OCC fines PNC Bank $2.6M over flood insurance errors

PNC Bank OCC flood insurance fine overview: 

• Who: The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency has fined PNC Bank more than $2.6 million. 
• Why: The OCC issued the fine after alleging PNC Bank violated the Flood Disaster Protection Act by failing to “force-place” flood insurance on homeowners in a punctual enough manner.
• Where: The bank operates in 27 US states and the District of Columbia. 

PNC Bank has been fined more than $2.6 million by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency over claims the financial institution violated the Flood Disaster Protection Act (FDPA). 

The OCC accused PNC Bank of failing to abide by FDPA regulations by allegedly not “force-placing” flood insurance on homeowners in a prompt enough manner.

PNC Bank has subsequently agreed to pay the fine levied at it by the OCC while admitting to or denying neither fault nor wrongdoing, reports Law360. 

The OCC alleged PNC allowed a third-party servicer to extend a 45-day period which was supposed to be the limit for notifying and providing flood insurance for homeowners who didn’t have sufficient flood coverage. 

OCC accused PNC Bank of allowing third-party servicer to extend time period for insufficient flood coverage 

PNC Bank was allowing its third party servicer to extend the mandatory time limit that a homeowner could go without flood coverage the FDPA determined to be sufficient, Law360 reports. 

The OCC says it discovered the bank was allegedly out of compliance with regulations — which the agency says resulted in homeowners being given untimely “force-placement” flood insurance — while examining the company’s FDPA compliance program in 2020. 

PNC had already identified and begun fixing the alleged issue when the OCC began examining its compliance program, according to the agency, Law360 reports. 

A separate class action lawsuit was filed against the bank earlier this month by three former workers claiming the financial institution failed to prevent them from overpaying on fees for its retirement plan. 

PNC Bank has reportedly agreed with its former workers that pursuing the complaint as a class action lawsuit is the best path forward to resolving the claims. 

In January, the OCC fined Flagstar Bank $3.6 million after the agency similarly accused the banking company of violating the FDPA, according to Law360. 

Do you believe PNC Bank violated the FDPA with the way it handled flood insurance for homeowners? Let us know in the comments! 

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