OneWest Bank, the mortgage servicer previously owned by Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, has been accused by homeowner groups of a type of foreclosure abuse involving lender-placed, or force-placed, insurance.
Mortgage servicers are able to force insurance policies on homeowners during a lapse in coverage, when premiums haven’t been paid or the homeowner has no hazard insurance. Sometimes force-placed policies stem from changes in flood maps or other risks from catastrophic events.
Numerous class actions accused mortgage servicers during the 2010 foreclosure crisis of forcing expensive LPI policies on homeowners, when those policies weren’t necessary.
Many banks entered into large-scale settlements ...