Complaints

The complaint text that is displayed might not represent all complaints filed with BBB. 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.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:02/22/2023

  Type:Service or Repair Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I had an appointment with Dr. ****** *** on 1/3/2023.I was given three sets of ************ trays & told I had one more to receive, plus the retainer.*** *** had told me previously that my retainer was covered at her office for the next five years. I received a letter from ****** on 2/6/2023 dismissing me from her office for my being ten minutes late on 1/3/2023 because of a storm that made the highway I was travelling be closed for high waters and for asking billing questions. I called *** ***** office on 2/6/2023 to ask about the letter I had received. ******* put me directly on hold and no one came to the phone. My husband called later that day and was told they would do nothing for me in the future. I sent an email on 2/10/2023, which was not responded to, nor was I called. I stopped in *** ***** office on 2/14/2023 to ask about scheduling an appointment with someone to resolve this matter. Instead of letting me make an appointment with *** **** I was sent to ******* office. While I was speaking with ****** *** came into the office with a cell phone, which she placed in the windowsill. I could see a bit of the phone and I asked ***** and *** if they were recording the conversation. *** said *** *** wanted to hear what was said. I told them I believed it is considered illegal to record someone without notifying them they are being recorded. Neither ***** or *** turned off the phone. *** should have told me that they wanted to record the conversation, prior to my having to ask if that was what was occurring. ***** told me that I had a balance of about $180 left of the amount I'm supposed to pay, which was not covered by the insurance. She also said she wasn't sure if I would have to pay it because of them not providing my last trays or the retainer. If they are not going to provide the services paid for, it and all other services not provided should be refunded. No one has contacted me or tried to resolve this problem.

  Business Response

  Date: 03/06/2023

  *** ****** ***

  My Rivertown Dentist

  2513 Michigan Road

  Madison, IN 47250

   

  To Whom it May Concern:

  In reference to the dismissal of ****** ****** please see the letter that was sent to her.  ****** became an established patient here at My Rivertown Dentist in October of 2019. 

  Over the years, ****** has repeatedly taken issue with multiple team members.  This has escalated since the summer of 2021 when we went out of network with her dental benefit plan.  Nearly every appointment, ****** expressed some grievance towards or about one of our policies or our team members.  We have these conversations documented and attached to this letter.

  ****** was not dismissed for her tardiness as she has claimed; however, she has been more than 10 minutes late to multiple appointments in the past year – these are all documented. 

  ****** on multiple occasions has been disrespectful to my team and disruptive to our workday.  In an effort to complete her case, I have personally tried to de-escalate those situations in the past.  However, her behavior with my front desk office at her last visit was inexcusable and we cannot continue this relationship.

  ****** has also repeatedly threatened my front office team with “reporting them” to multiple different authorities.  I do not believe it is in anyone’s best interest to continue a relationship under such circumstances.  (Her last conversation in the office was recorded in plain sight via phone recording because of this).

  I have done my due diligence and plan to transfer ******’s case to her new provider as soon as she provides me with the information.  The aligner company will honor transfer of her case within a reasonable time without added cost. 

  Lastly, regarding payment for services rendered: our normal fee for clear aligner therapy was $5995.  ****** received a promotional discount of $1000 when committing to treatment on 12/21/2020. 

  I have personally reviewed ******’s account and noted the following: 

  ·         ****** was quoted the treatment at $4995 after promotional $1000 discount.  Insurance estimated to pay $1724 leaving the remainder of $3271 for the patient to pay.

  ·         To date, payment in the amount of $3977.40 toward orthodontic treatment has been made between ******’s dental benefit plan and ******.

  ·         Her outstanding balance for orthodontic treatment is $1018.  Outstanding balance for other dental services already rendered is $81.

  Interestingly, I also found an error in her account.  It appears that the promotional discount of $1000 was applied to her account twice reflecting $2000 off our normal fee.    I have rechecked this multiple times and verified with my accountant.

  Orthodontic costs, especially for clear aligners, are incurred almost solely in the beginning of treatment.  We allow patients to make payments towards their balance as a courtesy to them.  Refunds are not given if treatment is discontinued for any reason – this is typical policy for any orthodontic treatment because of how these costs occur.

  Betina’s orthodontic treatment is near completion and because her transfer of care is of no fault on my end, her balance is collectible.  In lieu of the aforementioned discount error, I agree that it would likely not be constructive to pursue collecting this balance.

  Please review all the provided information and reach out to me with any further questions.  Despite our irreconcilable differences, I do want to make sure that ****** is able to complete her care satisfactorily with her new provider.

  Best Regards,

  ** ****** ***

  My Rivertown Dentist

  ************

   

  Customer Answer

  Date: 03/07/2023

   
  Better Business Bureau: 
   
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID *********  

  The response is not satisfactory to me, but this event has been detrimental to my health.   There is no point in pursuing it further. 

  I am a quiet person and have never raised my voice in her office.  The notes taken seem to be irresponsibly done and too personal.  They are not clinical.  

  Her staff mentioned in their notes I "claimed" to have epilepsy.  I do have epilepsy.  I have had four seizures since this event with the dentist's office and was taken via ambulance to ****** ****** ********* Hospital because of a grand mal seizure on 3/3/2023.  My epilepsy is usually well-controlled, and this event has affected it.  I do not have the energy to pursue this but have found an orthodontist willing to take over her unfinished care.   
  *** *** was untruthful when she said I threatened her employees with "reporting" them to different authorities.  *** *** was also untruthful when she said "I have personally tried to de-escalate those situations in the past".  She has never stepped in when there has been a problem in the past.  If I questioned a charge, asked for a bill to be itemized or explained when they send out "we missed this charge" statements at the end of the year, her staff would become irritated that I was asking questions. *** *** would leave the room. 

  I reached out to her office on 3/6/2023 to attempt to pay towards the $81 balance she mentioned in her letter.  ******* said that ***** was unavailable and would reach out to me, which she has not.  I do agree with *** *** that since it was her office and not myself who made the error in the amount of $1018, (to quote *** **** (aforementioned discount error, I agree that it would likely not be constructive to pursue collecting this balance) ) it would not be relevant to collect it, since the care is also not being finished.   

  
  Sincerely, 
   
  ****** *****