AES/PHEAA Student Loan Complaint

AES/PHEAA Student loan department,

Non-federal student loan Can't repay my loan Can't decrease my monthly payments New York

School : - University, - I am having issues with my loan servicer & bank. I have a private student loan financed by - - and serviced by American Education Services ( AES ). I was on a repayment plan with lower, affordable payments. When that repayment plan expired, my payments doubled and I was not able to afford them. I called several times and asked for other payment plan alternatives. Each time, they asked me a series of specific questions and were not transparent about the process. They were fishing for specific answers and if I did not respond with those answers they would deny my request and not help any further. For example, what I gathered from a group of questions was that if you were unemployed, they would only grant you a forbearance if you could prove that you have a job that starts in the near future. I had a job, I just could not afford my payment doubled. At one point, one representative told me to just pay what I can afford and my account would stay in good standing. I knew that was a lie. I 've continued to request help with repayment and have been denied each time. I continued to make payments each month with what I could afford. That amount has even increased over time. But the amount past due on the account continues to grow and my account is delinquent. This seems unfair considering I make a payment each month. I believe they are collecting as much as they can from me now, only to sell my debt to a collector where my options will be even more limited and my credit ruined. I have been dealing with this for about a year now.