Consumer complaint received 2021-04-12
Company: Ocwen Financial Corporation
State: TX
Product: Mortgage
Sub-product: Conventional home mortgage
Issue: Trouble during payment process

Complaint:
My complaint is about PHH Mortgage Services at address XXXX XXXX XXXX, XXXX. XXXX, NJ XXXX. I've been making payments online or through my mobile application for PHH XXXX. The last time I attempted to make a payment through my mobile application, I received an alert stating, " You are not eligible to make a payment at this time. Please contact XXXX to make a payment. '' I then logged into the mortgage website to see if I can make a payment online. The website states, " Please contact XXXX to make your payment. '' When I called XXXX phone number, I was instructed with my only options of making a payment. The options were to make an immediate payment over the phone for a fee, go through XXXX XXXX and fee, or use XXXX XXXX. I pressed " 9 '' to speak with a customer service representative. When I finally spoke with the customer service representative, I was informed that I could not use any service other than the over-the-phone payment unless I signed a release consent form. I asked her when did this change happen. She said, and I quote, " This is crazy. I've been getting calls about this all month. '' The PHH customer service representative continued saying, " Let me see what I can do. I am having a challenging time finding this form PHH is saying customers must sign and mail back in before we are allowed to take payments any other way than over the phone. '' She continued saying, " Once I send you the form, I will be able to accept one payment from you over the phone, but sir, there will be a {$17.00} fee to accept your payment over the phone. '' At this time, I wanted to make sure I am hearing this PHH customer service representative right. I asked her, " So, you are telling me that until I sign a form that you are having extreme difficulties finding, the only way you can accept a payment from me each month is over the phone for a fee? '' She said, " Yes, I am sorry, but this is what I am reading here from our PHH management. '' To sum it up, my complaint is PHH Mortgage ( XXXX ) is blocking acceptance from any other form of ease of payment services they currently offer other than through PHH phone service, which PHH requires the mortgagee to pay PHH a {$17.00} fee. The next complaint is that PHH never informed me of any release form to use other payment services forms. The customer service representative had difficulty finding the form, and nowhere on my mortgage statement or online service does PHH mention this new release form. The PHH customer service representative agreed that what PHH ( XXXX ) is doing is not right, nor is it fair to the customers. She is very uncomfortable doing what PHH is asking her to do or say to the customers. She also made it clear that my phone call is the first she had a chance to get all the information about how PHH is blocking customers from making payments. She said customers have just complained about over-the-phone automated payments are difficult to navigate, and they don't understand why they have to make payments this way all of a sudden. 

If PHH has now forced all their mortgage customers to make over-the-phone payments for a {$17.00} fee, then how much money have they made in this extortion from its customers now? 

Something has to be done about this.

Company public response: Company believes it acted appropriately as authorized by contract or law
Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation