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Indymac mortgage

Indymac mortgage review: Theft of Insurance Claim 11

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Author of the review
7:15 am EST
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The complaint has been investigated and resolved to the customer’s satisfaction.

IndyMac Mortgage, a division of One West FSB, had my home mortgage. I had an insurance claim of $3800 for damages to a bathroom in my home from a leak. Since IndyMac Bank was the loss payee they were the second party to the claim check from my Insurance Company. They told me to send them the check, endorsed, and they would only release the funds after they sent a certified home inspector to verify that the repairs had been completed. I refused to let the bank deposit my insurance so I used $4000 of my own cash completed the repairs myself then sent the check to the bank for endorsement. They sent thier inspector on December 17 2009. Today is Feb 3 2010 and I still have not recieved my insurance funds. I was told on Jan 4 2010 that the funds would be released immediatley. I was told on Jan 19 2010. that they did not know why I had not been paid yet. I was told again on Jan 25 2010 that I would receive my check "this week". The people that work for Indymac Mortgage Services Insurance Claims Center work under assumed names and are very skilled liars. When I asked for full name and job title of the people who had been lying to me they refused saying it was against policy to release names of their employees. CONSUMERS BEWARE OF INDYMAC MTG AND ONE WEST FINANCIAL THEY HAVE STOLEN FROM ME.

Resolved

The complaint has been investigated and resolved to the customer’s satisfaction.

11 comments
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Peter
, US
Apr 30, 2009 3:23 pm EDT

Indymac mortgage is calling me several times a day when I am still in my grace period and not even late. They startedd calling five days after my due date. I have never been late or even gone into my grace period in 6 years. What a soory out fit.

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chicowallace
Brooklyn, US
Jan 10, 2013 9:29 am EST

READ THIS, VERY INFORMATIVE: I work in an IndyMac call center and I agree with the majority of the above comments. IndyMac policy states that if a homeowner has a claim over $10, 000, then the check is issued in 1/3 increments. Claim docs are also needed to be filled out by the contractor, and also necessary is an adjuster's worksheet from the insurance company. The reason a lot of these processes take so long is due to things like this: 7-10 business days when docs/checks are sent reg mail; 3-5 business days for an inspection request; 1-2 business days when docs are faxed to the facility; 3-5 business days to generate a payee code once check is received. With all of this wait time, how is a homeowner suppose to start their repairs? Another question I have pertains to this. IndyMac requires two inspections, one at 50% completed repairs and another at 90% completed repairs, but yet they only disburse 1/3 of the money. Its amazing how they only give you 1/3 of the money, but expect for you to get 1/2 of your repairs done. Then also if you want additional funds, you have to send in a letter of request, along with an invoice from your contractor. Then that gets forwarded to "management", which takes another 3-5 business days after the receiving process which can take 7-10 business days if sent regular mail or 1-2 business days if faxed. I'm tired of sitting at my job getting cursed out everyday because of the bs that IndyMac puts their clients through. IndyMac does this because they are "lein holders of the property", meaning they own YOUR property. Just know people, the people whom you are on the phone with are NOT the ones causing the issue. Managers always say, "our care specialist (people that answer the phones) are the face of the company". BULL...we are a wall that they build to protect the top and lower level managers from dealing directly with disgruntle homeowners. So I understand everyone's frustration because IndyMac and it's processes are a little bogus.

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notsohappy1459
, US
Sep 08, 2012 6:27 pm EDT

I too, am a homeowner who has is having trouble with insurance claim check. On June 28th, I was issued a check from my insurance company. IndyMac held 1st mortgage and Hometown bank held 2nd. After discussing with indymac...I endorsed the check...Hometown bank endorsed the check with their stamp...and off to Indymac Bank. 2 weeks later, I get the check back and had to have it re issued to Indymac mortgage services...WTF. I then re endorsed new check...Hometown bank did as well and off to Indymac mortgage services...about 2 more weeks go past and I get the friggin check back stating that Hometown needed to endorse the check...their endorsement stamp wasn't good enough...so I took it to the damn bank and had banker endorse it and sent it off for a 3rd time. I wanted the first 1/3 paid so I could start working on the projects that needed done. They would NOT release the funds EVEN after all that damn paperwork was done. I got a letter on August 15 stating that they had not heard from me (I faxed 5 request) and wondered if I was going to make repairs to my home. I called them and told them in order for me to start I needed the damn money...(single mom) They told me they would release the funds after an inspection was done...This is still going on. I had a inspector out 2 weeks ago stating I was 75% done (borrowed money from family). I called yesterday to see where the hell MY money was and they said they cut a check on Thursday and mailed out on Friday for 1/3 the amount. To the person who thinks the banks borrow the money and they deserve to hang on to it till the project is complete...pull your head out of your A$#! In order to complete the friggin project...I WANT MY MONEY! At least half of it should be sent out IMMEDIATELY to start the damn project. I have owned and paid on my mortgage for 21 years and am at 7.5%. They will not refinance because I am an independent business owner and can't prove income and they will not rely on stated income any longer. So give me my damn money and let me fix MY house...!
Banks give you an umbrella when it sprinkles but in a damn storm...they take it away!

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MortgageClaimCenter.com
, US
May 31, 2011 4:48 pm EDT
Verified customer This comment was posted by a verified customer. Learn more

There exists significant claims against indymac / one west... The FDIC made a sweetheart deal to allow them to conduct business without regard to the consequences for abuse. For more info about how to stake your claim for settlement $... visit Http://www.MortgageClaimCenter.com

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Elvira Gultch
Glendale, US
Feb 04, 2011 11:44 pm EST

Warning to all : Wells Fargo is not standing behind homeowners to make repairs after hail storm! Insurance check waiting to be signed off to release $$. Spent countless hours on phone! Being lied to & made to jump through hoops, one after another. Its been over a month. It's like they don't want you to fix it. I pay deductable, I pay Ins. Preimums, They control $$. Beware if refinancing! It could happen to you!

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107982
Dallas, US
Aug 18, 2010 8:22 am EDT

they don't used 'assumed names' just because policy prevents them from releasing their full personal details over the phone.

realistically speaking, would you want someone angry at the company (looking for someone to take it out on) to know your full name? it makes you susceptible to threats and harassment - Even though no one should be trying to shoot the messenger, if you've ever worked in that type of environment you see the potential for someone to take it that far.

a little note to all: When dealing with ANY call center/customer service center, ask for employee IDs. Its most likely the best you're going to get and most effective way to reference that person, or the notations they have placed permanently on your account.

best of luck.

PublicAdjuster
PublicAdjuster
Miami, US
Jun 09, 2010 1:58 am EDT
Verified customer This comment was posted by a verified customer. Learn more

In response to "onetruthseeker's" comment, it is clear you don't like big banks. If I understand your position correctly, you believe that any loans backed by the federal government should allow the borrower to do whatever they want with their insurance claim money. You believe there should be no inspections to verify property damages have been repaired. I'm not a fan of big banks either, but I do understand why certain policies are in effect to a certain extent.

Please re-read my comment in it's entirety, as it appears you stopped reading after the second paragraph.

Best regards!

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onetruthseeker
Valley Center, US
Jun 08, 2010 3:24 pm EDT

Just one comment for PublicAdjuster, your comment about "If you loaned someone a couple hundred thousand dollars out of your pocket to buy a house, and they were still making payments on that loan. You would want to make sure everything damaged in the house gets fixed." is greatly flawed. The banks never ever loan money "out of their own pocket". That money gets created from the Federal Reserve after the bank deposits "your" promissory note. This is just the beginning of the Fraud committed by the big banks in regards to mortgages and it is time for Us to wake up. Do your research people, there is so much available out there.

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mafbkln
Brooklyn, US
May 07, 2010 10:13 am EDT

We have been waiting for our check from indymac for 4 months now, this was after they had sent them countless timesdocuments and paperwork from our insuarunce company and contractor, who fixed out basement following a flood last summer.
the runaround is unbearable and i am looking for an attorney to sue them.

PublicAdjuster
PublicAdjuster
Miami, US
Apr 21, 2010 3:12 pm EDT
Verified customer This comment was posted by a verified customer. Learn more

I'm not an attorney, so I can't say if it is legal or not. I can say that this it is standard procedure with a majority of mortgage companies to deposit insurance settlement checks over $10k into their escrow account and issue drafts payments of either 1/3's or 1/2's, depending on the situation and what documentation is provided to them.

If you loaned someone a couple hundred thousand dollars out of your pocket to buy a house, and they were still making payments on that loan. You would want to make sure everything damaged in the house gets fixed. You wouldn't want to be stuck with a house worth little or nothing because the person you loaned money to, decided to take the insurance money and run.

I do not agree with mortgage companies who play with people's money, making the homeowner jump through a hundred different hoops, delaying the already stressful claim and rebuilding process even more! I think regulation needs to be passed to create some order to this sometime anti-consumer unorganized process.

When a mortgage company:
says they never received what you sent them
takes 48 hours to process whatever you faxed them
asks you for more documentation every time you call them, documentation which was never requested before
takes several weeks to send you a check or never sends you a draft check at all.

You might assume the above games are solely created to cause delay, thus allowing interest to be collected on your insurance money. Multiply this times the hundreds of people that have sent their insurance checks in, and have not received a draft yet for one reason or another.

It adds up to a lot of money, but is money always the motive?

I witnessed a mortgage company who did almost everything listed above, yet never took possession of the settlement check. So money was not their motive, because they didn't have it yet. I think in some cases, it's poor training and unqualified customer service reps.

In our profession, we regularly assist our clients with submitting all the documentation needed to their mortgage company for processing. We deal with almost every mortgage company out there on a regular basis, so we know what to expect.

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Thomas Jeong
Tujunga, US
Feb 15, 2010 11:38 pm EST

Hi, I recently sent a check endorsed to Indymac as well and I'm not little concerned about it after reading this. My situation is, we recently had a mountain fire near our house and our house was not significantly damaged, so Indymac told us that only one inspection at 90% of work completion is necessary. They informed us that since our check is over $10, 000, they must deposite the check first and release 1/3 first after 4-5 business days and told us that 2/3 will be released after the inspection. We sent the endorsed check about a week ago and we still have not received the 1/3 of the payment. I'm wondering if this is legal at all; this is a money given by my insurance company for the repair and Indymac is holding a right to hold on to this money.