Consumer complaint received 2015-12-02
Company: PHH Mortgage Services Corporation
State: OH
Product: Mortgage
Sub-product: VA mortgage
Issue: Settlement process and costs

Complaint:
My mortgage refinancing closed on XX/XX/XXXX. A check for approximately {$5600.00} for the amount of funds in the old escrow account with PHH MORTGAGE was supposed to be mailed to us within 2 weeks from XX/XX/XXXX ( the closing was actually on XX/XX/XXXX but we were told it took 7 days to officially close out ). Since this is a large sum of cash we have been following up since XX/XX/XXXX as to the status and whereabouts of the check. To sum it up we have been following up weekly since then and have been given numerous explanations and conflicting stories regarding the date the check was sent, the dates we should receive the check, and when the " receive by '' dates have lapsed we have been told to wait another week. We were told last Monday that if we had n't received the check by this Monday ( yesterday ), they would overnight the check by today. Today when we spoke with them they said they actually ca n't do that, and if they ever do agree to do that, then it would take 10 days to accomplish it. At the end of the discussion with PHH tonight we were again told that they would continue to look into it and see what they could do. Once again, More than 45 days from the original closing date, they could not give us a definitive answer as to the whereabouts of the check they say was processed and sent out on XX/XX/XXXX. What warrants concern to us is the sheer amount of seemingly unending excuses and lack of a definitive resolution timeframe this company has demonstrated, a behavior that we have never experienced with a bank. We were told today that if they cancel the check, they have 10 days to " process '' it before they even mail it out. And then they said it takes 21 days in the mail without receiving it before they get concerned. I find this strange since in reality the US mail is very reliable and seldom does it take longer than 5 business days to receive something from anywhere in the country, let alone XXXX to XXXX. 
Our primary issues are : - Multiple claims about the date the escrow check was sent- The check never arrives by the date they say it should- They are unwilling to overnight the check today as they promised last Monday- We were told they canceled the check tonight, but now have to investigate whether the check was cashed before they resend another ( they ca n't quickly determine that? ) - When we asked if there is a date when they finally reach a point where they simply set their normal process aside and overnight our money to us, they state there is n't one- As of now, there is no definitive date that we may count on to have the {$5600.00} received that is owed to us. 
Our final concern is that in talking with the " always polite '' individuals at PHH Mortgage, there is an air of dishonesty surrounding the whereabouts of our escrow money. The absolute inability to resolve the issue coupled with a never ending runaround on how we have to wait, wait, and wait even longer calls into question the legal operation of this banking institution and whether it has issues with where it keeps escrow funds, how it uses them while it is supposed to be safeguarding them, and whether or not our escrow funds are even available to PHH, if they are even in their " possession '' at this time. I fear in the worst case PHH may be misappropriating escrow funds they are charged with safeguarding for proper disbursement.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation