Complaints

• Initial Complaint

  03/29/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  On 03/21/23 Peak Therapy made an unauthorized debit charge for $300 without my consent. My daughter was a previous patient and they have my credit card on file. I gave them permission to keep my card on file when my daughter was a patient as it made it easier to process payment for her appointments at the time of visit. Her last appointment with them was 12/8/22. I have an outstanding balance with them for the amount of $538 that i have been unable to pay in full. They are not willing to work out a payment plan with me. Peak therapy never contacted me for authorization to process my card, nor have they sent any communications about my balance being time sensitive or immediate action required. Only communication i have received from the company is my balance statement. I contacted the office on 3/23/23 about the charge on my card and requested they remove my credit card from their files which they have refused to do. I spoke with the account manager and she indicated they have the right to process payment without my consent because i owe a balance. They're closing past accounts and sending them to collections on March 31st. Can i get help requesting this company to remove my credit card information from their records and do not make any additional charges to my card. Is this illegal?

  Business response

  04/04/2023

  We received a complaint through the BBB from ***************************** at the end of March 2023. ******************* daughter was treated at Peak Physical Therapy from April 21, 2022 through Dec 8, 2022. At the time of admittance *************** signed our consent and agreement form that states: 

  Payments collected in the office for deductible and co-insurance are not considered as payment in full. Amounts paid in this signed agreement are strictly estimated amounts collected and will be applied to your visits after insurance has processed your claims and applied to your patient responsibility.  I understand, in the event my insurance company does not pay for services I receive, I will be financially responsible for payment. Your portion of the bill mailed to you must be paid within 30 days of the billing date. Any unpaid balances will be considered past due and will be sent to collections with 10% fee added after 60 days. ************ ***pay, ***insurance, etc. are due at the time of services rendered. 

  Credit card payment authorization - We could securely save your Credit Card information within our system. If you agree to this a receipt of each payment will be provided to you and the charge will appear on your credit card statement. I understand that this authorization will remain in effect until I cancel it in writing.

   

  ******************* daughter (who is a minor) had a balance of $538.90. We sent her multiple billing statements requesting payment. She did not respond. We called her several times with no response.  We then charged her credit card $300. It was after this charge that she called us complaining that we had no right to charge her card. She did not provide any written request to remove her card. We understand that she was having financial hardships and that is why we waited so long to charge her card. It is within our rights to charge the balance of her bill of $238.90 to her card but were giving her the opportunity to pay this on her own. She has not. We will either charge her card for the balance or send it to collections at this time.  

  We try to work with all of our patients and offer the best physical therapy care possible. She and her daughter were very happy with the services they received. We are a business and must be paid for services rendered. 

   

  Please understand that *************** is in default and needs to pay her bill.

  Sincerely, ******************* PT and owner

  Peak Physical Therapy and Sports Medicine Centers of ****

  Customer response

  04/05/2023

  Complaint: 19865205
  
  I am rejecting this response because: I never received any phone calls from your office. My daughter was not a patient and the bill should have be sent to collections. The document I signed does not authorize you to take payment at any time. After consultation with my attorney, I will be taking legal action. 

  
  Regards,
  
  *****************************

  Business response

  04/06/2023

  Dear ****************,

  I am sorry that you have had financial hardships and were unable to pay your co-pay at the time of service when your daughter was treated here at Peak Physical Therapy. We allowed you to delay the payments due to your financial situation but when you did not respond to us or our billing companies written requests and calls for payment we were forced to charge your card for services rendered. There is currently a $238.00 balance left to be paid and we are prepared to write this off, and if you will agree to accepting this we will not pursue collections and consider this case closed.

  In response to your last message, your daughter was a patient at our clinic and our billing company did send you multiple requests for payment. We try to avoid sending patients bills to collections as this causes an increased fee for the patient and their family. It also can negatively affect your credit score. The document that you signed does authorize payment for services rendered. 

  Sincerely, ********************;

  Customer response

  04/13/2023

  Complaint: 19865205
  
  I am rejecting this response because:

  *****, thank you for your response. I am most frustrated with your billing department's dishonesty and unprofessionalism. My only communication with your office is a standard billing statement. Your billing department never contacted me to resolve payment. There were no notices that payment would be deducted. No notice the bill will go to collections. I received 3 statements from December through March of my balance nothing else. I also know the documents I signed. It states I am responsible for payment for services received but does not authorize you to deduct payment for services. Can you please provide me with a copy of that form you say I signed authorizing payment?
  
  You stated you allowed me to delay payment at the time of service due to my financial situation. That is a 100% inaccurate. I never asked to delay payment when my daughter was a patient. I made payments in your office consistently. Though, there were several occasions when we checked out that I asked your receptionist to process a payment. At the time of the visit, she indicated she could not process a payment because she did not have access and/or she had already closed her system for the day. I was also told someone would follow up with me, which was never done. This happened several times. Therefore, my bill continued to accrue an amount that I could not pay in full. Please speak with your staff about this. This issue could have been avoided had your staff done their job and taken payment at the time of visit. Seems as though they are quick to want to leave at the end of the day and shut down their system when patients are still being seen.
  
  My financial hardship occurred shortly after my daughter was released from your office due to her health condition. I can provide all documentation and medical records. I sought legal advice and am fully aware of my rights. If you are willing to write off the $238 balance without affecting my credit, I will agree and will not take legal action. I would also like a copy of the authorization form I signed. This situation is very unfortunate on both sides, but I hope that we can resolve this without further action.
  
  Regards,
  
  *****************************

*Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business. ↩