Consumer complaint received 2024-12-17 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: TRUIST FINANCIAL CORPORATION
State: PA

Complaint narrative:
I am having recurring issues with Truist Bank in returning my money to me for tornado damage that occurred on XX/XX/XXXX. 

I have a conventional mortgage that Truist Bank bought in XXXX. I did not negotiate this with Truist. 

I received a settlement from my insurance company for approximately {$53.00} XXXX This came in XXXX checks ; the first for approximately $ XXXX was sent to me as the payee earlier in the summer. No problem with that check as Truist was not a payee on this check. 

I had to deal with my insurance company all summer as they did not want to fully cover the damage to my house. Ultimately, a forensic engineer contracted by XXXX XXXX agreed with my assessment that the roof needed replaced. That work was completed on XX/XX/XXXX. 

I have since received XXXX additional checks from my insurance company, XXXX for $ XXXX, the other for $ XXXX. These checks included Truist Bank as a payee. 

I created an account with their Insurance Claim Check XXXX on XX/XX/XXXX and mailed them the $ XXXX check. When I sent the check, I requested that they endorse the check and send it back to me, or create an escrow account if they must. I called on Monday, XX/XX/XXXX to see what additional information I needed to provide to get my money back so I could pay my XXXX. 

On XX/XX/XXXX, I called Truist to see what needed to be done to release the funds. The agent that I talked to told me there wasn't anything additional I needed to do, they were seeking approval within the bank to endorse the check and return it to me. This is 20 days after I originally sent them the check, along with instructions to create an escrow account if necessary. The agent told me that if I would agree on the phone to create the escrow account, she could begin the process of scheduling an inspection to make sure the work in the insurance claim was complete. I told her that was ok by me. She told me it would take XXXX days to submit a request for an inspection, and XXXX to XXXX days for an inspector to contact me. Given it was XXXX week, that would push the last day for an inpector to call me to XX/XX/XXXX. I told her if no one callled, Truist could expect me to follow up. 

On Tuesday, XXXX, XXXX, I received a followup call from Truist, telling me that the inspection on my home had been cancelled, because the sum of the checks I had received were greater than the claim. In my early negotiations with my insurance company, they had sent me a $ XXXX check, which I rejected as insufficient. Truist was adding this check together with the other XXXX checks I was to receive and calculating $ XXXX, instead of $ XXXX. 

I have XXXX problems here. Truist should have known that the first check had been voided. XXXX, the inspection had to take place anyway, why cancel it? And XXXX, no inspection had been scheduled in the first place. I have no idea why their agent would tell me an inspection had been scheduled that did not involve me. Impossible. Someone is not telling the truth here, and it isn't me. 

So, on Tuesday, XX/XX/XXXX, I called Truist to find out the status of what is going on. Keep in mind, work on my home was completed on XX/XX/XXXX ; I needed to pay my XXXX. I called their service, Insurance Claim Check at XXXX, went through their maddening menu, got to the part where I should talk with an agent, and the line was dead. So, I called the number on my mortgage statement, XXXX. When the agent answered, I told her my issue, and demanded to speak with a supervisor. She transferred me to someone else, who transferred me to someone else, who told me they were transferring me to a supervisor, put me on hold. I waited for XXXX or XXXX minutes, then was disconnected. 

At that point, I wrote them a letter demanding my money be returned, and filed a complaint with the CFPB on Wednesday XX/XX/XXXX. By the afternoon of XX/XX/XXXX, an inspector called me to inspect my property on XX/XX/XXXX. He came to my home at XXXX, met with my XXXX. He did not go onto my roof, and couldn't see it as it was covered with snow. It was in the low XXXX with fairly strong winds. He asked my XXXX if the work had been done, and took his word for it. Some inspection, huh? Does it make sense that returning my money was delayed for that? 

On Firday, XX/XX/XXXX, I received a call from Truist 's Mortgage Resolution Team telling me that my funds were going to be delivered to me overnight. I called in the afternoon to confirm. I was told, yes, my funds would be delivered to me overnight. 

I changed my schedule Saturday, XX/XX/XXXX so I could be home to receive these funds. They never came. I did the same Monday, XX/XX/XXXX. They never came. I called on Tuesday, XX/XX/XXXX to see what the issue was. The agent told me that she did not control the mail. However, I challenged her that it had even been sent out. When she looked again, she saw that the shipping label had been created on Tuesday, XX/XX/XXXX, for a check she had told me was being sent to me overnight on Friday, XX/XX/XXXX. The check wasn't picked up by XXXX until the evening of Wednesday, XX/XX/XXXX, and arrived at my house after midnight on Saturday, XX/XX/XXXX. So, we went from a check being sent to me overnight on Friday, XX/XX/XXXX, arriving in my mailbox ( by XXXX, no signature required on a $ XXXX check ) on the morning of XX/XX/XXXX. I immediately called my XXXX, and delivered the funds to them. 

Now bear in mind ; I was told on Friday, XX/XX/XXXX that the check was being sent to me overnight. The date on the check when I received it was XX/XX/XXXX ; the transmittal letter was dated XX/XX/XXXX. I got it on XX/XX/XXXX. Is that overnight? 

Also, on XX/XX/XXXX, I received the final installment of my settlement from my insurance company in the amount of approximately $ XXXX. Unlike Truist, I actually sent these funds to Truist using overnight mail. They received them on Monday, XX/XX/XXXX. I sent a transmittal letter demanding they be returned to me ASAP. Truist has completed thier inspection, worthless as it was. I told them if they were not returned to me by Tuesday, XX/XX/XXXX, I would follow up with CFPB. As it turns out, my call to the Mortgage XXXX XXXX was a return call by me. They were calling to give me the case number for the letter I sent regarding this $ XXXX check. While I was on the phone, I asked why my {$39.00} XXXX check had not been delivered overnight, as promised. Discussion of this above. I told her I expected my check by XX/XX/XXXX. 

So, Truist has acknowledged by their case number provided to me on XX/XX/XXXX that they received my $ XXXX check. Today, Tuesday, XX/XX/XXXX I received a text from them telling me that they have received my check, linking me to a website where I can find next steps to get my money, returned to me. 

Truist Bank is misnamed ; there is nothing " XXXX '' ist about them. They lie. They delay. And I know why they do that. All escrow money is free capital to them. They use it to calculate their liquidity reserves. So, they keep it as long as possible. 

As a customer, you never get to talk with someone who can actually help you. All you get to do is talk to someone at a help deak, who reads a message to you. 

As it turns out, Truist has now returned money to me from my insurance and taxes escrow. Seems that they overcharged me almost {$1000.00} this year. Do this across their mortgage business, and Truist has quite a lot of free capital at their disposal. And, that is a big part of the problem. The banking industry pays escrow account holders nothing for their funds, even though the industry uses these funds to make profits XXXX only knows about. All perfectly legal, I'm sure. That's part of the problem ; its legal. I wouldn't be writing to you if they simply returned my funds on a timely basis. I'm merely pointing out the incentive they have to lie to customers, never let them speak with someone who actually deals with their problem, and delays return of funds as long as possible. 

I am a retiree, not yet eligible for full benefits from Social Security. I like to pay my bills on time. I do not have the liquidity required to pay my XXXX without these proceeds. I find the actions of Truist Bank concerning. I'm sure I'm not the only customer that they abuse. 

I want my money returned to me, now.

Company public response: Company has responded to the consumer and the CFPB and chooses not to provide a public response
Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation