Sallie Mae ...shudder...
Just a heads up; once it comes time to start paying, Sallie Mae can be an absolute
nightmare to deal with.
Had a $14,000 federal loan; paid directly to the school. Only $4000 ended up being used; the remaining $10,000 was refunded to Sallie Mae by the school (of which I have written proof).
Once I started paying on that $4,000, I suddenly began getting past due notices on
four different additional loans from Sallie Mae, to the tune of approximately $38,350 in total!
They insist that I applied for the additional loans; I insist that I did not. They say they have loan applications and other related paperwork with my info and signature. I ask them to mail me copies...they refuse. Or, they'll send an email or automated phone call to remind me that I have "past due loans" as proof. No matter how many times I explain that simply
saying I owe them money does not make it true, they just don't get it.
They'll tell me that it's up to me to prove that these loans are invaild, but in the meantime, I need to make payments anyway. "Ok, fine;" I'll say. "I'll do it your way. But before I send you anything, I want YOU to send me copies -IN THE MAIL- of all paperwork on these loans."
Oh, we can't do that; but I'll go ahead and send you an email confirming your past due status.
No.
No?
You say that you have applications, etc for these loans that I filled out and signed...
Yes, sir!
I do not have ANY paperwork on these loans. Go to whatever file cabinet the original documents are in, take them out, take them to a copier, make a copy of every page, put them into an envelope, and mail it to me.
Ok, sir; the email you requested, confirming your past due status, is on its way.
So you're sending me an email telling me that I owe you money, but i can't have actual
proof of the debt? Ok, then... I just sent you an email confirming that I paid these loans off in full.
No...sir...you can't just...say that payment was made! You actually have to mail in a payment!
Exactly.
2 years I've been fighting with these bozos. Ahh...the perils of outsourcing. The home office (where all the original documents are kept) farms out it's billing and customer service to 12 different call centers in 12 different states and/or countries. None of these call centers communicate with each other, just the home office and the customers on their lists. A human or computer error at at the home office goes unnoticed and gets sent to the call centers. The call center has to assume the information is correct. The call center is also often the only point of contact for the customer, who can not get an issue resolved because the call center simply does not have access to the needed information at the home office. Any request to speak to a supervisor or "someone in charge" just gets transferred to the guy in the next cubicle, or to a different call center. The cycle continues...
In the meantime, my credit is in the toilet because these guys can't get their act together. Mail and email to the home office goes unanswered, and calls just get fobbed to...you guessed it! A call center.
)
