ALTA Posts New Best Practices FAQs

November 26, 2019

ALTA has posted new answers to questions it has received regarding its Title Insurance and Settlement Company Best Practices. The latest FAQs provided by ALTA’s Best Practices Executive Committee address policies for mobile device data security and automatic ACH account debits for e-recording fees.

  • Does ALTA have a best practice or policy as it pertains to mobile device data security? Yes, the standards in ALTA Best Practices Pillar 3 apply to any devices where NPI may be found.
  • Does ALTA Best Practices allow for automatic ACH account debits for e-recording fees? Some e-recording vendors require clients to allow recording fees to be automatically debited from their accounts via ACH. Under ALTA Best Practices Pillar 2, a company must prohibit or control the use of ACH transactions. An appropriate control includes, but is not limited to, the establishment of a separate recording fee disbursement account. In working with an e-recording vendor, a company should establish specific controls for the use of ACH to ensure that only the eRecording vendor can debit funds from the escrow trust account and that those debits are for the correct amount.

The Best Practices FAQ Portal allows questions to be submitted about the Best Practices in an effort to gain clarity about the standards. The Best Practices provide guidelines for the policies and procedures title insurance and settlement companies should have in place to ensure they are protecting consumers, their money and their data. However, there is some uncertainty about the ALTA Best Practices that sparks conversations within the industry about how to comply with these standards.

Interested parties may submit a question through the FAQ portal. ALTA staff and a team of industry professionals will then consider the question and draft a response. ALTA will publish all answered FAQs here.


Contact ALTA at 202-296-3671 or communications@alta.org.