Forced Placed Insurance

As a condition of obtaining a mortgage loan, lenders generally require homeowners to maintain insurance on their property.  In some cases, unsuspecting homeowners may find out that their insurance coverage has lapsed without their knowledge, for example, if they escrowed their premiums to their lender but their lender never paid the premium.  In the event of such a lapse in coverage, mortgage lenders frequently “force place” insurance on the property by purchasing a separate policy and billing the homeowner for the premium.

Although lenders justify this practice on the grounds that it is necessary to protect their interest in the collateral, many consumers have reported abuses with this practice.  For example, some homeowners have reported that their lender:

• Purchased exorbitant insurance coverage that cost up to 10x more than the homeowner’s previous coverage
• Received significant commissions or “kick-backs” from the insurer for force-placing coverage
• Retroactively purchased insurance for past time periods that were not subject to any claims
• Billed the homeowner for additional coverage or forms of coverage that were not required under their mortgage agreement
• Allowed the homeowner’s existing coverage to lapse without notice before purchasing “force placed” insurance

If your lender engaged in any of these types of practices, our law firm may be able to help. We are currently investigating the “force placed” insurance practices of several banks.  To read more information regarding force-placed insurance see our press release on April 9, 2011.  If you believe that you were unfairly charged for force-placed insurance coverage, please contact us to take action.