Our mortgage went up by $70 a couple of months ago. We have an escrow account and I know the only way the amount increases is if the insurance or taxes go up. Both stayed the same, give or take a dollar or two. I researched the escrow statement and saw that an insurance payment of $625 was made in April. Our insurance is $429/year. I had just received the declaration pages on my insurance, so I knew I was right about that.
I called the mortgage company to find out what was going on. I found out that in addition to paying the WRONG insurance company in April, they had also paid them $611 in June 2005. So I have been calling the mortage company every single Monday to find out if they have made any progress with getting the insurance money refunded to our escrow account. They keep saying they are working on it.
I was getting sick of the run around, so I decided to ask my sister-in-law, who is a real estate agent, if she had any advice. She said bypass the mortgage company, call the WRONG insurance company. Explain to them what is going on, she said they should refund the insurance money. So I called them, and the guy I talked to said fax the declaration statements and they would refund the two years worth of insurance.
Today I finally remembered to take the dec. statement pages with me to work, (easier to fax from work than home). I decided to call my insurance agent, just to make sure I had all my ducks in a row. During the conversation, I said, "Now I'm good on the insurance through your company, right? Because remember they were going to cancel my policy but you called my mortgage company who said they would overnight a check to you so you could pay the insurance company so they wouldn't cancel?" She says, without a second's hesitation, "Oh no, I don't know anything about that." So I reiterated what I'd said and I don't remember what else was said, but then I was hanging up, and I decided to call the RIGHT insurance company, just in case.
I get them on the phone and they inform me that my policy was cancelled for non-payment on June 1st. So I called my insurance agent's office back and this time I got the answering machine. I left a message and told her what I'd found out. A few minutes later, I get a call from another woman from the insurance agency, asking me for my mortgage account number because she was going to call the mortgage company and find out what was going on. I told her, and I tried to ask her what the heck was going on, but she cut me off.
She calls me back a bit later and explains that I have to call my mortgage company and explain what is going on. LOL. Like I haven't done that ten weeks in a row already. I told her that I was uncomfortable about not having coverage and I would be willing to drive to their office after work and cut a check right away out of my own pocket instead of waiting on the mortage company. Because the mortgage company told her they would not pay any more insurance companies until they were reimbursed from the wrong one. Oh yay, yippee, now they are watching out for my best interests!! So she gives me the number for the insurance department of my mortgage company.
I call that number and the guy who answers the phone asks for information from me, then asks if I'm an agent. I tell him I'm not and he says that he's going to connect me to customer service. I argued with him, saying that I needed to talk to someone in insurance, and all that was going to happen was he was going to transfer me to CS and they were going to transfer me right back to insurance, and he didn't even know what my problem was. He just transferred me.
By this point, I'm so mad that I'm about ready to stomp through a wall. I told the lady who answered that I was very upset, and I wished I could get my house refinanced today with someone else, so I could stop dealing with her company. I told her I would try not to be a *itch and she was actually very nice to me. I thanked her profusely at the end of our conversation.
I explained what they had done, and I explained that now, thanks to them, my cheaper insurance company had been cancelled. She told me to fax my dec. statement pages to the more expensive insurance company right now and cancel them. She said she would notate in my account that I was cancelling the insurance with that company. As far as she could see on her screen, I was covered by two insurances. I told her the one was already cancelled in June. She said they had no record of that, and as long as I was getting coverage again today, I would be okay.
So I faxed the declaration statement pages to the WRONG insurance company, and instructed them to cancel my policy. I then called them and talked with a woman who told me that it was that simple. All I had to do was send my dec. statements and she would cut me a refund check for the two years. She says to expect a check within 10 days.
I have never seen so much incompetence in my entire life!!! I cannot believe that I have to babysit my escrow company, my insurance agent, other insurance companies. Because apparently, my insurance agent never cancelled the insurance with the more expensive company!! Was that my fault? She's the one that wrote me a new policy, they stopped using that more expensive company altogether. How am I supposed to keep up with all these things?
Do I need to call my electrical company every month and find out if the guy came by and read my meter correctly? Do I have to call to make sure they really got my electronic funds transfer payment just in case they don't turn off my electricity and forget to notify me? Do I have to call my car insurance company every month to make sure I'm still covered? Can't I just make some assumptions about things? Can't I have any faith in anyone?
I just don't understand. I think the other lady called me from my insurance agent's office, because she knew the other lady messed up. I think the other lady is an older woman and I think she's getting forgetful. When she told me a check was being overnighted to her, so she could pay my insurance, I had no doubts that that would get done. It didn't occur to me to double check and make sure the check was received by her, AND that she had sent it. Should I have to? Do I have to babysit everyone? What's the point of having an escrow company (terms of my mortgage, so I don't have a choice in the matter) if they aren't doing their job?
Until next time.
Display Entire Post...
Back to Summary View...
