CFPB: 429% Increase in Student Loan Complaints

Top consumer watchdog has seen a 429% increase in student loan complaints.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau released data comparing March 2017 to March 2016 in its monthly complaint snapshot today.

These increases could be due to the appointment of Betsy DeVos as Secretary of Education by Donald Trump. DeVos has business interests in student loan companies, and those companies may see DeVos’s appointment as a blank check to attack borrowers.

According to their release, the CFPB “has handled over 35,000 student loan complaints,” and “student loan borrowers in all 50 states have received relief through the Bureau’s complaint function.”

One large student loan servicer remains one of the top 10 most-complained-about companies across all products for the third month in a row, according to CFPB.

CFPB also says that there are “needless hurdles” preventing borrowers from enrolling in income-driven repayment plans, and says that the pathway for borrowers to get out of default is “severely broken.”

You can file a complaint against your student loan servicer here, or email the CFPB Student Loan Ombudsman at students@cfpb.gov.