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What are the most popular student loan complaints?
Here’s what you need to know.
Student Loans
If you have a complaint about your student loans, you’re not alone. A new report from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) shows the latest breakdown of student loan complaints—and they may look very familiar to you. Here are some highlights:
Most Popular Student Loan Complaints
These are the most popular student loan complaints:
1. Dealing with your lender or student loan servicer
- Received bad information about your student loans (34%)
- Trouble with how payments are handled (34%)
- Don’t agree with fees charged (11%)
2. Struggling to repay student loans
- Can’t get flexible options for student loan repayment (49%)
- Problem lowering monthly student loan payments (31%)
- Can’t temporarily delay making student loan payments (19%)
3. Problem with a credit report or credit score
- Credit report wasn’t fixed (30%)
- Student loan account status incorrect (27%)
- Student loan account information incorrect (18%)
Total Student Loan Complaints:
- Total Student Loan Complaints: ~7,000 complaints
- Federal Student Loans: ~5,000 complaints (24% year-over-year decrease)
- Private Student Loans: ~1,900 complaints (33% year-over-year decrease)
Why the decrease in student loan complaints? One potential reason, among others, is that federal student loan payments have been paused since March due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Other reasons may include student loan servicers offering improved customer service and compliance procedures as well as borrowers becoming more educated about their student loans.
Top Companies For Most Complaints For Federal Student Loans
These companies received the most complaints for federal student loans:
- AES/PHEAA (1,208 complaints)
- Navient (1,143 complaints)
- Nelnet (496 complaints)
- Premier Student Loan Center (66 complaints)
- Great Lakes (51 complaints)
Top Companies For Most Complaints For Private Student Loans
These companies received the most complaints for private student loans:
- Navient (676 complaints)
- SLM
SLM (Sallie Mae) (145 complaints) - AES/PHEAA (133 complaints)
- Nelnet (84 complaints)
- Discover (76 complaints)
Top Companies For Student Loan Debt Collection Complaints
Under the Cares Act, federal student loan debt collection was halted in March. That said, here are the top companies for student loan debt collection complaints:
Federal Student Loans
- Navient (109 complaints)
- Nelnet
NNI (58 complaints) - AES/PHEAA (56 complaints)
Private Student Loans
- Navient (89 complaints)
- Transworld Systems (28 complaints)
- Ability Recovery Services (22 complaints)
Top Student Loan Complaints By Geography
Here are the top student loan complaints by state:
Federal Student Loans
- California (475 complaints)
- Texas (356 complaints)
- Florida (332 complaints)
- New York (327 complaints)
- Georgia (225 complaints)
Private Student Loans
- California (238 complaints)
- Texas (135 complaints)
- New York (130 complaints)
- Florida (121 complaints)
- Pennsylvania (98 complaints)
How To File A Student Loan Complaint
If you want to file a student loan complaint, your student loan complaint should be in writing and should include supporting documentation. You can submit your complaint to:
- Your lender
- Your student loan servicer
- CFPB - Office of Student Loan Ombudsman
- U.S. Department of Education / Federal Student Aid
- Federal Trade Commission (FTC)
- Your State Attorney General
- Your State Department of Education
Pay off student loans
Student loans can be frustrating. The sooner you pay off your student loans, the less you’ll worry about your student loans. This includes making a student loan repayment plan and also getting educated about all your student loan options. Here are good places to start, all of which have no fees:
- Student loan refinancing (get a lower rate, save money)
- Student loan consolidation (get organized)
- Income-driven repayment plans (payment plan for federal loans)
- Student loan forgiveness (public service)
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