Navient

Review: I am requesting that Navient please remove the delinquency from my credit report for my school loan. I was given a forbearance on my loan but failed to receive documentation instructing me to continue payment. They did not contact me via mail and I do not access the email they have on file. I am currently enrolled back in school and I a pleading that this be removed from my credit history. I have not made a late payment in 10 years since the loan started. I would like to request all correspondence be done via postal mail.

[redacted]Desired Settlement: The removal of past due payment from my credit report.

Business

Response:

Thank you for

your message. In the interest of protecting the privacy of our customers,

the Office of the Customer Advocate responded directly to the customer via US

Postal Service on July 15, 2015. Please allow sufficient time for postal delivery.

Review: Payment deferment request submitted online twice. Each time it has been closed out with a notation that proof of income was not provided. Submitted proof of income for each request online and received an email acknowledgement that the documents were uploaded. Also faxed (third submission) proof of income on 4/13. Obviously concerned that the documentation is being ignored and the serious impact this could have on my credit rating with an unprocessed request and past due payments.

From Navient Online Deferment Tracking Screen: 03/26/2015 Economic Hardship deferment request pending approval.

03/31/2015 Economic Hardship deferment request denied. Proof of gross income was not provided.

04/07/2015 Economic Hardship deferment request pending approval.

04/17/2015 Economic Hardship deferment request denied. Proof of gross income was not providedDesired Settlement: Process the deferment request immediately based on the online application and proof of income provided by upload and fax as well as emailed to Navient.

Business

Response:

Thank you for

your message. In the interest of protecting the privacy of our customers,

the Office of the Customer Advocate responded directly to the customer via US

Postal Service on April 27, 2015. Please allow sufficient time for postal

delivery.

Review: The transition from Sallie Mae to Navient one of my loans was not included in the agreed upon repayment plan. After receiving a letter that my current repayment plan would be ending I got the information that my loan was past due and had collected late fees since they had forgotten to include it in plan. I then completed budget assessment as did my cosigner and I was told that it would only make a difference of about 20$ with an increase of interest rate. I was then given a repayment amount of which I confirmed with customer service agent was my amount due for December and that the amount to be withdrawn on 11/28 would maintain a current account. I received a call on Sunday 11/30/14 logged into my account to see it reflects a past due status. They also called my co-signer’s home on a Sunday after she had already completed the budget reflecting that her spouse recently lost his employment and was not able to assist with repayment.

They have provided me with misinformation both times I have talked to the call center and do not provide realistic repayment plans.Desired Settlement: My account to reflect up to date as confirmed by my conversation with a representative on 11/25/14 and this amount was withdrawn on 11/28/14. I would also like an agreed upon repayment plan that takes into account my current income and cost of living.

Business

Response:

A representative from the Office of Customer Advocate contacted the customer by telephone on December 3, 2014 and resolved the issue with the customer.

Review: I have received multiple calls to both my cosigner and me stating that Navient needed to speak with me about a past due amount on my loan. During messages left they claim they have account specialists that are able to work with me to figure out my best options. Half the time if I try answering when they call it is just an automated message saying to call them to speak to them about my options. When I call I am told that my only option is to pay. Then other times I've tried calling I keep going around in circles on their automated system. This has happened numerous times with them calling saying they can help but then saying I hav no other option. I got a hold of c a customer service representative tonight who allowed me to pay on a credit card the past due amount and then said she couldn't do anything for me that none of the options would work. I think this is ridiculous that I'm trying to find a way to work with them on my private loans and they are refusing to help. My loans through the other departments that are not private were willing to work with me.Desired Settlement: I would just like the ability for a period of time to be able to have a smaller amount due or have them deferred temporarily. Or the calls saying they will work with me and have options available to stop since they are lies.

Business

Response:

A

representative from the Office of Customer Advocate contacted the customer by

telephone on March 13, 2015, and we are working with the customer directly to

resolve the issue.

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted] and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.

Review: Money was withdrawn through bank e-pay system to Navient. shortly after, email was received noting June payment was not received; after verification with bank that account number was correct, Navient was called. They requested proof of payment from bank including confirmation number. E-pay information was obtained from bank and faxed to Navient as instructed. Call was made to ensure receipt of fax. Fax received. In the mean time, email received from navient indicating delinquency. Call once again made to Navient requesting that credit be made to account to reverse delinquency. It was noted that even though they had proof that payment was sent and received, no money would be credited and I would remain in delinquency until they found where they put the money.Desired Settlement: Proof was provided and I expect my account to be brought up to date and my credit not be harmed by this incident that was brought on by Navients financial mistake.

Business

Response:

A

representative from the Office of Customer Advocate contacted the customer by

telephone on June 25, 2015, and we are working with the customer directly to

resolve the issue.

Review: Every time I attempt to make a payment online, I am told that "because of the status of my account" I am unable to do so. When I call I am not able to make a payment either and as a result my account is past due. No one can tell me why, my calls are not returned, and all I am told is that my account is in "Litigation". They are unable to explain what that means.Desired Settlement: I want the past due status removed from my account and I just want to be able to pay my bill!

Business

Response:

Thank you for

your message. In the interest of protecting the privacy of our customers,

the Office of the Customer Advocate responded directly to the customer via US

Postal Service on April 7, 2015. Please allow sufficient time for postal

delivery.

Review: I called Navient 1/2/2015 to change my billing dates for all of my student loans to the 28th of the month and was told it was not a problem. My federal loans would change that month (they did), but my private loan due dates would not change until the next month, meaning my due date should have changed in Feb from the 15th to the 28th. I specifically asked if I needed to do anything separate/special for the private loans and was told that the rep would submit the requests for everything and it wouldn't be a problem. My federal loan due dates changed without a problem. My first payment for my private loans is due in March and when I logged on to verify the amount, found that my due date had not been changed.

I called Navient again today (2/24/2015) to find out why the due date had not changed and found out that the 28th isn't a valid due date for private loans. My request to change the due date was denied back in January. I was not made aware by the rep when I called in January that the 22nd was the latest due date for private loans and I was not made aware that the due date change was denied. When I called today I was told they could submit a new request, but it would take another month to change the due date. When I asked to speak to a supervisor, she tried to feed me some bt about retraining that representative and blah, blah, blah. I don't care about that - there are other steps that failed that shouldn't have involved human error (ie an automatically generated email saying the request was denied; an error when she tried to submit the request). I barely make enough money to cover my loan payments right now and I dread having to work with Navient in the future. Sallie Mae was a pain in the [redacted] but when they said they were doing something, they did it.Desired Settlement: I want my loan due date changed for March or any late fees paid by Navient for that month.

Business

Response:

Thank you for your message. In the interest of protecting the privacy of our customers, the Office of the Customer Advocate responded directly to the customer via US Postal Service on February 26, 2015. Please allow sufficient time for postal delivery.

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.

Review: This Company keeps calling me trying to collect loans from numerous people that I don't know. I keep asking them to take me off of their call list and they say ok will happen in 24 hours then it all starts again. It is causing me a lot of stress. I am seeking medical help because of these calls that started about a month ago. I hold the CEO [redacted] responsible for this.Desired Settlement: Want the calls to stop immediately! My number is [redacted] Please make them remove it from there list!

Business

Response:

Thank you for

your message. In the interest of protecting the privacy of our customers,

the Office of the Customer Advocate responded directly to the customer via US

Postal Service on April 8, 2015. Please allow sufficient time for postal

delivery.

Consumer

Response:

Review: I have fully paid off my student loans at Navient through another bank, as a refinance. The payment posted on May 10, and was paid over what I owed. I called and was told it would take a month to process and get sent out. Today, is June 11th and have not received the overpayment back, nor when I called was told it was sent out. I was told it would take another 30 days from June 2 when an adjustment was made to be sent out. From here, I was told it would take 14-21 day for me to obtain the money. This is an 70-80 day rate to get money I am owed, which is nearly 3 months. In addition, this money is part of a refinance and thus I am paying interest on it, which means I will owe 2 months worth of interest on money have not technically received.Desired Settlement: I would like the money I am due within a more reasonable timeframe since as a borrower I would incur late fees or penalties for such delay in any payment. If said cannot be accomplished, then I would compensation for the interest I have accrued from their untimely delays. It would be only fair since I believe the reason the processing has taken so long is the calculation of accrued interest on my account from the difference when the payment is scheduled to when they received payment.

Business

Response:

A representative from the Office of Customer

Advocate contacted the customer by telephone on June 17, 2015 and resolved the

issue with the customer.

Review: Since November of 2014 I have contacted several Navient representatives, including 5 Supervisors, to try to get this issue resolved. In September of 2014, I received an email indicating that if I agreed to the terms and conditions of the offered Forbearance as listed in the email, then to simply reply “yes” to the email to be enrolled. That November, I received another email indicating the exact same thing, to which I responded “yes” again that same day, only find out that all 10 of my accounts had been reported as 90 days delinquent later on that evening. Shocked and upset since I was under the impression that my account was enrolled into a Forbearance, I immediately contacted Navient to let them know what was going on, only to find out that I was not enrolled in a Forbearance and was told that there was no record of my emails or responses, not even the one that was sent only hours earlier. I had the representative enroll me on the phone that night and was told that nothing could be done as far as my credit goes. After learning that this incident resulted in my family and I not being able to move into the house we were closing on later that week due to my credit score dropping so much, I called back to see what I else I needed to do to get the matter corrected, I spoke to two agents and a Supervisor who told me to fax in both emails and responses so that the issue could be resolved and my credit could be updated. I consistently calls for 2 ½ weeks to check on the status only to be told that my dispute had been resolved and that nothing would be updated because there was not record of any emails being sent to me. After calling again, I was told that the emails were found but there was no record of my responses. After being told numerous and varying stories I finally made my way to a Supervisor and thus experienced THE most condescending, degrading, and horrible conversation to which I was told that out of millions of customers, I was the only one with this issue and it was my fault that I was late on payments even after expressing that I was under the impression that I was enrolled into a Forbearance. The call at that point became so ridiculously disturbing, I terminated the call and called back to speak to another Supervisor that assured me that he would look further into the matter and call me back – the call was never returned.

I am absolutely mortified by this entire experience and only want it to be resolved.Desired Settlement: As expressed on the numerous phone calls I’ve made to Navient, I did what I needed to on my part and the fact that Navient did not fulfill their end of the bargain has negatively impacted me on a multitude of levels in a SEVERE way. That said, I would just like this issue to be resolved by having the 90 day marks removed from each of my credit reports as I was initially told they would be once I faxed in the requested documentation. I have read an abundance of complaints that speak to similar issues that I’ve had so since I am not the only individual that this has and is happening to, as I was told, I would like to have the issue rectified so I can move forward.

Business

Response:

A representative from the Office of Customer Advocate contacted the customer by telephone on February 5, 2015 and resolved the issue with the customer.

Consumer

Response:

Review: NAVIENT REFUSES TO UPGRADE MY LOAN AND PLACE A UNEMPLOYMENT DEFERRMENT. I HAVE CALLED 4 TIMES OVER THE PAST MONTH AND REQUESTED AN APPLICATION SENT TO ME AND SO FAR NOTHING. I BELIEVE NAVIENT IN ON PURPOSE DELAYING MY DEFERMENT SO I BECOME LATE AND THEY COLLECT FEES. ON 1/2/2015 AT 12PM I TALKED TO MJ REQUESTED A PAPER APPLICATION SENT, ON 12/23/2014 AT 11:40PM TALKED TO CONNOR AND REQUESTED PAPER APPLICATION SENT AND NOTHING. I HAVE NO JOB AND NAVIENT IS DELAYING MY DEFERMENT AND I AM AFRAID I WILL BECOME DELINQUENT. PLEASE HELP REGARDING THIS ISSUE.Desired Settlement: A PAPER APPLICATION BE SENT BY MAIL AND TO PLACE ME ON UNEMPLOYMENT DEFERMENT FOR MY FEDERAL LOAN.

Business

Response:

A representative from the Office of Customer Advocate contacted the customer by telephone on January 13, 2015 and resolved the issue with the customer.

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.

Review: I was a customer of [redacted] now I am a customer of this company, who I believe is [redacted] under a stupid name. This is my 5th complaint for this issue and I am not getting any type of answer or resolution from anyone and I am getting really close to saying screw it and suing both [redacted] and Navient.

I currently have a private loan that is in an interest only repayment plan that I received after my 3rd complaint to the Revdex.com. This company, just like [redacted] is expecting me to pay over 300+ a month if I get out of the interest only repayment plan. After numerous attempts and a talk with a supervisor, who also was no help, this company will not help me in making any type of attempt to help me get an affordable payment plan that can actually decrease the amount that my loan currently has. They also WILL NOT remove my father as a cosigned, even when I explained to them to the point of tears, that he is disabled, living off a disability because he cannot work and I don't want him to pay my debt when he shouldn't!

They also based my loan payments based on a job I had when I applied for the loan. Which two months after I applied, I lost my job due to being laid off and was unemployed for a year and a half to two years. I can't make 300+ dollar payments every month or else I would be on the street.

This company does not care about their customers. All they want is money. If we cannot come to a agreed resolution, my next step will be getting in contact with a lawyer, and a lawsuit will be pending. And I am very serious in this matter because I use to work for a lawyer and he will have no problem helping me out. And I will continue to file complaints until a final resolution is agreed upon.Desired Settlement: I want this company to remove my father off my private loan as cosigner due to his disability.

I want this company to come to an agreed payment arrangement that can benefit both me and the company.

I want this company to NOT call my father FOR ANYTHING in regards to my loan, regardless if he is cosigner or not.

Business

Response:

Thank you for your message. In the interest of protecting the privacy of our customers, the Office of the Customer Advocate responded directly to the customer via US Postal Service on November 12, 2014. Please allow sufficient time for postal delivery.

Review: I filed a complaint on Thursday, August 20, 2015 about USAfunds. I do not know if it was the correct company in the list but I know it is the same as Navient. I called Navient today, and they still refuse to try and resolve this issue of double reporting on my credit from Navient/USAFunds. They also hung up on me and called me back from a blocked number. [redacted] from the Escalation team said that It's the department of Education's fault although I was paying them before I was paying the collection agency. I've been paying Navient 270+ for 15 months since May 2014. Wyndham Professionals contacted me in January of 2015 asking for $5 per month for 9 months to get me out of default. How is that rational. 5 dollars for 9 months gets me out of default but 270 for 15 does not? Somebody is trying to get over on me. I have a copy of my credit report and bank statements to prove that this is an error. I can't call them back because they blocked me. I just want the collection to come off because it has no business being there in the first place. [redacted] says he has a copy of the credit report but not the bank statements. how convenient.Desired Settlement: Remove the error off my credit report, which says I'm 74000 in student loan debt. That's because I'm being reported twice. Navient has me in good standing while USAFunds (same company technically) has me in collections, and I was paying Navient when USAFunds contacted me.

Business

Response:

Thank you for

your message. In the interest of protecting the privacy of our customers,

the Office of the Customer Advocate responded directly to the customer via US

Postal Service on September 1, 2015. Please allow sufficient time for

postal delivery.

Review: 8/11/15 ON 6-23-15 I RECEIVED A LETTER FROM NAVIENT [redacted] STATING THAT MY FFEL LOAN WAS IN DEFERNMENT FROM 5-10-15 THRU 4-30-16. ON 6-2-15, 6-28-15, 7-6-15, 7-26-15- I HAVE ALSO FAXED WITH CONFIRMATION & MAILED PERTINENT INFORMATION WITH CONFIRMED TRACKING NUMBERS TO NAVIENT ABOUT MY FFEL LOANS; & REQUESTED TO BE ELIGIBLE OR OTHER FORBEARANCE & DEFERNMENT OPTIONS. BUT WHEN I CALL NAVIENT A FEW DAYS LATER TO FOLLOW UP ON THE INFORMATION FAXED & MAILED TO NAVIENT SEVERAL NAVIENT PHONE CLERKS STATE MY INFORMATION IS NOT ON FILE OR NOTE RECEIVED. FURTHER MORE MY IMPORTANT STUDENT LOAN INFORMATION FORWARDED TO NAVIENT IS DISCARDED REPEATEDLY WHICH IS ILLIGAL & UNFAIR PRACTICES ON NAVIENT'S BEHALF. I NEED NAVIENT TO CEASE MAILING ME LOAN COLLECTION DEBT LETTERS FALSELY STATING MY LOANS ARE DUE ON 8/19/15. IN ADDITION, NO NEGATIVE CREDIT BUREAU REPORTING BECAUSE AGAIN MY FFEL LOANS ARE IN DEFERMENT UNTIL 4/30/15 FOR ACCOUNT [redacted]. NAVIENT FAX [redacted] P.O. BOX 4200 WILKES-BARRELE, PA 18773. 8/11/15 ON 6-23-15 I RECEIVED A LETTER FROM NAVIENT [redacted] STATING THAT MY FFEL LOAN WAS IN DEFERNMENT FROM 5-10-15 THRU 4-30-16. ON 6-2-15, 6-28-15, 7-6-15, 7-26-15- I HAVE ALSO FAXED WITH CONFIRMATION & MAILED PERTINENT INFORMATION WITH CONFIRMED TRACKING NUMBERS TO NAVIENT ABOUT MY FFEL LOANS; & REQUESTED TO BE ELIGIBLE OR OTHER FORBEARANCE & DEFERNMENT OPTIONS. BUT WHEN I CALL NAVIENT A FEW DAYS LATER TO FOLLOW UP ON THE INFORMATION FAXED & MAILED TO NAVIENT SEVERAL NAVIENT PHONE CLERKS STATE MY INFORMATION IS NOT ON FILE OR NOTE RECEIVED. FURTHER MORE MY IMPORTANT STUDENT LOAN INFORMATION FORWARDED TO NAVIENT IS DISCARDED REPEATEDLY WHICH IS ILLIGAL & UNFAIR PRACTICES ON NAVIENT'S BEHALF. I NEED NAVIENT TO CEASE MAILING ME LOAN COLLECTION DEBT LETTERS FALSELY STATING MY LOANS ARE DUE ON 8/19/15. IN ADDITION, NO NEGATIVE CREDIT BUREAU REPORTING BECAUSE AGAIN MY FFEL LOANS ARE IN DEFERMENT UNTIL 4/30/15 FOR ACCOUNT [redacted]Desired Settlement: I NEED NAVIENT TO CEASE MAILING ME LOAN COLLECTION DEBT LETTERS FALSELY STATING MY LOANS ARE DUE ON 8/19/15. IN ADDITION, NO NEGATIVE CREDIT BUREAU REPORTING BECAUSE AGAIN MY FFEL LOANS ARE IN DEFERMENT UNTIL 4/30/15 FOR ACCOUNT [redacted]. NAVIENT FAX [redacted] P.O. BOX 4200 WILKES-BARRELE, PA 18773.

Business

Response:

Thank you for

your message. In the interest of protecting the privacy of our customers,

the Office of the Customer Advocate responded directly to the customer via US

Postal Service on August 21, 2015. Please allow sufficient time for

postal delivery.

Review: Upon making an additional payment on a loan, Navient double billed, taking the money twice. After contacting them, we were told we would receive the refund within two weeks. After four weeks, the payment still hasn't arrived. I called back and had to go through the whole process again, and they are telling me it will be another week or two. We should have received an instant refund when we originally called, but they keep delaying.Desired Settlement: I would like for the company to realize they cannot hold on to other people's money for extended periods of time for no reason. With how difficult it has been for us on both occasions, I can only imagine how many other people have similar issues.

Business

Response:

A representative from the Office of Customer

Advocate contacted the customer by telephone on May 15, 2015 and resolved the

issue with the customer.

Consumer

Response:

Review: I recently rehabilitated my student loans through Great Lakes Higher Education. There is a remaining account on my credit report pertaining to account #[redacted] with Sallie Mae regarding my student loan. It says that my account has a claim filed with the government and that the debt is being paid through the government. This is false. I don't owe any money to Sallie Mae and my student loans are in good standing and are not delinquent. This negative information on my credit report is hindering me from obtaining employment and finding proper housing. I have attempted to dispute this with the credit bureaus, but I am not finding closure. This information should not be on my credit report and it says that it is on record to report to the credit bureau until April 2019. How can this be when I graduated college in 2006? This is blatantly illegal and with all that is going on with this country and usury involved with student loan interest being placed on kids who don't know any better, I refuse to be pushed around by Sallie Mae.Desired Settlement: This account should be removed from my credit report on Experian, Equifax and TransUnion immediately. I am giving you an opportunity to do this now, as you were unwilling to work with me when I disputed the accounts via the credit bureaus. If you are unwilling to get this trade line removed, I will go to the CFPB.

Business

Response:

Thank you for

your message. In the interest of protecting the privacy of our customers,

the Office of the Customer Advocate responded directly to the customer via US

Postal Service on August 12, 2015. Please allow sufficient time for

postal delivery.

Consumer

Response:

Review: I have a huge amount of student loans that are under consolidation with Navient (formerly Sallie Mae). I am enrolled in Income Based Repayment, but the payments are so low that I will never be able to pay off the loan, which the balance will be forgiven after 25 years. I have tried to speak with customer service at Navient to pay an additional amount over the IBR payment (which I have been told by a financial adviser that I am allowed to do) but am repeatedly told by the customer service representative that my payments will either be $15 a month on IBR, or $1,200 per month on standard repayment, with no option in between. If I continue to only pay the minimum, I will be bankrupt by the taxes owed on the remainder of the loan forgiven in 25 years, but Navient does not seem interested in actually helping me to pay down my loan. I have emailed the Federal Student loan Ombudsman as well, but have not gotten a reply.

Asking to speak to a supervisor at Navient resulted in a 25 minute hold on the phone, only to then be disconnected. Email correspondence has not completely addressed my problem.Desired Settlement: I want to be able to pay over my IBR amount and have it applied either to the interest on the loan or to the principal of the loan.

Business

Response:

Thank you for

your message. In the interest of protecting the privacy of our customers,

the Office of the Customer Advocate responded directly to the customer via US

Postal Service on March 12, 2015. Please allow sufficient time for postal

delivery.

Consumer

Response:

Review: I have been traveling trying to look for work all over the country. one day as I was traveling I decided to look up my credit report. when I pulled up my credit report I had a negative on it from Navient. I figured I had been paying this student loan for a while so I was thrown back by it when I saw it. In today's job market your credit is a big deal and companies will not hire you if you have negative credit. I call Navient to see if I could remove it and they indicated that they did not do that. I even applied for forbearance so I could have my loan updated, but yet that did not work for them to remove that. what kind of world do we live in when we can't get this removed even if you make the gesture to make it right with the company...Thanks!Desired Settlement: Remove negative report from my credit report completely

Business

Response:

Thank you for

your message. In the interest of protecting the privacy of our customers,

the Office of the Customer Advocate responded directly to the customer via US

Postal Service on October 2, 2015. Please allow sufficient time for

postal delivery.

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted] and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.

Review: I applied Aug 10th 2015 on line for an automatic debit for an additional 0.25% interest rate deduction. I called today to check on it Sept 14th. They said that on the 11th, the were unable to find my account, they feel I may have entered the wrong information. I disagreed, because I double checked. But I was told to reapply. What I am disappointed about, was that I had to call and follow up. Why didn't I recieve an e-mail or call regarding the issue. Why did I have to call back in to find out that there was a problem with my application.

I reapplied, but I am wondering if I am going to regret it. I wish Sallie Mae wouldn't have sold my loan to this company. I guess we will wait and see what happens this time.Desired Settlement: I just wish the bar hadn't been lowered for "customer service". I don't need someone saying please, I'm sorry, and thank you 100 times, that is not customer service. I just want a simple job to be done and have it communicated accordingly. I would like follow up on my request for automatic debit.

Business

Response:

Thank you for

your message. In the interest of protecting the privacy of our customers,

the Office of the Customer Advocate responded directly to the customer via US

Postal Service on September 22, 2015. Please allow sufficient time for

postal delivery.

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.

This company has harassed me with phone calls all throughout the day and night. I make monthly payments, but yet I still receive these phone calls stating "I'm late on payment" or "have late fees". They collect my money and then tact on additional fees. The recent payment history was not an accurate one. Several months of payment is missing to which they state payment was never made, but it was. My bank account can Prove it. Something has to be done about this. Who knows how much student loan debt I am truly in now because of all of these additional charges. I'm at the point of desperation and willing to do what I have to do to stop this un professional business from ripping off hard working people.