Consumer complaint received 2022-10-31
Product: Mortgage — Conventional home mortgage
Issue: Trouble during payment process — 
Company: Onity Group Inc. (NV)

Around XXXX my mortgage was sold from XXXX to PHH Mortgage Corporation. Although I contact both XXXX and PHH stating that I did not authorize PHH specifically to service my loan however, because I signed a blanket consent in my loan documents which allows lenders to do this at their free will the borrower therefore has no choice in the matter. Since PHH started servicing my loan, I have had nothing but issues with PHH. 

Soon after PHH obtained my loan, PHH decided to update my mailing address without my consent or authorization. I have multiple properties however my mailing address on file for all of them has always been the same XXXX address. Once I realized PHH changed my mailing address on their own to an address in XXXX, I asked them why they decided to update my mailing address without my authorization? Does PHH ( a company ) know what is best for me ( the customer )? 

Instead of addressing the issue or answering my questions, PHH responded with how I can update my address myself. One method provided was somewhere under my account management that I did not have any options provided to update my address and the other was through email which according to PHH is not secure to send personal information. The fact of the matter is that I didn't update my address to begin with and I wasn't going to simply fix the issue PHH created. Why is a company updating a customers address at the companies discretion without the customers authorization? 

PHH has stated that they have responded to this issue by mailing the response to the address in XXXX that is not my mailing address and by sending me a secure file that I have not been able to open. I have contacted PHH stating that I can't open the secure files they are sending me and I have yet to receive a response back. I don't understand why PHH prefers to play games with me instead of just providing the response? 

PHH claims to be about protecting my information and all that security nonsense ( without providing any transparency ) however paper mails my end of XXXX tax documents to the XXXX address which is not my mailing address. I am not sure how exactly this is secure for me ( the customer whose information is at risk ) or how this does not create a risk of me becoming a victim of identity theft? 

Furthermore, PHH ( like many other companies that know what is best for their users ) require that customers have XXXX enabled on their account which only creates an additional XXXX ways for the users account to be compromised. I have already been a victim to XXXX separate XXXX hacks and know how easy it is for my account to be hacked via XXXX. However, instead of allowing the customer to decide how much risk they want, PHH ( like XXXX other companies ) doesn't provide users any option to opt out of XXXX. There is no law that requires XXXX be enabled and users should be provided an option to disable it at their own discretion. Again, does PHH ( a company ) know what is best for its users ( the customer )? 

After creating an online account on whichever website I get re-directed to, I signed up for paperless statements and " other documents ''. For a XXXX XXXX after doing this I continuously receive marketing paper mailings from PHH and asked them why I am receiving these when I am enrolled in paperless communications? Their response in short was that only statements ( XXXX documents per XXXX ) are eligible for electronic delivery while the marketing paper mailings ( a lot more than XXXX documents per yXXXX ) are not. I asked them how this was not deceiving their customers, why no easy option to opt out of marketing communications is not provided and how this aligned with their public XXXX policy? To me, this is not only deceiving their customers but also investors. An XXXX friendly company that claims to be innovative with their solutions doesn't hesitate wasting resources to mass mail marketing communications to their customers. As far as I know this has been completely ignored and this wasteful anti-XXXX friendly process is still in effect today. 

In XX/XX/XXXX, I put in a written request to have my XXXX removed as I am required to do. This wasn't my first time doing this ( first time with PHH ) so I understand the process even though it doesn't make much sense. After waiting XXXX business XXXX for PHH to print out and mail me the XXXX removal instructions, I finally receive them in the mail after waiting XXXX XXXX. In their instructions it stated that I am required to write a check for {$100.00} and mail it to PHH and once they receive that payment then I can call customer service to order a XXXX or an appraisal. Again, this is not my first time doing this however this was the first time any lender has required any type of payment outside of paying for a BPO or an appraisal. Because of this, I asked PHH what this {$100.00} fee was for? As far as I know, this is a required disclosure. 

Again, instead of simply answering my question and being transparent, my issue gets sent to the research department with the response being mailed to the address in XXXX that is not my mailing address as well as being sent another secure file that I can not open. What about this fee requires the answer to be sent securely? I have repeatedly asked PHH about this over the past severely XXXX and recently inquired about this again where I received a response about the {$150.00} BPO fee... 

In XX/XX/XXXX, my hazard insurance was up for renewal. I was under the impression that PHH was paying my hazard insurance though my escrow account however I was setup to be billed separately and pay separately. Because of this my policy lapsed, which happens, however once I received the XXXXXXXX  notice from PHH on XX/XX/XXXX I purchased hazard insurance as I am required to do. The agent at XXXX ( my current hazard insurance policy ) I spoke with said he faxed the policy to PHH on XX/XX/XXXX and I also mailed a copy of the policy to PHH in early XX/XX/XXXX as instructed in their notice. 

In late XX/XX/XXXX, I receive a second notice from PHH stating that I still don't have hazard insurance. On XX/XX/XXXX my agent stated that he faxed the policy for a XXXX time and I also contacted PHH through their website providing them my insurance information. PHH responds to my inquiry with my insurance information provided stating that they have not received it. Did anyone bother to read my message??? 

In XX/XX/XXXX, I receive a XXXX notice stating that I still don't have hazard insurance and PHH was going to buy an overpriced policy on my behalf. Again, I responded with my insurance information and stated to PHH that I am not authorizing this additional hazard insurance policy to be purchased on my behalf because I already have hazard insurance. I asked why PHH was not able to pick up a phone or write an email to verify that I have the hazard insurance I am saying that I have? If I am a new customer trying to obtain a loan they would verify everything I provide but once I am a ( forced ) customer they wont? Is this not part of their job? Why is it that I am providing my hazard insurance information to PHH and PHH continues to ignore me and state that I don't have hazard insurance and they haven't received it? I also stated that any amount I am billed for the duplicate policy PHH purchased against my authorization and am forced to pay that I will be asking for a refund plus interest paid back to immediately. I have hazard insurance ( with XXXX ) that I have already paid in full and there is no justification for this additional hazard insurance policy! 

In XX/XX/XXXX, I receive a notice from PHH stating that they have purchased a hazard insurance policy on my behalf thus confirming that PHH has blatantly ignored me, their customer, since at least XX/XX/XXXX and the XXXX  times I have sent my hazard insurance to PHH. When I called my insurance agent in XXXX to obtain insurance I was told that I am not able to backdate the policy however for some unknown reason PHH is allowed to backdate a hazard insurance policy that they purchase on my behalf and without my authorization. Somehow this is fair. 

Later in XX/XX/XXXX, I receive an out of cycle escrow analysis confirming that PHH is billing me for this unnecessary secondary hazard insurance policy. On my current statement ( XX/XX/XXXX ) I am now being billed for this unnecessary XXXX  hazard insurance policy. On the policy PHH sent me in XXXX is states the name of the company is XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX however on my statement the charge is to XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX I would think that the charge would be to XXXX XXXXXXXX XXXXXXXX XXXX and not XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX I'm sure that this is somehow ethical. 

Unfortunately, I have to file this complaint because PHH is refusing to listen to me. Why is PHH not listening to me, their customer? How is any of what I have mentioned ethical? I have repeatedly provided PHH with my hazard insurance information and PHH has blatantly and completely ignored me. Why am I stuck with this mortgage servicing company that from what I have experienced operates in an unethical manner? 

I have provided multiple screenshots and copies of documents with information that has been whited-out not knowing what will be published online. I can provide originals for private viewing upon request.