Student Loans of America

I received a mailer regarding my approval for a student loan repayment program. The notification said they could relieve over $35k of my student loan debt. They obviously obtained some information about me from somewhere, they knew what my balance on my Student Loan account was from a few years ago. The lady I spoke with on the phone asked me to sign-up for a Federal Student Aid account line and then give her the login information. When I told her I was uncomfortable doing so and no student loan office would ever ask for that information, she hung up on me. After looking into their website I found that the website phone number was disconnected and when I called back in I was placed on hold forever and pushed over to an outsourced call center. Be aware of this loan company. No one should ever need your fasfa login ever!

Review: I had been contacted by a representative from Student Loans of America on august 2015 and paid to have a consolidation of my student loans. After 5 months, my paperwork had not been processed. I contacted my student loan company to explain that the consolidation had not taken effect. They knew about my situation and decided to help me consolidate without the help of Student Loans of America. I contacted Student Loans of America and requested a refund. I have called and spoken to numerous people from several companies all of which are third parties on several occasions. I finally received a refund from one of the third parties but am still awaiting the biggest portion, which is from Student Loans of America. I have attempted to contact them with no luck. The number on their website is disconnected. The number on the brochure and paperwork they sent me all lead to third parties that have no "direct ties" to Student Loans of America. When I asked the representatives for a number to contact them they have given me a multitude of different contacts all of which have been disconnected or have led to no end result. I am highly unsatisfied with this company and their third party affiliates. I am still awaiting a representative to call me in regards to a refund.Desired Settlement: I would like all my funds with fees returned if possible through Student Loans of America. I would like for the Revdex.com to assist in contacting this provider and request they update their information and get back to their clients in a timely fashion to resolve issues like this.

Business

Response:

Dear Sirs,

Review: I was quoted a interest rate of 6.33% for loan consolidation on first call and 6.375% on second call for a fee of $599.00. After consolidation my interest rate with fedloans increased to 6.875%. I would like to be reimbursed the $599.00 fee since the service was not provided and loans were not consolidated based on incorrect information.Desired Settlement: Refund of $599.00 and public report of what has occurred to decrease risk of this happening to another federal student loan recipient.

Business

Response:

Re: Complaint ID [redacted]Dear Sirs,We strive to maintain 100% satisfaction of all of our clients, however some of the information in the clients letter is inconsistent and inaccurate.The applicant is requesting a refund because they are stating that the interest rate increased after the consolidation took place but later states that the refund is due, because the consolidation never took place. The consolidation has been completed, the new interest rate is based on a weighted average of the existing loans and the applicant receives a .25% interest rate reduction for signing up on autopayments. Therefore the interest rate can never exceed what they are currently paying, per federal regulations. This program is not and has never been sold as an interest reduction program.Additionally the applicant is stating that different interest rates were quoted. After much review only one interest rate was given, 6.375%. This rate is provided by the Department of Education and is based on Federal guidelines. That information was very clear and the client seemed to understand the terms and the programs offered. The client had specifically requested a graduated payment plan because of the more manageable payments. The representative was clear as well and processed the paperwork exactly how the client requested.There are no findings of incorrect information given to the client.Office Manager

Review: I received a mailer promising student debt relief. The mailer looked official and did not have the name of the company. The mailer included a fake check for $37,000 and said that my student debt could be greatly reduced if I qualified for one of the programs the company offered. I called the 800 number; an automated voice stated the name of the company. The first person I spoke with got angry when I asked if the applications they were filing out were available to me. He ended up hanging up on me after insulting my ability to make money and pay my debts. He asked me what kind of person is unable to pay their debts as they come due. The second person I spoke with, Fred, said I could find the applications online by the Dept. of Education but the forms were difficult to fill out, you only get one chance to get the forms correct, and the company (and its $700 fee) is necessary and "worth it" to get student debt relief. Fred also told me that the company will calculate income and ability to pay in a way that is "much more likely" to get student debt relief. He did not state whether the company would lie to the Dept. of Education. It is my understanding that the applications are available to everyone; the programs are potentially available to everyone; and the company does not actually provide a service any individual person could not just do themselves.Desired Settlement: I would never like to be contacted by this company again.

Business

Response:

October 23, 2015Revdex.com 4747 View Ridge Avenue #200 San Diego, CA 92123-1688Re: Complaint ID [redacted]Dear Sirs,One of the things that our company takes pride in is our professionalism. While it is never considered acceptable for a representative to “lose their cool" or demonstrate unprofessional behavior, we do recognize that we are only human.From time to time, in any industry, it is not uncommon to interact with individuals who are aggravated and upset with their personal or financial situation. These individuals tend to be antagonistic and combative. We have found that those that are upset often listen to oppose instead of listen to learn.When dealing with those individuals any professional can only take so much verbal abuse before hitting a natural breaking point. The initial representative that spoke with the client has never demonstrated any instances of unprofessionalism in the past and has apologized for his one-time action. The company did take disciplinary action in the form of a written warning to the employee.It is worth noting that the client called back to our company and attempted to bait a second representative and tested him on his product knowledge. The second representative was very professional, as our representatives always are, and demonstrated great product knowledge.Pertaining to the Statement of the Problem, our company did not state whether or not we would lie to the Department of Education because it is absurd to think that we would have to make such an explanation. We never alluded to any such behavior or made any direct or indirect statements indicating such behavior nor have we ever performed any such behavior.Finally, as a professional document preparation company we do charge a fee or our services. Therepresentative made it clear that consumers may perform similar services on their own without us but like many other fee for service industries, many consumers rely on our knowledge, professionalism and experience.Sincerely,[redacted] Office Manager1660 Hotel Circle N, Suite 101 San Diego, CA 92108 888-267-1996

Review: I received a letter in the mail from this company about an opportunity to help out with my federal student loans. I was informed by this company and that they would help file an application to the US Dept. of Education for me and start the process of refinancing my student loans. They stated that I would get a low payment, much lower than what I was paying with my current company and stood by that price so being it was a great deal I moved forward. I paid a generous fee for them to start the application, but never completed and I have emails showing that I followed up and made sure they had everything they had to fill out the application. I waited the 45-60 days they said it would take to get my answer. When I spoke with the US Dept. of Ed. they said the application for Income Based Repayment (which is what they said would be the best option) was not completed and not only that, but they also said that I would not receive the payment amount they promised. I am extremely disappointed with their services. They did not complete what they said they would. And now I have had to coordinate directly with the US Dept. of Ed. myself to finalize a payment plan that will work for me. I have called multiple times to their client services dept. which is in Irvine, CA to explain personally how dissatisfied I am with their services and I have been bounced around to so many people and when I want to speak to a manager, I am sent to a voicemail and they never call me back even when they promise they will. They make promises about student loan repayment, take your money, never finish the task and so you are left to do the work yourself. I have wasted so much time and effort with them when I was fine making my payments with the current loan holder. I now know that I could have reached out directly to US Dept of Ed and fill out an application for free, but instead went with them and they did not complete their services.Desired Settlement: They mention money back guarantee and since they did not even complete my application nor get the loan repayment amount they promised. I do not know what their fee went to and now that I am having issues and having to continually work with the US Dept. of Ed because of their lack of effort to solve the problem. If I had continued the route they had suggested I would have been asked to make a larger payment then I was before. During the process I made sure that I asked them if they had all the info. they needed from me to complete the application process and they confirmed, but once I spoke with the US Dept of Ed that was not the case. So I would like a refund of my payment for their services since it was false advertising.

Business

Response:

SummaryStudent Loans of America LLC and its affiliate companies followed proper protocol and procedure during the entire process. We do not refinance student loans and we make it clear to the client that this process can be done on their own. It seems that the mix up came from the servicer, Fedloans and not Student Loans of America LLC. The servicer intervened in the process, unprofessionally “bashed” our company, on two separate occasions stated that they did not receive proper forms and submissions even though our processing department sent them in on multiple occasions, and made the process difficult for the client. We have processed a refund to the client for our services per our agreement and contract. Please see the timeline of events for further detail. TimelineOn December 29th 2014 we spoke with the client regarding document preparation services and assistance in applying for a new Federal Student Loan repayment program directly through the U.S. Department of Education. The client agreed to hire our company and signed up for services on 12/29/14. During the normal course of the process the client signed and returned the forbearance request and the document was sent to [redacted] on 01/02/2015. On 01/19/2015 our processing department requested additional information from the client in regards to information that was gathered during her initial application. The processing department requested proof of income and information regarding the total student loan debt of the spouse, per Department of Education guidelines. On 01/21/2015 the applicant returned 2013 tax return information, satisfying one of the two requirements requested by the processing department. The processing department also attempted to assist the applicant in retrieving the total student loan debt for the spouse, requirement number 2. On 01/30/2015 the applicant requested an update on the status of her application and the processing department responded in a timely fashion. On 03/06/2015 the applicant requested an update on the status of her application and the processing department responded in a timely fashion. On 03/19/2015 the applicant received notification from the Student Loan Servicer regarding her application. She received an approval on a payment amount higher than originally quoted. When the applicant called the Servicer to request additional information on the new payment she was told that her consolidation application was submitted incomplete. The servicer also began to bash our company. Our processing department looked into the original submission and did not find any errors or mistakes on the submission. The only issue that might be in question was the total amount of the student loan debt held by the spouse. If this was different that originally discussed then it would have an impact on the approval. The processing department also requested and sent a Release of Authorization form to the applicant so that we could assist in determining the reasoning for the higher payment. On 03/20/2015 the applicant returned the R.O.A and also stated that she would continue to application process on her own and would work with Fedloans directly. She requested an update on her application. On 04/01/2015 the processing department called Fedloans and found that the sent R.O.A. was not on file. The service department then re-faxed the R.O.A. twice to Fedloans on the same day. On 04/03/2015 Fedloans approved the client for a Standard repayment plan, not the Income Based Repayment plan originally requested. On 04/04/2015 the processing department re-sent the I.B.R. application and all other requested information. This was the second submission with the same information as the first application. On 04/15/2015 the applicant called Fedloans directly and cancelled the I.B.R. application and agreed to an Extended Standard Repayment plan instead. On 04/28/2015 the processing department issued a refund of our fees to the client.

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this proposed action would resolve my complaint with the exception of a few things (see below). For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.

I was refunded my money and at the end of the day that is what I wanted most, but I do want Student Loans of America to know that they did not respond to me in a timely manner as they did on multiple occasions not return my call or call me when they stated they would. Also if applications were filled out on time and correctly then I wouldn't have had to intervene and take matters into my own hands with Fed Loans. This process was not a smooth one and they need to be aware of that. Also they have no proof that the other party "bashed" them. I will remove my complaint once they have read this response.