [redacted]’s dissatisfaction concerning the time frame it took to identify that thepayment schedule his loan transferred with was incorrect. We have shared this frustration with hislender, the U.S. Department of Education (ED).We apologize for any inconvenience this has caused Mr. [redacted]. Should he have any questions orconcerns regarding the information provided, he may contact our Borrower Services Departmentby phone at ###-###-####, through email at [redacted], or by mailing [redacted]