Mortgage servicing · 12 CFR 1024.35–1024.36When the mortgage servicer gets it wrong: notice of error and request for information
Federal servicing rules give a borrower two written tools. A notice of error (12 CFR 1024.35) covers mistakes such as a payment not applied, an escrow bill not paid, a fee with no basis, an inaccurate payoff balance or a foreclosure step taken too early. A request for information (§1024.36) asks for facts about the loan, such as who owns it. Both must include the borrower's name, something that identifies the loan account and what is wrong or what is asked; a qualified written request counts as either. The servicer must acknowledge it in writing within 5 days and answer within 30 days, excluding weekends and legal public holidays – 7 days for an inaccurate payoff balance and 10 days for the identity and contact information of the loan's owner. It may not charge a fee or require a payment to respond, and after a notice of error it may not report the disputed payment to a credit bureau for 60 days.
The servicer's deadlines (business days)
5 days
Written acknowledgment of a notice of error or a request for information (§1024.35(d), §1024.36(c)).
7 days
Inaccurate payoff balance: correct it or explain why there is no error (§1024.35(e)(3)(i)(A)); no extension.
10 days
Who owns the loan, with the owner's address or contact information (§1024.36(d)(2)(i)(A)); no extension.
30 days
Every other error or request; +15 days if the servicer explains the extension in writing before day 30 (§1024.35(e)(3), §1024.36(d)(2)).
Before a sale
An error about the first foreclosure filing or a sale: before the sale date or within 30 days, whichever is earlier (§1024.35(e)(3)(i)(B)).
15 days
Free copies of the documents the servicer relied on when it says no error occurred (§1024.35(e)(4)).
Errors the rule covers (§1024.35(b))
- A conforming payment not accepted, not applied correctly or not credited on the day received.
- Taxes or insurance not paid on time from escrow, or an escrow balance not refunded after payoff.
- A fee or charge the servicer has no reasonable basis to impose.
- An inaccurate payoff balance.
- Wrong information about loss mitigation and foreclosure, or servicing records not passed on correctly to a new servicer.
- A first foreclosure filing, judgment motion or sale that breaks the loss mitigation rules (§1024.41(f), (g) or (j)).
- Any other error relating to the servicing of the loan.
How to send it so it counts
- In writing – a note on a payment coupon does not count.
- To the address the servicer designated for errors and information requests, if it has one (it must post it on its website when the site lists any contact address).
- With the borrower's name, the loan number or other account details, and exactly what is wrong or what is asked – a vague, overbroad notice can be refused.
- Keep proof of the date it was received; the clocks run from receipt.
When the servicer does not have to answer
- A duplicate of an error already answered, unless there is new and material information.
- Sent more than one year after servicing was transferred away from that servicer, or after the loan was paid off.
- Information that is confidential, privileged, unrelated to the account, or an unreasonable volume – the servicer must say so in writing within 5 days.
- A notice of error does not stop foreclosure by itself, except for errors about the loss mitigation rules (§1024.35(i)(2)).
Questions borrowers and TCs ask
What is a qualified written request?
A written request about the servicing of the loan. Under Regulation X it is treated as a notice of error when it asserts an error, and as a request for information when it asks for information (12 CFR 1024.35(a), 1024.36(a)).
How long does a mortgage servicer have to fix a payoff statement error?
Seven business days after it receives the written notice of error, with no extension (12 CFR 1024.35(e)(3)(i)(A)).
Can the servicer charge me to answer?
No. It may not charge a fee or require a payment owed on the account as a condition of responding (§1024.35(h), §1024.36(g)).
Does a notice of error protect my credit?
For 60 days after it receives the notice, the servicer may not furnish adverse information to a credit bureau about the payment in dispute (§1024.35(i)(1)).
Related guides
A wrong payoff can hold up a closing. In ClosingCode, put the payoff request and each servicer deadline on the deal as dated tasks, with the letters in its documents.
Start free trialSource: 12 CFR 1024.35 (error resolution) and 1024.36 (requests for information), Regulation X, eCFR, read October 25, 2026.
General information, not legal, tax or financial advice. ClosingCode is software; it is not a law firm, tax preparer, lender or brokerage. This guide is not a substitute for the advice or services of an attorney.