Wells Fargo review: wells fargo holds insurance repair checks hostage 75

I have a similiar experience, I live in Oklahoma and we recently experienced massive hail damage. My insurance check for $16, 748.74 came made out to me and Wells Fargo. I called to inquire about how to get the check endorsed, I was told since it was over $15, 000 I had to endorse it and send it to Wells Fargo and they will disburse my funds in 3 increments. Fat chance, I told them if they couldnt trust me to get my roof repaired, the I certainly dont trust them to get my funds back to me, especially since I have read several complaints similiar to yours. I am sending the check back to the insurance company and they can do with it what they want. I will repair my own roof with funds from my 401k. I wonder what safeguards they have for claims of $15, 000 or less, or do they just not care about those properties are repaired. I guess in my case trust costs about $1, 748.74.

Wells Fargo's process is broken. I've been held hostage and repairs not done to the property because they have sat on an exception request now for 10 days. Every time I call they give me a different story and one of the last times I called the Resolution Specialist was not customer friendly and pretty much dismissed me by saying that she could not help me and that I had to wait... period. When you ask who to talk to escalate the situation they pretty much tell you that no one can help you and that you have to wait for the process (what process) to conclude. This is basically Wells Fargo making interest money on insurance dollars that basically do not belong to them but to the homeowners that has been paying their insurance premiums. My next call is to my lawyer or the Better Business Bureau. The process is absurd specially for repairs of less that 15, 000.

This is ridiculous to read that Wells Fargo has so many complaints like this, and the process isn't fixed! We just recently had a broken pipe and our entire 1st level flooded while we were on vacation. Our insurance was greati n expediting processing the claim and sending a check. But, then it came addressed to Wells Fargo too, and there is where the problem lies. We were told basically that we would have to have 100% of the workd complete, with only 2/3rd of the money. Plus, an inspection would have to be completed before the rest of the funds were dispersed. Also, we were requried to submit receipts for all of the funds dispersed before more could be released. Then, we were to endorse the check and send it through the USPS. Are you KIDDING? We overnighted it. 2 days later received a call from Wells Fargo, missed it and called back. Asked for Suzanne, when the person on the other line said they could help. I asked if I could provide more information through email, and was told they don't have email (what century do they live in?) Suzanne got in touch with my husband while I was speaking to someone who asked if we were ready for our 100% completion inspection. I lost it, are you kidding? You haven't given us any money yet! Suzanne told my husband that we qualify for some program where they would just endorse the check to us...oh gee, thanks, it's our money to begin with. Then, the check was FULLY endorsed, and sent through the US Mail without any safeguards that it wouldn't get lost. Finally got it 9 day later, completely endorsed and stating that they aren't accountable for any lost checks. I am SO FRUSTRATED, my house is in shambles, and Wells Fargo is holding our money hostage. We now have another check, that I don't want to have to do this again.

They are doing the exact same stuff to me holding my money hostage. It has been 2 yrs since my home was vandalized and I am still not able to live in my house. Wells Fargo has even want as far as changing inspection reports so money would not have to be released to me! Where is the US Government during all this, for-sure this has to be against the law!

August 2010 we received a large check from our insurance company to pay for storm damage but it was also endorsed to our mortgage company- Wells Fargo. It is now November and we have only received 1 dispursement of 3 from the bank. The process is slow and inefficient. An inspector was to come to verify that the work had been completed but ironically it took a month to get the inspector to show up. Once this was finally done, no checks were sent because of a missing signature but no one bothered to notify us that the signature was missing. When the first check finally showed up it was also made out to our contractor and had to be sent back. Why would our contractor wait for 3 months to be paid? Fortunately we had the funds to pay upfront, if not, we would still be without a roof. Something must be done to stop Wells Fargo from holding insurance funds hostage.

In October 2010, I received a check from USAA (insurance company) to pay for hail damage but it was also endorsed to Wells Fargo. It is now December and we have only received 1 disbursement check. Per Wells Fargo claims process when work is 50% complete they require an inspection, at their cost before a 2nd disbursement is released. An inspector came out to verify that 50% of work had been completed on November 29th and agreed that 60% of the work had been completed. The inspector had me sign the form and said it should be to Wells Fargo within 48hrs. The inspector submitted the report to NFR, who in turn rejected the inspection due to snow on the roof. Go figure! Snow on the roof in Minnesota during the winter! NFR is the 3rd party vendor that Wells Fargo contracts out to complete inspections, the NFR subcontracts out the inspections to local inspectors. I called Wells Fargo on December 3rd to inquire about the 2nd disbursement and they said nothing has come in yet. Only that there was snow on the roof so it can’t be inspected and to call back on Monday, December 6th. I contacted Wells Fargo again and still no change and they said they would contact NFR to get an inspection, but without this inspection Wells Fargo will not release the 2nd disbursement. I called NFR and talked to Heather, who told me that they rejected the inspection since there was snow on the roof. Heather told me unless we get a heat wave no expect an inspection until all of the snow is off the roof. This poses a major hurdle since I live in Minnesota and we have snow through April. The major reason for this compliant is that the entire front of my house is also under construction due to this same storm damage. The contractor will not work on the home until a 2nd draw is received. The response given by Wells Fargo and NFR to wait till Spring! Wow, I feel I am in a never ending loop with these people!

I too am a victim of a major property loss. My house caught fire in June, 2010 and I am still not in my house. My insurance company provided payment made out to myself and Wells Fargo. I had to endorse them and sign them over to Wells Fargo. We have just had an inspection 2 weeks ago and are considered 90% complete yet Wells will not release the funds required to pay the contractors (they have the invoices) which account for 90% or less. I cannot pay the contractors to complete the job without Wells Fargo releasing funds. I have never been treated so poorly by a company in my life. They are rude, arrogant and the process is absolutely dysfunctional. Reading everyone's comments sure makes me feel like this is a class action lawsuit waiting to happen. HELP!

Something must be done! Wells Fargo is not standing behind homeowners to make repairs after hail storm! Insurance check waiting to be signed off to release $$. Spent countless hours on phone! Being lied to & made to jump through hoops, one after another. Its been over a month. It's like they don't want you to fix it. I pay deductable, I pay Ins. Preimums, They control $$. How can they expect you to dish out moneyand continue to wait for them to send $$ I will not get any more work done to my house if this is the way they are going to be. Yes, I would like it to get fixed, but the stress is terrible! I do all the work and they sit back and do nothing to help you. You would think that the company that would be hard to deal with would be the insurance company not your mortgage company! Beware if refinancing! It could happen to you!

I am a plumbing contractor in Ct. who has been waiting for Wells Fargo to pay me for work done for a customer who has a Wells Fargo Morgage. The homeowners insurance companay paid Wells Fargo for the work.. I finished the job two months ago.I recently faxed all needed paperwork and then called 5 days later and was told no paperwork had been recieved! I see many problems on the horizon getting paid in the near future so I am applying a mechanics lien to my customers property and sueing in small claims..Wells Fargo will now pay all lien and court and interest fees as stated in my signed work contract with the homeowner..Enough is enough.

I'm having problems too. I had a flood in my home a month ago and my insurance company sent me a check the same week for $16000. I had to endorse it to wells fargo and I'm still waiting for my first check. One person will say they got all the paper work and another will say something is missing. I don't see my home being repaired anytime soon. I think they have all our money and are making killer interest at our expense.

Sounds exactly like my situation - holding my check hostage - promises of a 24-48hr turn around are more like 4-5 days. I have called them 3 times and each time I get a litany of excuses and apologies - sorry WFB that doesn't help - I want results and I want my money to fix my house. I supplied a FedEx envelop and airbill - guess what they dropped my check that I've been waiting on for 10 days in the US mail. Another apology but no one at WFB is accountable.

I have the same problem to get Wells Fargo to endorse the second check I got from insurance company. I went to the local branch and a person at the bank called Wells Fargo. Wells Fargo asked the bank fax all documentation with the second check. A person at the bank told me that Wells Fargo contacts me in the next few days. I have to travel out of the town and two weeks later, I have no phone call, no letter from Wells Fargo. I went back to the local branch. At the local branch, they have not problem to endorse the check; however, the total amount over 15K so the system would not allow the local branch endorse the check so they call Wells Fargo again. They told me that they need the letter from insurance company. I told them that all documentation I received with the second check sent to them already by the local branch personnel. They told me that the documentation was from third party. Yet, it was true that the third party did the inspection and informed the insurance company how much the cost of the repair and the insurance sent the check (second one) with the new estimate repair from the claim services (third party). I told them that " why don't you tell me until two weeks later that you would not endorse the check because no letter from the insurance company" They say they sorry. Does it matter if there is the letter from insurance company? Wells Fargo just give people hard time to endorse insurance check. Yet, I have never behind any payment and my 110K loan now have only a balance of 41K. If you think about refinance, choose someone else. Wells Fargo cost you more in refinance and give you hard time to endorse insurance checks.

I had a fire on my property to a shed with a loss of $12, 000. If a loss to one's property is 10, 000 or less Wells Fargo is to indorse the check back to the home owner. Since this is $2.000 over that Wells Fargo is holding our check and want to pay it down on the balance of our mortgage.($170, 000 equity) That is sooo rediculous on there part since they will lose intrest on that money.Told them to take the $2000 and apply to mortgage and give me the 10k. Waiting to see if they except this or if I need to contact my Lawyer or state insurance comissioner.The system needs a BIG overhaul!

I have a similar experience. They are holding money at Irvine, CA while I am rebuilding my home in Allen, TX for water leak. While Inspector inspected and sent 80% complete and I also sent all the canceled check that I paid out to repair guys and I am keep waiting for the money. I sent USPS express mail to return the check but I am keep waiting while I have to stop repair due to unable to pay as I already paid out 10's of thousand dollars on my own money. While I am paying mortgage and insurance, who the hell they are to holding money at CA. This is very frusttating and I am exhausted. Only way to hold them accountable to have a class action law suit. They have no rights to holding money while I am speeding up to rebuild my home.

Thanks,
Mohammad Islam

Well, there is power in numbers. I'm so ready for a class action lawsuit! I used up my savings to put my house back together now, I had my 100 % inspection, and I sent in my completion certificate. They are telling me that I need receipts! Well, the paper work says in black in white they will except cancelled checks, which I sent them and an invoice with a company heading on the invoice and proof and that is what I sent in. My flood happened March 28th and insurance issued a check in one week. I have yet to see a dime of MY MONEY! My insurance agent told me that wells fargo is the worst. They do not have timelines when to give you the money. In the mean time, the work cannot aways get completed because contractors do not work for free and the money runs out. These people are crooks. Im in if anyone wants a class action law suit. I'm also ready to be contacting shows like dateline and 20/20 where they can expose bad business.

I'm all for a lawsuit! Wells Fargo is holding onto a $24, 000 check for water damage that was repaired four months ago. My weekly schedule now includes a call to WF asking if they've released the check. Each time they come up with a new reason why they haven't:
1) no waiver of lien
2) no letter from my insurance agent saying the repairs were done
3) no contract signed by contractor
4) no contract signed by both my husband and me
5) waiver of lien not signed by contractor
6) waiver of lien not dated by contractor
One guy I talked to told me, "Of course we didn't get you faxes. Thousands of faxes go to that number!"
Other times the ### answering the phone tells me if I just do this one little thing, then they'll issue the check. I am beyond furious! Even my insurance agent told me WF is trouble.

We agree with each and every one of you -- my DAILY schedule includes minium of 1 hour on the phone speaking with an employee of Wells Fargo Loss Department and faxing duplicate information to them over and over. We have requested numerous times to speak with a supervisor or manager -- he or she is conveniently unavailable.

Wow what a list of complaints on Wells Fargo, they are totally a joke! I had hail on my roof back in April they signed the first check at a local branch and I had the roof done and paid the entire bill, alot of it out of pocket. Got the last insurance check and they said they want me to sign the check and mail it in. After that they will pay in increments, now that is a joke and after what I have seen above I didnt mail in my check. I like everyone above think they sure have crazy policies and they do nothing to make a customer happy and just looked today and they are over charging my escrow by 700 a year. Do what I did file a complaint with the OCC go to HelpWithMyBank.Gov at least cause them some of the pain that they are inflicting on you!

All the horror stories you are reading here are true! I have sent in every single required document and followed their "procedures" to a tee. I get the run around every time I call checking on my 50% inspection. I get a different story every time. These people are trained to mislead and lie. Now, I owe my roofing contractor $7, 000 of the money that Wells Fargo is holding. I can't even get anyone to call me to schedule an inspection. Every time I call WF I am told "they are doing all they can do". Do they really expect me to believe that?! So... they think I believe that the money can just sit there until God knows when, and all they can do is continue to send emails to the inspection company? They refuse to give me any contact information for the inspection company. They say they don't have it. Really!? Yes, whatever. This has to be some kind of insurance fraud they are committing. State Farm issued a check to have these repairs made, and Wells Fargo is holding the money and will not release it. I may be driving to Ohio if necessary. It is only 1/2 day's drive for me, so no biggie. I will also be refinancing ASAP through a LOCAL credit union and getting rid of Wells Fargo once & for all.

To keep this short, I just went through the same thing with Wells and it took over 3 months for resolution. My contractor waited 90 days for payment and wouldn't continue our repairs because it got so testy. Wells refuse to use up to date technoligies to fund out the draws, insisting to cut paper checks and send them Pony Express. In the late 90's the banking industry was sending draws on construction projects via wire or ach. In 2011 why does Wells send Paper Checks via first class mail. Hum... Could it be to hold the funds as long as possible? Better chance than zero that is the case. So here is what to expect. A multi step process that you, the home owner must manage. They will not.
1st step, call and tell them the work has been completed. They then assign a inspector to inspect the work. That takes 5-10 days depending on the work load. When the inspection comes in, don't expect a call. You must then call them again and initiate the check to you after the inspection is complete. HOw are you suppose to know when the inspection will come in you might ask. You have to call and call and a call. Trust me, it sucks. Once the inspection finally is in, they will send notice to cut the check. They will tell you that it will be the same day but when we received our envelope with the check in it, the post mark was always about 3 business days past when they said it would go out. Then you factor in First Class mail times and there you have it. Expect it to take 30 days per draw from start to finish. No, I am not kidding. You can build a home from dirt to keys in the same time it takes Wells to cut all of your monies back to you. I don't know how it is legal, way above my pay grade I guess but they get away with it and get away with it good. One final note, I actually filed a claim with the insurance commission in my state of Texas to claim some typ eof insurance fraud with the way they conducted this process. They essentially kidnap your funds and have stolen your money, legally. The insurance commission returned my inquiry and with great regret told me it was not in their realm of enforcment since the check had been cut from State Farm and we essentially signed it over to Wells when we started the process. So you are left with either enduring this mess, 3-4 months at least. Hiring an attorney to force it to end sooner. Or, deposit the check yourself without Wells knowledge but that route is one with some questionable consciquences. Whatever your choices, best of luck and I pray you never have to endure this process of hell like we did. Makes going ot the DMV seem like kindergarden.

Just a follow up to my previous post... I am finally waiting on my last of 3 payments that is scheduled to go out Fedex today or tomorrow. I already have the tracking #. To get anywhere with these people, you have to call, call, call! If you are not satisfied with the answer you are getting, demand something better. Ask for the resolutions department or a specialist. I have found that a specialist or a resolutions dept rep. is actually able to get something accomplished. Take notes with who you talked to & when, so when you call back to follow up, you can actually sound like you are on top of things. I found that it takes two days at most to get things moved along when I talked to either of these departments, so don't let more than 2 days pass before you call back and check the status again.

My husband and I sustained major damage to our home in the tropical storm that hit Long Island. We had no idea the real storm would be in tussling with the criminals at Wells Fargo Property Loss. We have made copious records and sent reams of paper to Wells Fargo. We receive no dollars only delays, errors and demands for further documentation not specified in the original instructions provided by Property loss. We have finally got feedback from a terse supervisor there who has assured us that our 1st check for 95% of our claim will be sent tomorrow. I have absolutely no confidence in this assertion. I have filed a fromal complaint with the FTC and I am also filing with the office of the comptroller of the curency.

how about you [censored]es fill out your paperwork correctly, or hey maybe (now this is just a thought) READ YOUR F*CKING closing documents before you sign for your mortgage. Deed of trust paragraph #5, WF has the right to monitor your repairs. hahah haven't paid a mortgage payment in 2 years & wonder why they won't give you a 60 grand check back. hahaha READ BEFORE YOU SIGN.

I had a house fire a year ago and haven't been able to do any work yet so I'm paying rent and a house payment. I am so broke. I'm ready for a class action suit. Lori

There is so much truth in everything that has been said so far that it's scary. Their process is extremely slow and very outdated. We started their paperwork process exactly 3 weeks ago today and still have not received a single dime to pay our contractors. I was told that if I over-nighted the information to them, that it would take 1-2 days to process and then 3-5 days to cut the first check. This was a lie so don't believe it if you get told this. Also, over 50% of our work is already complete and still no call from the inspectors. Today I spoke with a specialist who verified that my initial request for the 50% inspection was back on October 17th and as of today, November 3rd, 2011 it still had not been "ordered" by Wells Fargo with the 3rd party company that they use. I asked for the name of the company that they use and she told me that she wasn't allowed to give me the name of the company they use. I was told on October 28th that it would be "ordered" that day also and that I would receive a call no later than Tuesday, November 1st. I never received that call. I've never received any calls from anyone from the Wells Fargo side ever during this entire process and I even requested that a manager call me back. I was told there was a 4 hour call back wait but after 4 hours there was still never a call back. I suspect there never will be either.
I also found out yesterday that there is a loophole on the lien waver that the contractor signs. It states that "upon payment" of the contracted amount for the contracted repairs, that no further lien against the property can be made. Well guess what? If no payment is made within the contract terms (mine was net 10 days), then a lien C A N be placed on your property for non-payment by Wells Fargo! Make sure your contract gives you at least 30 days to pay or make sure you have some of your own funds to pay up front so you don't get a lien on your property.
I also filed a complaint with the Iowa Insurance Commissioner yesterday, but have not heard back from them yet. It takes 4-6 weeks to get an answer from them. I also went on HelpWithMyBank.gov and filed a complaint against Wells Fargo Home Mortgage. If everyone does this, then collectively, we might be heard. Or at least, be a thorn in their side.
Anyway, here's what I know about their process. You go on their website: mylossdraft.com and print out the paperwork. You can either fax it to [protected] or mail it to Florence, SC. If you fax it, it is received by their computer system which takes 24-48 hours to actually make it available to a specialist. Once it is assigned to a specialist, she has to review it for missing documents. If anything is missing, then it will sit on her desk until you call her to find out that something is missing. She is suppose to call you, but that will never happen. The check that you send them will go into your loan's restricted escrow account. They will not process any checks until the contractor you are using is entered into their system and this will take a week or more! Then when you do finally get a check it will be made out to the contractor and to the homeowner. (This is what I'm told, but I haven't actually seen a check yet so this part might not be true. Although I was told on Oct. 28th that a check was suppose to be sent to me on Oct. 26th but it was only made out to the contractor and not to both the contractor and the homeowner so it had to be redeposited into our restricted escrow account. And so you might ask did they initiate another check to correct this? And the million dollar answer is NO! If I hadn't called on Oct. 28th to find this out, there would not be another check request in their system even to cover their own MISTAKE!)) Also, since we are already 50% complete with repairs and they will only release a third of the money up front, then they have a process where you can ask for an exception for a contractor to be paid. You initiate this process by calling in and requesting payment for work that is already complete. The specialist has to make a formal request to upper management by filling out a form and making a note that she has done so in your account. Because their system is so outdated and most of the process is actually manual, everytime you call in, the specialist has to read the NOTES section of your account to know where, what, when, and why things are or are not happening. You also need to keep notes on who you talked to and on what day. Don't be afraid to ask her how to spell her name including her last name and her exact title. They are required by law to give you their REAL name if you ask for it. This helps the next specialist with locating information for you as the NOTES she is looking through is by date. Be aware that the phone is answered by representatives and the process is worked by specialist which do not answer the initial call, you will have to ask to speak to a specialist. You will not get to a specialist until after you have stumped the representative. This is why you keep good notes on who you talk to and on what day. If you ask a representative for a manager, you will get a specialist, but not a manager. If you ask a specialist for a manager, you will still not get a manager, but probably another specialist. Never assume that you are speaking with a manager when the next person comes on the line. Ask them directly if they are a manager, because by law they have to give you their actual title. The call center is located in Florence, South Carolina which does have call center managers, but the specialist knows that these managers can't really help you. Who you are actually trying to talk to is what they refer to as Upper Management who is located in California. I asked for what city as she said she didn't know. I didn't believe her, do you? Don't you know where your upper management is located? I do. They will never forward the request to be called back by management because it could mean their job. In the end, I have to agree that each and every check disbursement will probably take 30 days for a total of 90 days or longer. It is what it is. :(

I will be the first one to help get the class action law suit started. I had an insurance claim. Alfa's adjuster deemed the repairs necessary and wrote an approx. $52, 000 check to me, my husband and Wells Fargo. The contractor did the work, finished the work, and did an exceptional job. During this entire process, I had been jumping through hoops with Wells Fargo, even calling the executive office. I was told that they didn't have the inspection, yet I had it emailed to me weeks ago. We were going to try to stop payment on the check and have Alfa re-issue the check in increments that our "local" branch could endorse. Alfa looked up the check and it showed that the check had cleared their bank on October 31st. Wells Fargo deposited a check, that was not theirs, into their account and they are drawing interest on this money. Meanwhile, my contractor has yet to be paid. This is theft! Something has to be done to stop their criminal activity. I am ready to sue the heck out of them. They are crooks and someone needs to be in jail!

OMG this is all unfortunately familiar. Bought house in June, moved in July, 2 weeks later massive hail storm damaged roof, siding, gutters. Finally got new roof put on in AUGUST. Siding & gutters put on in October. ALL work done Problem is INSURANCE companies putting mortgage companies as party to the damned checks to begin with. We were able to get the first 2 of 3 checks endorsed by our local WF bank so they could be deposited after waiting an hour and a half whilst they confer on the phone with the Property Loss Dept. The 3rd check put us over their arbitrary "$15, 000 limit" prompting WF to refer it to the Property Loss Dept. This means we had to fax info to them, and send paperwork + endorsed check to them by Fedex overnight for an "expedited claim." Then they were supposed to send an inspector out to verify the work had been done.

After TWO WEEKS, I called them to find out what the hell happened to "expedited" handling, since no one has called. Oh, sorry, let me help expedite that for you. 3 days later the inspector calls, come out at the end of that week, says oh, sorry let me help expedite this for you. 10 days later, no call, no check, I call again and get the oh, sorry, let me expedite this for you story. Another week later, no check. I called last Friday to find out WTF is going on. Oh sorry, I have to request the check to be cut and sent out, it takes 24 hours, then we can overnight it to you. No surprises, no check. Called today (Monday Nov 21st) and oh, sorry that check didn't print. I'll have to request it to print again, and checks are prompted to print at midnight in Irvine, CA - we're in Nebraska. What happened to the overnighting? Oh, sorry the supervisor wouldn't authorize it. It will go out for a 2 day delivery.

I told her these are reprehensible delays that were sadly comic, now turning DIRE as the contractor is getting ready to take legal action, and if that happens, Wells Fargo will pay for THEIR delays in this matter. I requested a SUPERVISOR to call me back with the following information: VP in charge of Property Loss Dept, name, address, phone, and email address, as I will follow up with why their process is so broken. Now I have to call the contractor who was coming over Wednesday to apologize and tell him there is yet ANOTHER delay on that check. We will be following with complaints to SEC and BBB. This is shameful. I think we should start a Facebook group for people screwed over by Wells Fargo over property loss claims

Same situation in Lafayette, LA. I'm ready to file a lawsuit just not sure how to go about this. They have basically stole money from me. If anyone knows how to file lawsuit please advise.

Try Merrill Davidoff in Philadelphia, PA. He's a ###-ripping attorney that has a big firm that has specialized in class actions. BTW: Our contractor Kyle at WIMMER Roofing (a wonderful company that does good work BTW) told us the EXACTOMATE company program that has been used by insurance companies AND the contractors for a fair pricing on materials for claims has just been purchased by a huge insurance company (All State or State Farm), who can now low ball the costs so the contractors are really screwed even worse than they are now. Sounds like rackateering, but now its known as banking. Way to go SEC!

We are in the same boat. Hail damage to our roof & the insurance check is a measly $1k over their $15k limit. Sent in a request for exception on Monday the 5th & was told by the agent at our local WF office to call the 888 number the very next day & start questioning. I did & the lies started immediately... We haven't received it, oh we have it now & it will be reviewed / processed within 48 hours, sorry the 'management team' hasn't given us a response, there's a 5 business day maximum response time & tomorrow is the 5th day, I know it's the sixth business day sir, but management still hasn't answered & there's no one else who can help you...it goes on & on & on. I justs called my local WF office & spoke with the "mortgage specialist" who signed me up & gave him an earfull. He fell all over himself apologizing & said he would start making the phone calls to get me some help. I told him if they don't agree to it by end of business today, I'm taking my business elsewhere (as if WF gives a ###). If 15k is the limit, they should cut me a check for 15k & hold the 1k until the job is complete. This is utter & complete ###, WF is holding me & my money hostage. The "specialist" I spoke with on Friday of last week had the audacity to say, & I'm quoting, "sir, we do not have possesion of your funds." I replied with, you most certainly do...the moment you refused to sign MY check, you took possesion of that money. To which she was silent. I will check with my lawyer today about a class action suit & post his response as soon as I get one. I've decided that no matter the outcome I'm taking my business elsewhere. It won't put WF out of business, but I'll feel better.

We are in the middle of the Wells Fargo ugly experience now.

Recevied 16K+ from insurance within days, late Sept. Now almost 90-days later, contractor has been paid one third from Wells Fargo, 100% of the roof is complete, waiting for inspection and final payment.

Now, I have received another check from insurance company, 10K, the remaining monies from claim, but have yet to send it to Wells Faro. I am holding it for a few days, weighing my options.

Any suggestions out there?

When we first received the 16K check, we tried to deposit it, get a Wells Fargo bank to endorse it, could not, directed to the Property Loss Dept. If I remember, I believe I was told the threshold was 10K.

I guess we could try again with the 10K check, see if we can deposit it this time.

And then another issue. Only a part of this 10K check goes to the rooking contractor. The remaining amount is mine. If I have to send it on to WF property loss dept, how am I ever going to get the remaining balance?

I'm in the same situation as all of you, Wells Fargo is holding my flood loss checks hostage and I'm out of money for repairs. My loss was suffered on 8/28/11 (hurricane irene), and 4 months later I'm not even 50% of the way finished because I'm doing a lot of the work myself due to lack of funds from WF. The only reason I got my starter check endorsed was because I went to ABC news and they did a piece on my story, once the news started calling Wells Fargo they signed that check pretty quick.

Class action suit? I'm in 100%, contact me (megahess@gmail.com) and we can discuss, this company is a joke and they need to be held responsible. BTW anyone wanna let me borrow 35k to finish repairs?

There are 4 requirements to proceed with a class action.
1. Numerosity - enough plaintiffs to make class action an efficeint way to handle the claim.
2. Commonality - common issues of fact and law for each claimant
3. Adequacy of Class Rep - the person who is the class representatitve needs to have claims that are the same as the class members and that they are capable of serving as the representative.
4. Adequqcy of Counsel - that the law firm representing the class has sufficient skill and resources to represent the class.

I believe we meet the general requirements. What is the endgame though? What is our actual claim? If in the end we actaully got our money what are we claiming that wells fargo owes us besides an apology?

We are in favor of a class action suit against Wells Fargo! Our insurance company issued a check to us for $30, 000.00 in June 2011, after a big hailstorm. We needed new roofing of house, garage, barn & out-buildings. We have our mortgage payments auto paid, out of checking, never missed a payment, ect. We hired a local, trustworthy, roofer, who had all the work done in Sept., and we still haven't been able to pay him, as Wells Fargo has had numerous reasons for holding our money! I would like to just have the interest that $30, 000.00 would have accrued in our savings for the last 6 months! After 15 yrs. with WF, we are going to someone else for the remainder of our mortgage payments.

We had a water leak in our home in Aug of 2011. We are now in January of 2012 and I can not get Wells Fargo to release ANYTHING past the initial 1/3 of our check. Our claim was over 15k, so we had to send it in to the property loss division. This has been a NIGHTMARE. They told us it would take 1-2 business days to review all of the paid reciepts and order a check. The processing of the check takes another 1-3 business days. Well on business day 7, NOTHING had been done. Everytime we try to send them what they ask for its like it goes into a black hole. Not only are they RUDE as hell on the phone, they are full of misinformation. This is UNACCEPTABLE. We have a mutli-year mutli-level relationship with Wells Fargo and will absolutely take our business else where after this is finally done.

I have had same problems as all. They are HOLDING MY money and since the process takes so long, my contractor has moved on to other jobs that the people could pay.
Now almost ONE YEARlater I have my roofer waiting on me to tell them when I have the money to pay. And Wells Fargo says ok, turn in an exception, wait 2-5 days, let us review it then send it to so and so (another 3-5 days). Its riduclous!

Its MY House and MY money and THEY are holding up my repairs!

I totally agree. I've just started dealing with them. I sent them all the paperwork they needed and even the "privileged" court docs and still they are not satisfied. They keep losing documents and requiring paperwork that they shouldn't be seeing. All they should care about is that the damage is repaired. Reading all these comments I see this is going to be a major fight with them. I for one, I'm going to seek refinancing with a local credit union.

I like the others on this post have had nothing but questions regarding the nerve of Wells Fargo being able to hold on to money that I should be controlling for my own repairs. I recently had a claim for roof damage in the amount of $18, 100.00 sure enough the adjuster made the check out to myself and Wells Fargo, first question, , why? since when does the Mortgage company have to be involved at all? Next question, I have a $395K mortgage with these yahoos and they trust me with that amount, they trust me to make my payments every month but they don't trust me to take $18K and make the roof repairs on my own?please, something is definitely wrong with this picture. They say they will not endorse it unless I follow their rules and fill out all this crazy ### paperwork allowing them to basically put that money in an escrow account and then as the work gets done, they will make partial payments! wrong, I swear if I have to I'll refinance just for this reason alone to get rid of these guys. It is ridiculous that they need to control every step of this process. Don't get me wrong, I know there are people out there that would go out and spend this check on something other than the main purpose but that is exactly why Adjusters give you a ACV( Actual Cash Value) check and then once the work is completed you get the RCV(Replacement Cash Value) . This entire system is messed up to say the least. As I mentioned I am now looking at the possibility of getting rid of this loan. Not that losing one little loan for $395K will impact WFM, but maybe if half of these people who posted on here did the same, then they may just get the picture and finally realize they have a system in place that is broken and needs repair and fast!

Our loss was covered by two separate checks from our insurance company. The first for 14851.42 which I was able to get Wells Fargo to sign off as theey were also listed on the Pay To Line. Great... then the second check for 7536.30 was issued. I like a dummy ran back to the bank to get it released also. Not so fast. The total was now over their imposed 15000 dollar limit and we needed to get the Property loss section from Ohio involved. This was back on the 12th of Dec 2011. Originally we were told just a few simple routine checks of all the paper work and they would allow an okay to process this check within 5 days. This check included payment for the mitigation company for their work. We were then told back that all work had to be completed and an inspection had to be done by a assigned individual. Since the clean up company would like their 4304.52 I had our insurance company reissue the amount in 2 checks, one for that payment and the other for 3357.77 for us. Here it is 24 Feb 2012 and our work is completed and we tried again to get the okay. OOPS, more paper work is needed. Going to close acounts and refinance when and if this is ever completed.

I too am frustrated with Wells Fargo. They are going to hold my insurance disbursement hostage until repairs are completed and until they can do a final inspection! I'm going to be forced to pay for the water damage repairs out of pocket and fortunately selling the house in a week. I will then present closing documents and demand an endorsement of the check. My new loan is NOT with Wells Fargo. As the principal of a successful real estate team, I always deter buyers from seeking a Wells Fargo Mortgage. I now have first-hand knowledge of their ineptitude.