How to Make the Navient Corporate Office Listen

It is easy to feel like David fighting Goliath when a big financial company doesn’t follow through on their promises.

This is particularly true when it’s not your fault, but Navient’s. When a big company makes a mistake, it is frustrating, but it’s even worse when they make a mistake that costs you money. You end up paying for their error then trying to prove they made the mistake in the first place. 

Phone calls with Navient employees or help center get you nowhere because they usually don’t have the power to make any changes. Email complaints seem to go into an internet black hole and get you nothing but boilerplate responses, sections have been copied and pasted from the FAQ or help center on the website and are just as frustrating as the mistake that was made. Trying to get in touch with someone at the Navient corporate office who has the authority to fix the problem can take months and months if your request isn’t ignored in the first place. What’s worse is when they tell you that they’re going to fix the problem but then they never do and you’re stuck right back at the beginning of this cycle.

So what can you do other than feel like you were taking advantage of?

Use Arbitration to Settle Your Dispute with Navient

Doing business with financial companies like Navient, companies with millions of clients all around the world, can make you feel very small and powerless, which is a frustrating feeling. What’s more, most of these companies have an arbitration clause in your contract with them and that means you can’t take them to most courts when something goes wrong. With limited choices for reputable financial services especially online, many of us are forced to go with a company that we know has low customer service standards, people who work virtually from around the world and might not have any power to make changes when something goes wrong.

Arbitration is Just, Fair, Reasonable, and Transparent

Arbitrations handled by the American Arbitration Association® is an option that complies with the Statement of Principles of the Consumer Due Process Protocol which means:

• The process has to be fundamentally fair for all parties including the appointment of impartial, competent, and qualified arbitrators who conduct fair hearings.
• A reasonable standard is applied to the process including the reasonable standards for access to relevant information, a good time for the hearing, a good location, and affordable cost.
• The transparency standard requires clear arbitration agreements that include all the necessary information and give you and the other party the ability to hire representation.
• An alternative to arbitration, which takes the form of small claims court and, in some cases, mediation, has to be available.
• The process should be just and allow the arbitrator to award you the same outcome as you would get in a regular court, and that award has to be a legally binding decision.

Arbitration Gives Your Leverage

As soon as you notify Navient that you are going to pursue arbitration, they become aware of the fact that they’re going to have to pay a lot more out-of-pocket than they expected. And for a company that’s in it for the profits, this becomes decidedly less appealing.

Notifying Navient that you are pursuing arbitration gives you leverage because Navient now knows that they might have to pay you what you’re asking for it AND they might have to pay money out of pocket to cover the arbitration expenses. This makes Navient much more willing to give you a settlement.

But if they still are unwilling, you have the option of a reasonable, transparent, and fair hearing without having to spend any extra money out of pocket. With our FairShake process we help you file for arbitration. It won’t cost you anything unless you win.

Leverage Leads to Faster Settlements

By starting the arbitration process Navient loses its advantage. They aren’t the foreboding company with all the power anymore. You both have equal power and are on equal footing with a neutral arbitrator examining both sides of the situation.

In order to capitalize upon this leverage you have to start by formally raising the issue with Navient. At FairShake we help you do this.  We send an official demand letter to the Navient corporate office and this starts the process of resolving your case before you file arbitration. We typically give Navient a 30 day window in which to offer a settlement but the length of this window is determined by the arbitration clause in your contract.

Generally, your dispute we’ll get settled within this time frame because Navient headquarters offers an acceptable settlement. But, if they failed to offer an acceptable settlement, the next step is to file the appropriate paperwork with the American Arbitration Association. FairShake will put together all the official arbitration paperwork for you and guide you through the next steps.

Do I need an attorney?

If your case goes to arbitration you might consider hiring an attorney. In legal terms, if you don’t have an attorney with you that means you are bringing your claim “pro se”. If you decide that you want to go forward without an attorney, check out some information from The American Arbitration Association’s Pro Se Case Administration Team.

There are a lot of common complaints that are very easily handled on your own without an attorney. These fall under specific laws that make it easy to get high compensation. But if your complaint falls outside of those common issues, perhaps something to do with improper debt collection techniques robocalls that violate federal laws, having an attorney to assist you might help you maximize the value of your claim.

What is my next step?

Tell us what your complaint is with Navient and will help you get started. With FairShake, we guide you through the process and get rid of all the stress.

We offer a 100% satisfaction guarantee. You don’t owe us a single penny if you aren’t one hundred percent satisfied with our service.