Chase Expands Help for Sandy Homeowners

Chase announced today that it is making more insurance money available immediately, using technology to help homeowners track their insurance claims, and guaranteeing prompt inspections.

“We are continuously looking for additional ways to help customers rebuild their homes quickly,” said Kevin Watters, chief executive officer of Mortgage Banking. “These new actions will release a total of $235 million to help our customers get back on their feet.”

Chase now will make immediately available 75 percent of a customer’s insurance funds, or $40,000, whichever is greater. This applies to all affected homeowners who were current on their mortgage when Sandy hit and will release an additional $20 million, bringing the total funds released by Chase to $235 million, or 84 percent of all insurance funds received.

Also, Chase can now provide the expanded upfront money available to all mortgage customers as a result of Fannie Mae’s and Freddie Mac’s decision to accept these higher thresholds on loans they own.

Chase launched a new website to help customers keep track of their claims. Specifically, the website allows customers to:

• Upload claim check information, including the amount, cause of property damage, date damage occurred, and an address to send the disbursement check.

• Request inspections as repairs are completed.

• Upload documents for faster delivery and view which documents the bank has received and processed such as completed inspection reports.

• Know when to expect their claim funds. Customers can see the amount of the check ordered or mailed, and track the delivery of the check.

Chase knows that homeowners need quick service, so it has set three 48-hour deadlines:

• Guarantees that inspections will be scheduled within 48 hours of the customer requesting them.

• Requires inspectors to submit their report to Chase within 48 hours of completing the inspection.

• Sends a check overnight to customers within 48 hours of a satisfactory inspection.

Source: Chas