Consumer complaint received 2017-12-15
Product: Mortgage — Conventional home mortgage
Issue: Struggling to pay mortgage — 
Company: WELLS FARGO & COMPANY (FL)

I live in Florida and am in a FEMA disaster area. 

Received a letter from Wells Fargo that stated : " In response to the disaster, Wells Fargo will provide payment relief for the next 90 days on credit cards, student loans, auto loans, home mortgage, home equity and retail small business loans and lines of credit in FEMA declared areas. 

The bank is also proactively waiving or refunding fees for impacted consumers in FEMA declared areas ; this includes ATM fees for using non-Wells Fargo ATMs, late fees and debit card over-the-counter cash disbursement fees, among others. 

In addition, negative credit reporting is being suppressed for home mortgage, home equity, credit card, student loan, personal lines and loans, auto loans and retail small business lending customers who receive payment relief. 

Impacted customers who are not in a FEMA declared area are also able to receive similar benefits by contacting Wells Fargo. After 90 days, customers who are still experiencing hardships should contact customer service to discuss additional relief options. 

Wells Fargo Home Mortgage and Home Equity customers impacted by Hurricane Harvey and floods should contact the Wells Fargo Disaster Assistance Team, XXXX, to discuss payment arrangements or for assistance with property insurance loss claims. The team is available Monday through Friday from XXXX XXXX to XXXX XXXX CT, and Saturday and Sunday from XXXX XXXX to XXXX XXXX CT, to help offer guidance and information about loans and assistance programs. 

Customers in the impacted area who participate in an employer-sponsored 401 ( k ) plan provided by Wells Fargo may be eligible to access their retirement savings. Recently, the IRS relaxed rules for employers that allow individuals easier access to their retirement savings for hardship purposes. Wells Fargo is prepared to make hardship withdrawals or loans available to customers that qualify under these new guidelines. For more information, customers should call XXXX. 

Retail small business customers impacted by the hurricane are encouraged to call Wells Fargo, XXXX, for more information and to discuss their options. Wells Fargo Insurance Services has also contacted clients in impacted areas to provide support and expertise as part of recovery efforts. 

Customers of Wells Fargo Merchant Services who are in need of assistance with their merchant processing due to the impact of Hurricane Harvey can call XXXX. Impacted merchant customers who contact Wells Fargo by XXXX XXXX can receive a complimentary Wells Fargo Mobile Merchant card reader to attach to a mobile device, which will allow their business to accept card payments. The one-time cost for the card reader is waived ; however, processing and data rates will still apply. 

XXXX XXXX XXXX is also working to ensure customers have adequate credit lines to handle the retail orders that may come through as a result of the relief and rebuilding efforts. Relationship teams are reaching out to business customers who may have been materially impacted by the storm to address their credit and cash flow management needs and provide relief on a case-by-case basis. 

All other impacted customers needing assistance can contact Wells Fargo 24 hours a day, seven days a week, XXXX ( XXXX ). XXXX XXXX XXXX Get Help with Disaster Recovery web page for additional details. 

We called and were told that we could skip payments for 90 days, no lates or fees. Never were we advised that at the end of the period would we need to make ALL of the missed payments or suffer negative impact to our credit scores. After doing some research I found this on XXXX XXXX website : " Disaster relief for loan payments We provide disaster relief if you are impacted by any disaster or damage to your home. During that time, we : Dont charge fees for late payments Dont send late payment notifications to credit bureaus Offer enhanced loan payment options based on your situation Provide certain foreclosure protections We encourage you to continue your monthly payments according to your loan agreement. Keep in mind that any unpaid payments will become due at the end of the disaster relief. '' The last sentence was left off of the letter and was never disclosed to us during the call with XXXX 

We are lucky that we have robust savings and could make the payments but I am sure that lots of other XXXX customers are not.