First American Title Insurance Company

Dear Sirs:First American Title Insurance Company ("Company") has just received a copy of theComplaint filed on or about November 2, 2014 by Ms. [redacted] with the Revdex.com("Revdex.com"). The Company has no record of previously receiving this complaint form. Having...

justreceived the form, this letter shall serve as the Company's written response to the complaint.The Company has previously responded to each of the items described in the Complaintby prior correspondence, including a response generated as a result of a complaint filed by Ms.[redacted] with the Department of Insurance. For your ease of reference, I attach copies of theprior correspondence for your review.Ms. [redacted]'s complaint arises from her receipt of a Litigation Guarantee issued by theCompany. Ms. [redacted]'s position and her complaint are based in part on a complete andfundamental misunderstanding of the purposes of a Litigation Guarantee ("Guarantee"). As Ms.[redacted] has been repeatedly advised, the purpose of a litigation guarantee is clearly expressedon the face of the document. The Guarantee provides: "This Litigation Guarantee is furnishedsolely for the purpose of facilitating the filing of the action referred to in Scheduled A. It shallnot be used or relied upon for any other purpose." (Emphasis added.) The action described inthis Guarantee was for Enforcement of Judgments/Judicial Foreclosure.This product does not guarantee that her judgment is a valid lien on the property nor doesit guarantee her ability to collect the judgment by foreclosing on the property. The information inthe Guarantee is entirely accurate for the express purpose of the Guarantee, which was only todescribe those parties who must be sued in the type of lawsuit described in the Guarantee.As Ms. [redacted] has been advised, a Guarantee is a title policy and is covered by theprovisions ofthe Insurance Code sections 12340.10 and 12340.11. These products are notrepresentations of title but are contracts of indemnity defined by their terms and provisionsThere is no policy liability for alleged incorrect information because the product is not arepresentation as to title. This Guarantee fulfills its intended purpose by accurately describing theparties needed for the suit in order for the enforcement of her judgment to be effective.As to Ms. [redacted]'s complaint about her attempt to subpoena Company employees totestify at trial, I have advised her on several occasions that the Company has no evidence ofreceiving service of a proper trial subpoena and the appropriate tender of witness fees. TheCompany understands that Ms. [redacted] was intending to use the testimony of the companyemployees to establish her case as to title to the property being held by the judgment debtor.Company employees are not qualified to provide such testimony nor is such testimonyappropriate for determining title to real property in a judicial proceeding.Included with my letter of October 8, 2014 to Ms. [redacted] was a full refund of thepremium she paid for the Guarantee. The Company believes that Ms. [redacted]'s litigation toenforce a judgment against property not owned by the judgment debtor is not an actionbenefitted by the coverage of a Guarantee. No legitimate foreclosure action could have beencommenced under the then existing circumstances, so no Guarantee should have been issued inthose circumstances. However, because the Guarantee was effective as to the action actuallybrought by Ms. [redacted] there is no covered loss as a result of the coverages provided.The Company made no guarantees or warranties to Ms. [redacted] regarding her ability tocollect her judgment nor did the Company provide information upon which she was entitled torely. The Company did not guarantee or warrant the success of her efforts to collect a civiljudgment.If any further information or materials are required, please advise. I can be reacheddirectly at: [redacted]Thank you for your consideration in this matter.Very truly yours,[redacted]

Several years agorchased a piece of property in Pa. and after a few more years of saving, began to build our modest log retirement home. We also purchased a Title Insurance Policy from First American for the purchase price of the property since the closing attorney recommended it.
Well into the construction project, we were notified that the land we were building on belonged to an adjoining property owner, despite the fact that the deed had been searched and cleared by First American Title prior to our purchase and that I held a Registered Survey in the county where I was building.
Construction screeched to a halt, my contractor moved on and the long, long drawn out process of dealing with an insurance company began. It has been almost 1 1/2 years that the attorneys have been focused on their "billable hours" instead of resolving what could have been a simple claim. Our construction site sits overgrown and deserted while First American Title Ins. procrastinates and treats us like a policy number. We cannot even borrow against the property now since it is in litigation.
In reviewing our [$800 plus premium] policy, I found that their wording (legaleze) had stripped away any/all of our rights to challenge the company, work within time frames and determine what the resolution to our claim would be. They had given themselves complete and total control over if, when, and how the claim would be settled.

[redacted], the office manager, informed me that I had left too long a voicemail msg and also that I was NOT her customer(despite a $65 service charge)...only the 1st American Warrenty Co was their customer. She also denied that they had received an email from 1st American, only to minutes later find the email. I was told she had 40 messages, 2 workers quit, and she didn't have time to help.
The service tech also showed up on the wrong day.
If your Warrenty company suggests Bass Plumbing, I would seriously consider requesting an alternate option.

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
No one from the business has contacted me. I even talked with a [redacted] manager about three weeks ago who said they'd want to make it right and take care of what's their responsibility. I emailed the tax document to the manager, to share it with the title company. So far I have not received any response. The business letter to the Revdex.com states that they'll send us a check, but we have not received any communication or check from them. They also need to send me a letter of apology for having been rude to me and hanging up when I called to inquire about the misinformation they had offered. If they strongly believe that the first year tax should only apply to the land and not the property, as they had told us at the closing, they should contact the assessor's office to fix the error and ensure we only pay taxes for the land.
Regards,
[redacted]

My issue with First American Title Company has been resolved by way of a monetary agreement via email. Thanks [redacted]
Sent from my Verizon 4G LTE Smartphone

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2015/12/10) */
Re: Case No. [redacted]
To whom it may concern:
Mr. [redacted]'s complaint involves two issues: (a). The handling of the roof repair escrow, and (b). certain events that occurred at or near the time of closing. I will address each...

matter separately.
Regarding the Roof Repair Escrow
A quick review of the escrow process is in order before dealing with the specifics of Mr. [redacted]'s complaint. Simply stated, a title company will collect funds from the buyer and/or seller in order to set aside monies to pay for the resolution of a matter that would otherwise either cancel or delay a closing. Such monies are put aside in escrow by the title company to be used for no other purpose. Without such an escrow, an exception for the matter would appear on the policy(ies) issued after closing.
In this case, $8,721.00 was escrowed to fund the repair of the roof. $8,037.00 was funded by Mr. [redacted], and $684.00 was funded by the seller. Since the escrow was collected at closing, there were no exceptions on either the lender or the owner title insurance policy for mechanics' liens based upon the roofing contractor not being paid in full for work done. In order to be certain that the roofing contractor would be paid in full for all work being performed, it is essential that the transaction "remain in balance". In other words, at any point in time the escrowed funds must be in an amount at least equal to the amount remaining to be paid to the contractor. This is a requirement of all title companies, and it is not unique to First American.
As Mr. [redacted] stated in his complaint, he elected to have additional work performed which was not included in the original estimate provided by the roofing contractor. This, in turn, resulted in the transaction being out of balance; the total costs exceeded the amount of escrowed funds by $2,274.00. As a result of this, the First American closers assigned to the file had to ensure that the additional $2,274.00 would be available to pay for the additional work not covered by the escrow. The normal resolution would be for either Mr. [redacted] to deliver the $2,274.00 to First American who would then forward the $2,274.00 and the remaining escrow funds to the contractor to pay the contractor in full. In the alternative, Mr. [redacted] could pay the $2,274.00 directly to the contractor who would then notify First American when the $2,274.00 was received; at that point First American would release the remaining escrow funds to the contractor to pay the contractor in full. In either event, the contractor would be in a position to provide First American with a full Mechanics' Lien Waiver for all work performed, thereby assuring that title to the property would not be burdened by a mechanics' lien for unpaid roofing work.
It appears that Mr. [redacted]'s frustration is based upon his not fully understanding the necessity of the steps that First American had to take to assure good title to the property.
On Thursday, December 3, the matter was compromised by First American releasing the remaining escrowed funds to the contractor on the understanding that Mr. [redacted] would subsequently pay the additional $2,274.00 to the contractor. In a follow up telephone conversation with Mr. [redacted] on Tuesday, December 8, he stated that he had forwarded the additional $2,274.00 to the contractor and that he was satisfied with the resolution of the matter.
Regarding Events at Closing
The closing occurred in January of 2015. For understandable reasons the closer's memory of the events surrounding the closing is quite vague.
Regarding the deed, she does recall that the notary public inadvertently used a recently expired notary stamp. By way of explanation, this was a common problem in January and February 2015 since new notary public appointments were issued by the State of Minnesota in January 2015. A corrected deed using the current notary stamp was obtained the next day from the seller.
Concerning the other aspects of Mr. [redacted]'s complaint, the file shows that the closer did not receive the lender's closing instructions until January 21, which was the date of closing. Unfortunately this last minute delivery of closing instructions and documents from the lender is all too common. It is therefore possible that Mr. [redacted]'s complaint is based upon the limited time he had to review and discuss the closing documents as prepared in accordance with the lender's closing instructions.
Conclusion
Hopefully this correspondence addresses your concerns. The issues surrounding the release of the roof repair escrow were Mr. [redacted]'s primary complaint. As discussed above the escrow release matter has been resolved to Mr. [redacted]'s satisfaction.
Sincerely,
David [redacted]

I was referred to Bass Plumbing via my home warranty company, HMS. I called Bass Plumbing to schedule an appointment and left a voicemail. It took a couple of days for someone to return my call. When they did, I was happy that they could send someone out the following day. I was told that someone would be at my house between 11am and 2pm, and that I'd receive a call at some point during that time letting me know when the person would be making their way over to my house. I took the day off from work for this appointment. Not only did someone NOT show up, I never received a phone call. Around 2:30pm, I followed up and called the company to inquire if someone would still be coming out that day. Again, no one answered the phone and I left a voicemail, but no one has since followed up with me. This is awful to experience something like this. It's bad enough when things aren't working properly in your home, but the added inconvenience of no one showing up makes it that much worse.

I live in Wilmington and when my water decided to quite working Bass Plumbing, Riley, came to the rescue. Riley was a very professional workman who kept me informed and did an excellent job. Even though this company is in Fayetteville, they do work in Wilmington. American Home Shield put me in touch with Bass and I am glad they did. YES I WOULD RECOMMEND THEM.

I spoke to Mr. Bass on Thursday evening due to a leak under my kitchen sink. He put me on the schedule for the next morning. He arrived on time and thoroughly checked (and fixed) everything. He is very knowledgable, friendly, and reasonably priced.

I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.

No one from the business has contacted me. I even talked with a [redacted] manager about three weeks ago who said they'd want to make it right and take care of what's their responsibility. I emailed the tax document to the manager, to share it with the title company. So far I have not received any response. The business letter to the Revdex.com states that they'll send us a check, but we have not received any communication or check from them. They also need to send me a letter of apology for having been rude to me and hanging up when I called to inquire about the misinformation they had offered. If they strongly believe that the first year tax should only apply to the land and not the property, as they had told us at the closing, they should contact the assessor's office to fix the error and ensure we only pay taxes for the land.

Regards,[redacted]

Thank you for your inquiry.  My apologies for the delay.  This file was closed in one of our offices in Tucson, which is no longer under the First American direct operation so it took some time to investigate what had transpired.The contract between [redacted] and Mr. & Mrs....

[redacted] states on Page 2 at Paragraph 13, (attached as [redacted] Contract)  that at closing the current year's taxes shall be prorated to the closing date on the basis of the latest available tax statement.  At the time of the closing, the latest available tax statement was the 2013 tax statement,  (attached as [redacted] Taxes).  The prorated credit that the [redacted] received was based on the 2013 tax bill.  This proration was due from the seller, [redacted], not from First American.  We did follow the instructions provided in the contract for how the taxes would be prorated, so this proration is in fact correct.That said, it appears that our team fell down on the service side in their communication with you both at closing and post-closing when you contacted them.  As a gesture of good will,  First American will offer to pay Mr. & Mrs. [redacted] the sum of $819.02, which would be difference between the credit they received at closing and the amount they would have received as a credit at closing if we had the 2014 tax statement, which we did not.  The 2014 taxes total $2,699.40, which equals $$7.49 per day multiplied by 121 days, from January 1, 2014 to closing, May 2, 2014 = $906.29, less the credit they received in the amount of $87.27, totals $819.02.   The balance of the 2014 taxes due are the responsibility of Mr. & Mrs. [redacted] since they have owned the property since May 2, 2014.  I will make arrangements for a check in the amount of $819.02 to be mailed to Mr. & Mrs. [redacted] at their property address.  I hope that they find this solution satisfactory.  They are also welcome to contact [redacted] to inquire as to the tax prorations.  Please let me know if you have any questions whatsoever.  I can be reached at my office at ([redacted]) [redacted]Vice-President, Operations Manager

WORST COMPANY EVER! Beware: make sure your deed reads exactly what you are buying, according to the deed in your municipalities house of deeds, or they refuse to fix it because it's not covered by the title insurance policy!! How can THEIR own mistake NOT be covered?! After applying for a permit for a garage, we learned that they have the deed to our house as a house that's actually a block away, and on a completely different street! That doesn't include the fact that they didn't do their research about the land next to our house that they say isn't ours. In a public meeting, our township declared it ours, and they refuse to fix the problem! They keep trying to force us to sign a new deed that doesn't even read the correct property measurements. The people we have dealt with have been the rudest people we have ever dealt with! They aren't afraid to laugh right at you. I wouldn't recommend this company to ANYONE. Think again before you use them!!

This matter has been resolved to the satisfaction of the complainant after communicating via email.   See attached letter explaining the situation which has been sent to Ms. [redacted] by the appropriate individual.  Please let me know if you require any further information.

Thank you for your reply to our response.  First of all, allow me to apologize to you.  I see that in my response to the complaint, I did not include an apology.  You are correct that you definitely deserve an apology for the way you were treated by the escrow officer.  I hope that you can accept my sincerest apology as this is not how we want our clients to be treated at First American.With regard to your question regarding the check, I did mail a check to you last week, which you should be receiving.  I included a handwritten note and it was sent to your property address.  Again, this check is being given to you as evidence of our sincerest regret regarding the way you were treated.  I am glad that you reached out to [redacted] so that they can assist you.  This is a matter that they should be involved in.  First American was only following the instructions that were given to us by you and the builder per the contract that you executed.Again my sincerest apologies to you.   If I can assist you in your discussions with [redacted], please let me know.  My direct number is [redacted]Sincerely,FIRST AMERICAN TITLE INSURANCE COMPANY[redacted]Vice-President Arizona Division([redacted]) [redacted]

My complaint with First American Title is the way they dragged out the escrow process. I was told a closing date of Friday and was completely prepared for it. Not until the day of closing was I told that things are getting pushed till Monday. Monday rolls around and once again, I'm waiting on someone from their office and told Tuesday. I spent all Tuesday waiting by a phone and not till 4:30 pm do I finally get a message saying signing is now late Wednesday. I will now not get my keys till Thursday. I took time off work for the move-in process which was now wasted time. Everyday I was left in limbo which caused me to waste entire days waiting. If at any point they would have upfront told me there was a huge delay I could have gone back to work and saved valuable vacation time. But everyday I would get told nothing but maybe's until near the end of business day and told to try again tomorrow. To force someone to put their life on hold for a week is borderline unethical. I don't know if it's a company standard or just the escrow officer I got but please be wary about using this company in the future.

First American Title Insurance Company prides itself in providing excellent customer service and appreciates the comments provided by [redacted].  Ms. [redacted]'s complaint pertains to fees that were charged in connection with wire transfer fees.  In regards to this particular transaction,...

it is my understanding that Ms. [redacted] was associated or is the lender that was being paid off in connection with the purchase and sale of a condo unit.  It is also important to note that First American Title Insurance Company did not charge the wire transfer fees of which Ms. [redacted] complains.  It is my understanding that these fees were charged by Ms. [redacted]'s bank that received the wire transfer.  A wire transfer is the preferred method of making a payoff for a secured loan.  First American regrets that Ms. [redacted] was not satisfied with how the transaction was handled.  Although Ms. [redacted] was not the buyer or seller in the transaction and even thought First American did not charge the wire transfer fee, in order to resolve the issue, First American is refunding Ms. [redacted] the $30 she was charged by her bank.

Terrible service to the poijnt of rudness. Not sure why they take an angry approach to doing business. Closed three homes with them and each one was more incompetent than the previous. BEWARE OF THIS COMPANY.

I would rather puncture my genitals with knitting needls than do business with these people again.

First American Insurance recently changed their policy such that any individual who wishes to pay in installments will be charged a $3.00 per installment fee. Seeing this included in my renewal paperwork, I called First American to change my rental insurance payment method. She told me they had already deducted my first payment (prior to the date that my policy is set to renew, and prior to my reception of the renewal paperwork). She told me that my subsequent payment, which would serve to pay off the balance on the annual policy, would be considered an installment as well and that therefore it would be subject to a $3.00 fee. I expressed my displeasure around this given the fact that the whole reason I had called was to avoid the installment fees. The lady I was speaking with told me there was nothing she could do. I asked her to waive the fee. She said she couldn't. I was never given an option to indicate how I preferred to pay and was never alerted to their change in policy. I'm looking for a different insurance provider. Terrible customer service.

Review: At the beginning of May 2014 my husband and I purchased a new house that was built in 2013. When we saw a property tax rate of only $263.26 on the settlement statement, and prorated builder portion of $87.27 for the first 4 months, we thought it was an error. The closer told us that taxes apply to only the lot when you buy a new house, and next year your property tax will apply to value of the house. We asked a few follow up questions to make sure we understood, and the same comment was repeated. Today we received the tax bill for 2014 which is a total of $2,699.41. I called the tax assessors office and explained what we were told. They said that is never the case, and as soon as the house is built taxes apply. I called the title company, and Tammy the closing rep told me that usually the tax assessors don't get to evaluate the house to apply taxes until much later so only the lot tax applies. When I told her that the assessors office tells me otherwise, she transferred my call to [redacted], the escrow officer. I explained the situation again, and mentioned that due to having been misinformed we now have an additional cost of $2,699.48 we did not expect. [redacted] told me the same thing that sometimes assessors don't apply tax to the house until the following year. When I asked why they'd inform us based on a rare possibility, she cut me off and told me they can't do anything about it and I should go read my contract. I told her she was not listening to me, and she told me to stop talking and to listen to her. When I told her to transfer my call to a manager since she was being rude, she said she's done talking to me and hung up.

I called back and asked to speak with a manager; the receptionist offered to transfer me to [redacted] again, and said another manager was not available.

It is unacceptable that they shared information based on an unreasonable possibility. It is unacceptable that we should pay taxes for the whole year while we didn't own the property the first 4 months. It is unacceptable that the title company rep was rude to a customer with valid concerns.Desired Settlement: If the title representative had told us that they could only include the lot tax in the settlement statement and that we'd have to pay the tax for the whole year, we'd have asked the builder to give us discount on the house price to cover their portion of tax for the first 4 months. Instead, they provided us with information that made us believe we're saving on taxes this year and our cost would be less than $200.

We expect the title company to cover our tax charge of $2,699.41, and send us an apology letter for having misinformed us and also for having been rude instead of offering to resolve the issue.

Business

Response:

Thank you for your inquiry. My apologies for the delay. This file was closed in one of our offices in Tucson, which is no longer under the First American direct operation so it took some time to investigate what had transpired.The contract between [redacted] and Mr. & Mrs. [redacted] states on Page 2 at Paragraph 13, (attached as [redacted] Contract) that at closing the current year's taxes shall be prorated to the closing date on the basis of the latest available tax statement. At the time of the closing, the latest available tax statement was the 2013 tax statement, (attached as [redacted] Taxes). The prorated credit that the [redacted] received was based on the 2013 tax bill. This proration was due from the seller, [redacted], not from First American. We did follow the instructions provided in the contract for how the taxes would be prorated, so this proration is in fact correct.That said, it appears that our team fell down on the service side in their communication with you both at closing and post-closing when you contacted them. As a gesture of good will, First American will offer to pay Mr. & Mrs. [redacted] the sum of $819.02, which would be difference between the credit they received at closing and the amount they would have received as a credit at closing if we had the 2014 tax statement, which we did not. The 2014 taxes total $2,699.40, which equals $$7.49 per day multiplied by 121 days, from January 1, 2014 to closing, May 2, 2014 = $906.29, less the credit they received in the amount of $87.27, totals $819.02. The balance of the 2014 taxes due are the responsibility of Mr. & Mrs. [redacted] since they have owned the property since May 2, 2014. I will make arrangements for a check in the amount of $819.02 to be mailed to Mr. & Mrs. [redacted] at their property address. I hope that they find this solution satisfactory. They are also welcome to contact [redacted] to inquire as to the tax prorations. Please let me know if you have any questions whatsoever. I can be reached at my office at ([redacted].[redacted]Vice-President, Operations Manager

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.

No one from the business has contacted me. I even talked with a [redacted] manager about three weeks ago who said they'd want to make it right and take care of what's their responsibility. I emailed the tax document to the manager, to share it with the title company. So far I have not received any response. The business letter to the Revdex.com states that they'll send us a check, but we have not received any communication or check from them. They also need to send me a letter of apology for having been rude to me and hanging up when I called to inquire about the misinformation they had offered. If they strongly believe that the first year tax should only apply to the land and not the property, as they had told us at the closing, they should contact the assessor's office to fix the error and ensure we only pay taxes for the land.

Regards,

Business

Response:

Thank you for your reply to our response. First of all, allow me to apologize to you. I see that in my response to the complaint, I did not include an apology. You are correct that you definitely deserve an apology for the way you were treated by the escrow officer. I hope that you can accept my sincerest apology as this is not how we want our clients to be treated at First American.With regard to your question regarding the check, I did mail a check to you last week, which you should be receiving. I included a handwritten note and it was sent to your property address. Again, this check is being given to you as evidence of our sincerest regret regarding the way you were treated. I am glad that you reached out to [redacted] so that they can assist you. This is a matter that they should be involved in. First American was only following the instructions that were given to us by you and the builder per the contract that you executed.Again my sincerest apologies to you. If I can assist you in your discussions with [redacted], please let me know. My direct number is [redacted]Sincerely,FIRST AMERICAN TITLE INSURANCE COMPANY[redacted]Vice-President Arizona Division([redacted]

Review: Today I received a letter "Notice of Default and intent to Foreclose to my address at [redacted]. They say That [redacted] (my maiden name) owe The [redacted] and [redacted] the amount of $3428.53 and are also charging a $200 foreclosure processing fee. I do not have a timeshare. I have never resided at Hazlet, NJ. I do not know who [redacted] is, they have him as my Co-obligator. I think this is a scam.Desired Settlement: Explain how they know my maiden name and address. Provide me with Social Security number provided to sign the contract.

Business

Response:

This matter has been resolved to the satisfaction of the complainant after communicating via email. See attached letter explaining the situation which has been sent to Ms. [redacted] by the appropriate individual. Please let me know if you require any further information.