Consumer complaint received 2025-12-29 00:00:00
Product: Mortgage — Conventional home mortgage
Issue: Trouble during payment process — Escrow, taxes, or insurance
Company: FIFTH THIRD FINANCIAL CORPORATION
State: IN

Complaint narrative:
Company : Fifth Third Bank Product : Mortgage Issue : Mortgage servicing, escrow mismanagement, forceplaced insurance, successorininterest violations What happened : I am filing this complaint because Fifth Third Bank severely mishandled my deceased fathers mortgage account, caused a massive and unjustified escrow deficit, failed to pay required insurance, forceplaced extremely expensive insurance without proper notice, and failed to properly recognize me as the legal successor in interest. Their actions have caused significant financial harm to me and my family. 
My father passed away, and Fifth Third had his death certificate and documentation showing that I am the legal successor in interest. Despite this, Fifth Third failed to properly manage the escrow account and failed to pay the homeowners insurance from escrow. As a result, the insurance company canceled the policy. 
Instead of notifying me or correcting their error, Fifth Third forceplaced insurance on the property. Forceplaced insurance is extremely expensive, and Fifth Third charged these costs to the escrow account without proper notice and without giving me an opportunity to provide proof of insurance. This caused the escrow account to become severely negative approximately {$17000.00} which is unreasonable and appears to be the result of Fifth Thirds own servicing failures. 
I believe Fifth Third violated multiple federal mortgage servicing rules, including : Failure to pay escrowed homeowners insurance Failure to send required forceplaced insurance notices ( 45day, 30day, and final notice ) Failure to recognize and communicate with me as a confirmed successor in interest under Regulation X Failure to provide accurate escrow accounting Failure to manage the loan in good faith after the borrowers death Failure to transfer accurate servicing records to the new servicer ( Shellpoint ) Fifth Third then transferred the loan to XXXX with a massive escrow deficit and without correcting any of the errors they caused. XXXX is now sending lossmitigation packets addressed to my deceased father, even though they have the death certificate and successorininterest documentation. This is causing confusion and preventing me from resolving the account. 
I am requesting that the CFPB investigate Fifth Third Bank for : 1. Mishandling escrow funds 2. Failing to pay insurance premiums 3. Wrongfully forceplacing insurance 4. Failing to send required notices 5. Failing to properly recognize a successor in interest 6. Transferring a damaged loan to a new servicer without correcting errors 7. Causing a massive and unjustified escrow shortage What I want : I want Fifth Third to provide a full escrow history, proof of all notices sent, proof of all insurance payments, and an explanation for why they failed to pay the insurance. I want the wrongful forceplaced insurance charges removed or refunded, and I want the escrow shortage corrected. I also want the successorininterest status properly recognized and communicated to the new servicer. 
Fifth Thirds actions have caused serious financial harm and emotional distress to my family, and I am requesting the CFPBs assistance in resolving these issues.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation