Current through Register Vol. 46, No. 12, March 20, 2024
(a) Servicers shall establish and maintain:
(1) procedures and systems to respond to and
resolve borrower complaints and inquiries in accordance with the requirements
of this Part;
(2) a customer
service department staffed by trained personnel to whom borrowers may direct
complaints and inquiries; and
(3) a
toll-free telephone number or collect calling service that enables borrowers to
speak with a living person, during regular business hours, trained to answer
inquiries and instruct borrowers on how to file written complaints.
(b) Every welcome packet and
periodic statement, including as applicable either the monthly mortgage
statement or annual coupon book, and annual statement pursuant to section
419.5(a) of this Part that is provided to a borrower, and any website
maintained by the servicer, shall clearly and conspicuously state:
(1) an address to which borrowers can direct
complaints and inquiries;
(2) the
toll-free telephone number or collect calling services provided by the
servicer;
(3) whether the servicer
is registered with the superintendent;
(4) that the borrower may file complaints and
obtain further information about the servicer by contacting the New York State
Department of Financial Services Consumer Assistance Unit at 1-800-342-3736 or
by visiting the department's website at
www.dfs.ny.gov.
(c) Within 10 days of receiving a request in
writing from a borrower, a servicer shall provide the borrower with the name,
address, phone number or email address, if available, and other relevant
contact information for the mortgagee and the holder of the promissory note
executed by the borrower.
(d) In
addition to the information required to be disclosed under this section, a
servicer may, at its option, provide any other information regarding the
servicing of the loan that it believes would be helpful to a borrower, provided
that such additional information does not contradict or obscure the required
disclosures.
(e)
Borrower
complaints.
A servicer shall comply with the requirements of this
section for any written complaint, including those transmitted electronically,
from a borrower that includes the name of the borrower, information that
enables the servicer to identify the borrower's mortgage loan account, and the
nature of the borrower's complaint.
(1) Acknowledgement of complaint. Within five
business days of receiving a complaint from a borrower, the servicer shall
provide to the borrower a written response that:
(i) acknowledges receipt of the borrower's
complaint;
(ii) informs the
borrower of any additional information or documentation required by the
servicer to review and address the complaint; and, if applicable;
(iii) informs the borrower that the complaint
has been reassigned to the borrower's single point of contact or escalated to a
supervisor.
(2) A
servicer may request supporting documentation from a borrower in connection
with the investigation of a complaint, but may not:
(i) require a borrower to provide such
information as a condition of investigating a complaint; or
(ii) determine that no error occurred because
the borrower failed to provide any requested information without conducting a
reasonable investigation pursuant to paragraph (3) of this
subdivision.
(3)
Response to complaint.
(i) Upon receiving a
borrower complaint, a servicer must conduct a reasonable investigation and
either:
(a) correct any error or other
servicing-related issue identified and provide the borrower with a written
notification of the correction, the effective date of the correction, and
contact information, including a telephone number, for further assistance;
or
(b) if the servicer has
determined that no error occurred or that no action is warranted to correct a
servicing-related issue, inform the borrower, in writing, of the results of the
servicer's investigation and provide a statement of the reason or reasons for
this determination, a statement of the borrower's right to request documents
relied upon by the servicer in reaching its determination, information
regarding how the borrower can request such documents, and contact information,
including a telephone number, for further assistance.
(ii) Time limits.
(a) In general. A servicer shall comply with
the requirements of subparagraph (i) of this paragraph:
(1) not later than seven business days after
the servicer receives a complaint relating to the servicer's failure to provide
an accurate payoff balance amount in violation of section 419.5(d) of this
Part;
(2) prior to the date of a
scheduled foreclosure sale or within 15 business days after the servicer
receives the complaint, whichever is earlier, for complaints relating to:
(i) the commencement of a residential
foreclosure action against the borrower in violation of section 419.10(a)(4) of
this Part; or
(ii) moving for a
foreclosure judgment or order of sale, or conducting a foreclosure sale in
violation of section 419.10(a)(5) of this Part.
(3) for all other complaints, not later than
30 business days after the servicer receives the complaint.
(b) Extension of time limit. For
complaints governed by the time limit in subclause
(a)(3) of this subparagraph, a servicer may
extend the time period for responding by an additional 7 business days if,
before the end of the 30-day period, the servicer notifies the borrower of the
extension and the reasons for the extensions in writing. A servicer may not
extend the time period for responding to complaints set forth in subclause
(a)(1) or (2) of this
subparagraph.
(iii) If
the servicer has determined that no error occurred or that no action is
warranted to correct a servicing-related issue, the servicer shall provide a
borrower with copies of documents and information relied upon by the servicer
in making its determination that no error occurred or that no corrective action
is warranted within 15 business days of receiving the borrower's request for
such documents. If a servicer withholds documents relied upon because it has
determined that such documents constitute confidential, proprietary or
privileged information, the servicer must:
(a)
notify the borrower of its determination in writing within 15 business days of
receipt of the borrower's request for such documents; and
(b) include in such notification a reasonable
description of the contents of the each withheld document and the basis for
withholding the document.
(4) A servicer shall not charge a fee, or
require a borrower to make any payment that may be owed on a borrower's
account, as a condition of responding to a complaint or to providing copies of
documents and information relied upon by the servicer in determining that no
error occurred or no corrective action was needed in response to a
complaint.
(5) Supervisory review.
A servicer shall have a process that enables borrowers to escalate complaints
or pending loss mitigation matters for a supervisory level review.