WestStar Mortgage Inc

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2015/05/06) */
WestStar Mortgage is responding to the complaint you filed with the Revdex.com.
To being with, I would like to assure you that we strive to provide the best possible service to all of our valued customers. That being said, we do...

adhere very strictly to a policy of waiving late charges only when we have made an error. Due to a high scrutiny banks and lenders face, we are left with no latitude to make exceptions and we want to ensure we have a fair application of policy relating to waiving of late charges.
We cannot agree with your assertions that WestStar Mortgage has delayed or otherwise misprocessed your check payments. Conversely, our policies and procedures require that all complete payments be processed as of the day they are received and that under no circumstances are such payments held for future day processing.
We have investigated this matter and have confirmed that we initially received check [redacted] on April 7, 2015 and, in accordance with our standard miswritten checks procedures, check [redacted] was immediately returned to you the same day because the line amount on the check was blank; a copy of the miswritten check is enclosed for your reference. To clarify, we are unable to alter or add to the payment information provided on a check payment, including and not limited to writing the line amount. As you know, we did not receive another payment from you until we once again received check [redacted] on April 20, 2015, this time with all appropriate information present. Please review the enclosed payment history and the enclosed copy of the date-stamped payment processing record for check #2353, both of which reflect that the referenced completed check was received at our payment processing facility on April 20, 2015.
I must bring your attention to the enclosed copy of our April 7, 2015 returned check letter, which informed you that we needed to receive a replacement payment prior to the end of the grace period to avoid the assessment of a late charge and that you could make a replacement payment online or by phone. Our records reflect that you previously created an online account, if you were having trouble accessing your account you could have reset your password [redacted] username through our website, www.WSM.servicemyloan.com or called our Customer Service Department. Our Representatives are available Monday through Friday 5:00 AM PT to 5:00 PM PT and are more than happy to assist you with your account, including making a payment by phone and resetting your online log-in information. It should be noted that we have no record of you calling our Customer Service Department to discuss this matter until April 22, 2015, well after the expiration of the grace period.
According to the terms of the enclosed copy of the Promissory Note that you executed at the closing of this loan, payments are due on the 1st of the month. If a payment is not successfully received by the end of the 15th calendar day after the due date, a late charge will be assessed. It is the responsibility of the borrowers to ensure payments are received in accordance with the terms of the Note on the 1st of the month and within the grace period to avoid the assessment of a late charge.
As we did not successfully receive a payment for your April 1, 2015 installment by the first of the month due date or within the grace period, a late charge in the amount of $93.55, which was paid on April 20, 2015, was properly assessed. We are, therefore, unable to accommodate your request to refund this charge.
For your records, since your April 1, 2015 installment was successfully received within the same month it was due, no 30 day late has been or will be reported to the credit bureaus and this matter will not negatively affect your credit score.
To avoid any future payment issues we would like to recommend our payment drafting service, which is available at no cost. This option, which would automatically draft your payments from a designated bank account on the fifth day of each month, is explained in more detail on our website where you can also enroll if you choose. Enrollment in this service will ensure that your payment is received each month in a timely manner, providing that the draft is accepted by the financial institution, and would also save you mailing expenses.
We encourage you to continue to utilize our email notification service which you recently enrolled in, as this no cost service allows you to monitor the timely receipt of your payments and information regarding your account. However, I must direct your attention to the enclosed copy of the email that was sent to you on December 29, 2014, which alerted you that you could enroll in this service through your online account. Our records reflect that you did not elect to enroll in this service until you spoke with one of our representatives on April 22, 2015.
As of the date of this letter your loan is next due for the June 1, 2015 installment in the amount of $2,791.14. If you have any further questions I may be reached by phone at (XXX) XXX-XXXX, ext. [redacted]
Sincerely,
[redacted]
Consumer Compliance
Enclosures
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (3000, 8, 2015/05/07) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
I am unable to accept WestStar's response. I disagree that WestStar has striven to provide "the best possible service." As I said in my original complaint, I made every effort to make sure that WestStar received the payment on time; WestStar made minimal effort. They delayed in processing the first check, they delayed in notifying me of the problem, and they delayed in processing the second check. My previous resolution request remains: refund the late fee charges.
RE: "We initially received check [redacted] on April 7, 2015 and, in accordance with our standard miswritten checks procedures, check [redacted] was immediately returned to you the same day."
This claim is unbelievable. I wrote the check March 28 and mailed it March 28 or 29. As you can see from my payment history, you processed all other payments between the 2nd and 5th day of the month. In April, all other factors were equal. I believe that you delayed between receiving the check and processing it, and again between rejecting it and notifying me.
RE: "We are unable to alter or add to the payment information provided on a check payment, including and not limited to writing the line amount."
Please do not imply that I said WestStar should "alter" payment information. The amount I intended to write was very clearI wrote it in two other locations. Writing it in a third location is not altering it.
RE: "Please review the payment history and the date-stamped payment processing record... which reflect that the check was received at our payment processing facility on April 20."
Neither document shows that you "received" the check on April 20. They only show when you "processed" it.

RE: "I must bring your attention to the enclosed copy of our April 7, 2015 returned check letter."

I must bring to your attention that I didn't receive said letter until ~April 14 or 15.
RE: "Our records reflect that you previously created an online account, if you were having trouble accessing your account you could have reset your password [redacted] username through our website."
As I previously stated several times, that account was for a different loan that I had with WestStar, NOT the current loan. I tried to access the website to make the April payment but was unable to log on because I didn't have an online account for my current loan. If you investigate the failed logins, you will see that I tried to access my account several times and that I tried to reset the password.
RE: "To avoid any future payment issues we would like to recommend our payment drafting service, which is available at no cost."
To avoid any future payment issues, I would like to recommend some common sense. If there is a problem that you can fix, then fix it. If you reject a payment for any reason, notify me quickly. Don't notify me via snail-mail. We could have avoided this issue if you had notified me telephonically or electronically. I prefer to make my payments using the most convenient method for me: with checks.
Final Business Response /* (4000, 10, 2015/05/14) */
WestStar Mortgage is responding to the rebuttal you filed with the Revdex.com.
While we are sorry to see that you found our previous correspondence to be insufficient, we once again cannot agree with your assertions that WestStar Mortgage has delayed or otherwise misprocessed your check payments. You have outlined six additional concerns in your rebuttal and they are addressed in this letter in the order they appear on your complaint.
1. Please review the previously enclosed date-stamped payment processing record for check [redacted] specifically the Date and Payment Date fields on the top of the document which reflect check [redacted] was received and date-stamped at our payment processing facility on April 7, 2015. It should be noted that while you have continued to assert delays have occurred on the part of WestStar Mortgage in relation to the processing of the referenced payment, you have not supported those assertions with any documentation to support your position.
2. We are once again unable to amend check payments, including filling-in or completing blank fields. Upon receiving check [redacted] it was determined that the check was miswritten as the line amount was left blank and, in accordance with our standard miswritten checks procedures, check [redacted] was immediately returned to you.
3. I must reiterate that WestStar Mortgage's policies and procedures require that all complete payments be processed as of the day they are received, that under no circumstances are such payments held for future day processing, and that our policy is to date-stamp all coupon payments upon receipt. We are confident that the documentation we have provided to you is sufficient to evidence when check [redacted] was received.
4. As you state in your rebuttal, you received the returned check on April 14th or 15th,which was prior to the expiration of the grace period and provided you time to successfully complete a payment, including and not limited to an online payment or phone payment, prior to a late charge being assessed. It is the responsibility of the borrower to ensure payments are received in accordance with the terms of the Note on the 1st of the month and within the grace period to avoid the assessment of a late charge.
5. For your clarification, your online account can be used to access both your paid off loan and your current loan. I must reiterate that our Customer Service Representatives are available Monday through Friday 5:00 AM PT to 5:00 PM PT and are more than happy to assist you with your account, including and not limited to making a phone payment and resetting your online log-in information, and that we have no record of you calling our Customer Service Department to discuss this matter until April 22, 2015, or well after the expiration of the grace period.
6. We are pleased that you have elected to enroll in our no-cost email notification service as this no-cost service allows you to monitor the timely receipt of your payments and information regarding your account. I must once again direct your attention to the previously enclosed copy of the email that was sent to you on December 29, 2014, which alerted you that you could enroll in this service through your online account. Please be advised that not all of our customers find this service one to which they want to subscribe, and that our customers are only enrolled in this service after they indicate they would like to be.
While WestStar Mortgage offers its customers a multitude of payment methods to assist them with making their payments in a timely manner and we believe these other payment options are beneficial to our customers, it is absolutely at our customer's discretion as to whether they elect to utilize these services or not.

We have re-confirmed that the April 2015 late charge in the amount of $93.55, which was paid on April 20, 2015, was properly assessed and will not be waived.
As of the date of this letter your loan is currently due for the June 1, 2015 installment in the amount of $2,791.14. Please ensure that we receive a payment by May 18, 2015 to avoid the assessment of a late charge. If you have any further questions I may be reached by phone at (XXX) XXX-XXXX, ext. [redacted]
Sincerely,
[redacted]
Consumer Compliance
Final Consumer Response /* (4200, 12, 2015/05/18) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
WestStar has failed (again) to address my concerns and requests. I remain unsatisfied that it looked at the matter from a common sense standpoint. WestStar has failed (again) to propose any resolution, let alone one with which I can agree.
RE: "Please review the previously enclosed date-stamped payment processing record for check [redacted] specifically the Date and Payment Date fields on the top of the document which reflect check [redacted] was received and date-stamped at our payment processing facility on April 7, 2015."
The ONLY enclosure with April 7 written ANYWHERE is the letter informing me "the dollar amount written on the check was miswritten or blank." None of the other enclosures has April 7 written anywhere. Perhaps WestStar forgot to enclose the "payment processing record."
RE: "While you continue to assert delays have occurred on the part of WestStar Mortgage... you have not supported those assertions with any documentation."
On the contrary, I showed that WestStar failed to process the check or notify me of the problem in a timely manner. First, I wrote the check on March 28, and mailed it the same or next day. WestStar certainly must have received it before then, similar to all other payments that I have ever made. Second, despite the April 7 date on the notification letter, I received it ~ a week later, which shows the letter was likely backdated.
RE: "We are once again unable to amend check payments, including filling-in or completing blank fields."
Poppycock. WestStar wrote "legal" in the check memo field. Either WestStar has a double standard, or it applies the standard only when convenient for WestStar. The intended amount was clear: I wrote it in two other places.
RE: "Upon receiving check [redacted] it was determined that the check was miswritten as the line amount was left blank and, in accordance with our standard miswritten checks procedures, check [redacted] was immediately returned to you."
I disagree that it was "immediately" returned to me. While WestStar continues to assert that it notified me in a timely manner, it has not supported those assertions with any documentation. A telephone call or email would constitute "immediately," notifying me of the problem. A back-dated letter doesn't constitute anything.
RE: "I must reiterate... that our policy is to date-stamp all coupon payments upon receipt. We are confident that the documentation we have provided to you is sufficient to evidence when check [redacted] was received."
Again, none of the enclosures show when WestStar received the check. The coupon payment, which you assert that WestStar date-stamped, was not enclosed.
I must reiterate that I attempted to make the payment on time. I mailed the check on March 28 or 29, and re-mailed it the same or next day that I received notification of the problem. On the other hand, WestStar failed to process the payments in a timely manner, failed to notify me of problems in a timely manner, and used double standards instead of common sense when one of the check fields was blank.