Consumer complaint received 2024-01-30
Company: LAKEVIEW LOAN SERVICING, LLC
State: VA
Product: Mortgage
Sub-product: Conventional home mortgage
Issue: Trouble during payment process
Sub-issue: Escrow, taxes, or insurance

Complaint:
On XX/XX/XXXX, I received a notice in the mail from Lake View Loans ( under the XXXX XXXX umbrella ) that my property address was now considered in a flood zone ( Flood Zone AE- highest level of flood zone ) due to new updated FEMA flood zone maps. It stated that we had 45 days to obtain flood insurance or else it would be purchased on our behalf for an amount of {$2600.00} to the servicer XXXX XXXX XXXX. Please note that this notice was received about 2 weeks after our loan had been transferred to Lake View Loan. 

I called my insurance broker ( XXXX XXXX ), who called out to 3 different insurance policies, which all reported back that we were in XXXX XXXX XXXX ( which is not a flood zone ) and that they would be unable to even issue a flood insurance policy since we are not in a flood zone. 

After getting this information, I called XXXX XXXX and Lake View Loans, which continued to state that their hands were tied and that I needed proof from FEMA that my address was not in a flood zone. I asked if they would be able to post-pone the 45 days that they were giving me to get insurance, since I had called with an inquiry that the flood map was incorrect, and they denied this claim. They gave me the number to call FEMA.

I called FEMA immediately after getting off the phone with Lake View Loans, which walked me through step by step on how to pull up my address on a flood map. My address was pulled up and the FEMA representative also agreed that we are not in a flood zone and proceeded to say that it is " up to the mortgage companies interpretation of the flood zone map '' to determine if they are going to require flood insurance. The only way to prove this is to create an appeal with FEMA, which can take 60 days to complete. I completed the request for the FEMA flood map appeal on XX/XX/XXXX, but the expected completion date is XX/XX/XXXX ( after the given 45 days to obtain insurance ). In addition to this, FEMA stated ( and seen clearly on their website ) that they have not updated the flood maps in my area since XXXX and the claim that " FEMA recently changed the flood maps in my area '' was false information. This indicated that Lake View Loans clearly lied on the noticed that required me to obtain flood insurance.

After further investigation, the company that Lake View Loans was going to purchase flood insurance on my behalf ( XXXXXXXX XXXX XXXX ), is owned and operated by XXXX XXXX. Thus, they are requiring for me to obtain flood insurance, I am unable to obtain flood insurance on my own since I am not in a deemed flood zone, and forced to pay the parent company XXXX}. XXXX XXXX has also been under litigation and lost under prior investigations for mortgage fraud. It is under great suspicion that this is another cause of fraud, as they are forcing me to purchase unwarranted flood insurance through their own company.

Company public response: Company has responded to the consumer and the CFPB and chooses not to provide a public response
Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation