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Report: #143302

Complaint Review: Vanderbilt Mortgage - Maryville Tennessee

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  • Reported By: Conroe Texas
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  • Vanderbilt Mortgage 500 Alcoa Trail Maryville, Tennessee U.S.A.

Vanderbilt Mortgage Illegal forced insurance policy, refusal to accept mortgage payment, put home into collections, Incompetent employees that lie, hang up on customers and are RUDE! Maryville Tennessee

*UPDATE EX-employee responds: Asking for a supervisor will get you nowhere with this company.

*Consumer Suggestion: I have more info for you.

*Consumer Suggestion: Correction to Georganna's information

*Consumer Comment: Same old tactic under a new name

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My loan for my mobile home was previously with another finance company and was just taken over by Vanderbilt as of May 1, 2005. Vanderbilt called me to get a payment and I gave them my routing number and checking acct number. The representative, a Ms. Leech (rudest, most unprofessional woman I have ever dealt with) then informed me that a forced insurance policy was placed on my home and that I would have to pay for the insurance policy as well at that time. She informed me that due to the policy being placed on my home that my payoff was now $2000 more on my home. I told her that I had current insurance on my home and that any policy they put on my home was illegal because they only have a right to put a policy in force on my home if I do not have coverage. I informed her that I would be contacting my insurance agent to have him contact Vanderbilt to get the insurance issue resolved and in the meantime that I wanted to go ahead and make my actual mortgage payment. Ms. Leech refused to take my payment and stated that Vanderbilt would not accept any "partial payment" from me and that I would have to pay the insurance. I informed her that I wanted to make my full house payment as required by law however she refused. In the mail the next day i recieved a copy of the insurance policy Vanderbilt placed on my home with the effective dates of May 24, 2005-May 24, 2006 despite the fact that I already have a current policy in place on my home that has been in effect, without any lapse in coverage since September 2004.

I contacted my insurance agent who verified that I have a current policy that has not had any lapse in coverage and took Vanderbilts contact information down and said he would contact them to resolve the issue.

He called and spoke to a representative named Stephanie who looked at the file and notified him that she did not know why Vanderbilt had placed a policy on my home when it was already in their records that I had a policy in force and that he did not need to send a copy of my policy to them and he/I could disregard the forced policy because it was a mistake.

She informed my agent that she would put notes into the computer as such and that I should call Ms. Leech back and have her review Stephanie's notes and remove the policy.

My agent called me, I called Ms. Leech and she got rude and hateful on the phone stating "Why did your agent even call our office, I gave you very specific instructions and they were that he was to fax me your policy" as if she had a right to dictate whether my agent due his job and protect my interests when it comes to the insurance policies he binds.

At that point I told her that she was being rude and unprofessional and that I wanted to speak to her professional. She refused and I repeated that I would not deal with a rude employee and wanted her supervisor. She then hung up on me. I called back, got bounced around and finally was given to a MS. Karen Stephens who was suppossedly a supervisor.

Ms. Stephens informed me that she would contact the previous finance company about having the policy removed the following day because according to her they had put the policy on the home, not Vanderbilt.

However, when questioned she stated that Vanderbilt took over the loan on May 1st and the policy states that it is not effective until May 24th. Again, I stated that I wanted to make my payment and she refused stating that they would not accept my payment.

At this point, I requested to be given their actual physical address so that I could mail a complaint and Ms. Stephens refused. She then got rude also and hung up on me.

The following day, my insurance agent spoke numerous times with Ms. Stephens. She changed her story and now claimed that the policy that was placed on my home was for a period of time back in 2004 (Remember that I have a copy of the actual policy that was mailed to me with the ID cards showing the effective dates of May 24, 2005-

May 24, 2006). She claimed she had no knowledge of any such policy.

I called the number on the insurance policy and they verified that it was on my home and for the dates shown.

My agent then faxed all the forms requested by Vanderbilt directly to Ms. Stephens who said she would get the policy removed.


At approx 5:30 PM I called Vanderbilt, this time recording the entire conversation, and at first (prior to them being aware they were being recorded) the representative said that I was not listed as a signer on the loan and they could not discuss it with me, lol.

I then informed that representative that I was the signer, that they had been calling me for three days straight and discussing the account with me and that for legal purposes I was recording the call.

Suddenly, there was no further mention of me not being a signer and I was put on hold. I waited, and waited, and then was hung up on.

I called back and again informed the representative that I was recording call and requested to speak to my account rep. I was told that she was not available so I requested to speak with Ms. Stephens. I was told she was not available. I then stated that I was not going to hang up until I spoke to someone regarding my account. I was then put on hold and suddenly Ms. Stephens is available (how convenient).

Ms. Stephens then lies and states that she never recieved anything from my agent despite the fact that I was in his office when he faxed the info to her attention.

During the course of the conversation with her, she informs me that once she recieves the information she will "pass it along to be researched". I inform her that there is nothing to research and that the policy they put on my home is illegal and that once they have proof of coverage they are required to remove it. She then informs me, after three days of stating SHE was going to resolve the issue, that she isn't even in the insurance or customer service department and is instead in collections.

I then ask her if she is saying that my loan is now been turned over to collections even though Vanderbilt is refusing to accept payment and she says that yes, my loan is in collections because it was due on the first of the month.

I repeat to her that I want to make my mortgage payment and she refused to accept it and hung up on me. I have this entire conversation recorded and she repeatedly refuses to take my house payment. I have come to the conclusion that Vanderbilt's goal is to refuse my mortgage payment so that they can say I am delinguent, attempt to forclose and then re-sell house since it has less thatn 1 1/2 yrs on a 15 yr. loan left. These people are unreal, insane, and unprofessional not to mention thieves and liars.

I will be recording every conversation I have with them, having my agent send them my policy certified return receipt with a signature required, sending them a letter of dispute on the policy, a letter requesting copies of all correspondence between myself and every one of their employees, a letter stating that if my loan is not removed from collections because of this disputed / illegal insurance that I will pursue legal action.

I have also already requested that the forms for filing a complaint with the Insurance commission be sent to me which I will be filing.

I have contacted the Attorney Generals office and I will be contacting the Better Business Bureau, the credit reporting agencies, as well as any/all other resources I can locate to stop this consumer abuse and illegal activity.

Patricia
Conroe, Texas
U.S.A.

This report was posted on Ripoff Report on 05/19/2005 12:44 AM and is a permanent record located here: https://www.ripoffreport.com/reports/vanderbilt-mortgage/maryville-tennessee-37804/vanderbilt-mortgage-illegal-forced-insurance-policy-refusal-to-accept-mortgage-payment-p-143302. The posting time indicated is Arizona local time. Arizona does not observe daylight savings so the post time may be Mountain or Pacific depending on the time of year. Ripoff Report has an exclusive license to this report. It may not be copied without the written permission of Ripoff Report. READ: Foreign websites steal our content

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#4 UPDATE EX-employee responds

Asking for a supervisor will get you nowhere with this company.

AUTHOR: Sally - (U.S.A.)

POSTED: Monday, December 12, 2005

It is a normal practice when we don't get the results we want to ask the representative to let us speak with their supervisor. Think about it, though. If you were this "collector," would you pass the call off to your true supervisor, or to the co-worker sitting next to you (who has probably been laughing at the whole conversation). It is pretty much an unknown rule to these people to pass the call to a peer, thus keeping themselves out of trouble. Even if you continue to call back, you are constantly getting "collectors" because the supervisors do not log in to the phone - meaning a supervisor will never answer the phone without you being transferred to them by someone else. The person you need to talk to is David Barton. You won't find anyone to transfer you to him - contrary to what you believe, these people aren't stupid. You only need to call in on the local number 865-380-3000 and press "9" for automated directory. This will send you directly to him. He probably won't answer, as it is also a regular practice for the "higher ups" to screen their phone calls. But if you leave him a message, he will return your call. Not only will your problem get resolved, the representative will more than likely be addressed properly.

Also - when you "record" a conversation, all the rep has to tell you is they do not give their permission to be recorded and your tape is then worthless. (As far as holding up in court).

I hope this helps you.

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#3 Consumer Suggestion

I have more info for you.

AUTHOR: Georganna - (U.S.A.)

POSTED: Sunday, December 11, 2005

I did not receive any help from the Attorney General's Office for the state of Texas. To be fair, I should add that although we purchased our home in Texas, we were not legal residents. We are a military family. We are not a legal resident of Tennessee nor have we been stationed there. However, the Attorney General of Tennessee did successfully intervene on our behalf. The following is a general letter that I received from a Real estate attorney in Texas. He told me to fill it out and mail it to them.

Dear ,
You are put on notice that the above referenced debt is disputed in its entirety. I hereby request verification of the debt, and such verification is to consist of a copy of all contracts and agreements between the parties, documentary proof of all performance of the contracts by the creditor and all business records of the creditor concerning the alleged debt.
Pursuant to 15 U.D.C./1692g, cease all further debt collection activity on this matter until you have sent such verification to me.

^ You will want to put this in a business format with all of your relevant information. In particular. Ask them for the copies of the declarations of thier insurance investigations and the the contracts you signed agreeing to forced placed insurance.
The first time I sent this letter I got a copy of our original contract and a description of our Arbitration Agreement. I then started to list specifics (copies of receipts etc.)I started making a note at the bottom of each letter pertaining to how many times I had sent it. Example: "This is the third request I have made for this information."

Finally, after the fourth or fifth time, I sent copies of these letters, Vanderbilt's responses, and our original contracts to the State Attorney Offices of all the States involved. In response to the Tennessee Attorney General's Office; Vanderbilt declared they could not find the neccessary information (it didn't exist) and therefore would drop the matter and correct our credit report.

I want to assume that you have been triumphant in your defense and the information I just gave you is no longer needed.

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#2 Consumer Suggestion

Correction to Georganna's information

AUTHOR: Mr - (U.S.A.)

POSTED: Sunday, December 04, 2005

Vanderbilt's home office is the Maryville address and also has 3 collection offices in TN, NC, and TX. The Alabama address that you, Georganna, gave is actually a lockbox, a space in a processing center. If someone is to send a payment by certified mail, I would do it to the home office and not the Alabama address since it may take days before someone actually signs for it.
Another incorrect fact is NO ONE can sell a home that is actually not empty. Probably what happened was that the loan was sent to an attorney and they the authorities served a writ, but your home cannot be sold while you are in it.
Regarding the checks, I would just keep copy of checks cancelled by Vanderbilt, that is the best evidence that vanderbilt received a payment. When Vanderbilt cashed a check, they print a number and also their name on the back of the check. That shows they received their money. you can spend money in certified mail, and time going to the court, but you can just simply solve it by keeping copy of your cancelled checks.

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#1 Consumer Comment

Same old tactic under a new name

AUTHOR: Georganna - (U.S.A.)

POSTED: Friday, May 20, 2005

This has happened before, Oakwood Acceptance Corporation also used Force Placed Insurance as a tactic to steal homes. The were sued in a class action law suit and lost. The soon filed bankruptcy and sold all of thier accets to Vanderbilt Mortgage, both companies are owned by Berkshire Hathaway in Omaha Nebraska.
The class action suit that Oakwood lost regarding forced placed insurance was in San Antonio Texas, 1996 and 1997.
Be sure to send all copies of your correspondence to the Texas Attorney Generals Office.
I have had the most success with the State of Tennesse. Be sure to file a complaint with their Attorney General as well.

Vanderbilt's home office is:
Vanderbilt Mortgage and Finance
500 Alcoa Trail
Maryville, Tennessee 37804

There collections office is:
Vanderbilt Mortgage
P.O. Box 2252
Birmingham, AL 35246-0042

Send your payment by mail, certified, return receipt.

If it gets bad, Vanderbilt will use a collection agency called SYNCOM out of Houston Texas to collect from you. At that point, they have already filed the paperwork to forclose on your home with the local courthouse. Many people do not know their house has been sold at a public auction until they have been served with eviction by the local sherrif. Watch the leagal section in your local paper.
I saw one suggestion of taking copies of your checks, certified receipts and returned receipts down to the courthouse every month to have them put into public record.
Good luck.
You are correct in assuming that Vanderbilt wants your house, most of their money is made by re selling repossed homes. They have a whole websight dedicated to it. I discovered that they had made inquirey on our credit just before they started their campain against us. (years after we puchased our home, with no late payments or any other reason to do a follow-up credit check)I assume they were checking our personal taxes, accounts, credit, etc; to see if we had the assets available to hire the attorneys needed to protect ourselves.

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