January 25, 2006
How NOT to Create an E-Commerce Site.
Recently, I made my final payment on my student loans, and said goodbye to Sallie Mae forever...or so I thought. Although I reduced my balance to $0.00, they decided to incorrectly add interest to my zero balance, giving me a balance of $0.81. That's right, a mere eighty one cents.
"Alright," I thought to myself, "I'll just pay the $0.81, and be done with it." That's where the problems started.
Below is the screen I was presented with when I attempted to pay off my account.
(Click the image to view it at full-size)
Take a look at the "Pay this amount" column. See the value there? $0.00. That's right, it doesn't show a value for anything less than a dollar, despite the screen before this showing me a due balance of $0.81.
It prefilled my payment amount with a minimum of $1.00, so I thought $1.00 was the least I could pay. Figuring I would just give them the extra $0.19, I attempted to make a payment of $1.00. I was presented with the following error.
(Click the image to view it at full-size)
That's right, the site now recognizes my balance of $0.81 again, and will not allow me to overpay it. Seems odd, considering it defaulted to $1.00. Note that the "Pay this amount" column still says $0.00.
So, following the error message I just received, I decided to change the payment amount down to the proper amount owed, $0.81. Imagine the pain that shot through my skull when I saw the next error message.
(Click the image to view it at full-size)
That's right. Not only can I not pay more than $0.81, but I also can't pay less than $1.00. Pardon me while I slam my head repeatedly into a wall.
So now, I'm completely unable to make a payment online to end my balance. My only other option? Mail a check for $0.81 to them...which will cost me $1.20 after the $0.39 stamp, and will cost Sallie Mae who knows how much in processing. This is the kind of idiocy that needs to be stopped.