THE EDITOR, Sir:
IT IS a pity that hard-working students who are willing to pay back their loans go through such a difficult time contacting the Students Loan Bureau. The phones ring a long time before the operator transfers you to another desk and the phone-ringing process repeats itself.
I relate an incident which I find very disturbing about borrowing money from the bureau. I made three payments of $4,000 each time towards my loan in the month of May 2005 using Tele-Scotia. The third payment, on May 31, was not credited to my account even though it was sent at least two days after the Tele-Scotia transaction.
On July 13, when I called to check the status of my account I was told that the account was in arrears. I contacted the loans officer who said there was no record of that payment on the computer system. I was asked for proof of payment in terms of a receipt. I told the loans officer that the amount was confirmed by my bank as a completed transaction from my account. The loans officer transferred me to the accounting department which disconnected my call before resolving the matter. I called back and after a few questions I was told that the $4,000 which was not credited to my loan account was an error on their part. However, before I could find out the reason for the error, I was transferred again to an extension which rang for over 15 minutes without anyone answering.
It took the Students Loan Bureau seven weeks to realise that an error was made and the correction resulted from me pointing it out to them. I therefore ask: "What kind of an accounting system are they using and how many other accounts are being wrongfully debited and credited?"
I am, etc.,
A CONCERNED STUDENT
