Consumer complaint received 2025-08-15 00:00:00
Product: Mortgage — Conventional home mortgage
Issue: Trouble during payment process — Trying to communicate with the company to fix an issue while managing or servicing your loan
Company: FIFTH THIRD FINANCIAL CORPORATION
State: OH

Complaint narrative:
Subject : Formal Complaint Regarding Mishandling of Mortgage Account and Lack of Notification I am writing to formally submit a complaint against Fifth Third Bank regarding the mishandling of my late father-in-laws condominium mortgage account, inadequate communication, and lack of proper customer service, which caused significant distress and financial confusion. 

Background & Timeline of Events XX/XX/XXXX I received a call from someone offering to purchase my late father-in-laws condominium, claiming it was in foreclosure. Upon contacting the bank, I was initially told this was not the case. After further inquiry, I learned that Fifth Third Bank had defaulted the loan and filed a foreclosure case against us. 

XX/XX/XXXX I visited the bank to understand the situation. I was told that the mortgage payment had changed without any prior notification to us. We had the loan on auto bill pay through our bank, and payments were being made monthly ; however, the change in payment amount caused a shortfall. I checked the condominiums mail, and there were no notices regarding incorrect payments. I was advised to file a hardship form and submit a letter explaining the situation, which I did, only to be told later that it would not help because the matter was already in court. 

XX/XX/XXXX I continued working with a helpful bank representative who provided contact numbers for further assistance. Despite multiple calls and voicemails to the probation office, I received no callbacks. I eventually obtained a reinstatement amount but could not reach anyone to discuss it. I was told to apply to be added as a successor in interest, which I did, but I was denied without explanation. 
XX/XX/XXXX I repeatedly called the probation office, leaving messages as instructed. Their voicemail system promised a call back within 72 hours, but I never received one. 

XX/XX/XXXX My attempts to discuss the missing payments continued. I only received a partial refund of payments from XX/XX/XXXX to XX/XX/XXXX, leaving {$1700.00} unaccounted for. No one could explain where this money went. 

XX/XX/XXXX I finally spoke to someone who explained why I was denied as a successor in interest. I obtained a new reinstatement amount by phone and paid it via wire transfer so we could continue the loan, which we had planned to keep. We then paid the reinstatement amount and successfully closed the foreclosure.

Complaint Summary Fifth Third Bank failed to : 1. Notify us of the change in mortgage payment amount. 
2. Provide timely and clear communication regarding account status.

3. Offer reasonable customer service, as repeated calls and voicemails were ignored.

4. Accurately account for missing payments totaling {$1700.00}.

5. Allow for a reasonable opportunity to resolve the matter before filing foreclosure proceedings. 

While I understand that payment amounts can change, the bank had no difficulty locating our home address to serve legal papers yet did not send any notice of the payment change to that address. We had owned the property for less than one year when the payment change occurred ( XX/XX/XXXX ), following my father-in-laws passing on XX/XX/XXXX.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation