We use cookies to give users the best content and online experience. By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to allow us to use all cookies. Visit our Privacy Policy to learn more.

Manage Cookies
Resources for Businesses My BBB
Share
Business Profile

Ambulance Services

Bell Ambulance

This business is NOT BBB Accredited.

Find BBB Accredited Businesses in Ambulance Services.

Complaints

This profile includes complaints for Bell Ambulance's headquarters and its corporate-owned locations. To view all corporate locations, see

Find a Location

Bell Ambulance has 3 locations, listed below.

*This company may be headquartered in or have additional locations in another country. Please click on the country abbreviation in the search box below to change to a different country location.

    Please enter a valid location.

    • Bell Ambulance

      549 E. Wilson Street Milwaukee, WI 53207-1635

    • Bell Ambulance

      P.O. Box 070550 Milwaukee, WI 53201

    • Bell Ambulance

      2204 Silvernail Rd Pewaukee, WI 53072-5529

    Customer Complaints Summary

    • 3 total complaints in the last 3 years.
    • 1 complaint closed in the last 12 months.

    If you've experienced an issue

    Submit a Complaint

    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.

    Sort by

    Complaint status

    Complaint type

    • Initial Complaint

      Date:01/27/2025

      Type:Sales and Advertising Issues
      Status:
      Answered
      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.
      ***** **** was suffering from the end stages of cancer when his wife, ***** ****, transported him to ************************************* on August 30, 2024. Mrs. **** had been told Columbia St. Marys had a bed for Mr. ***** however, upon arrival, she learned that was no longer the case. ****************** offered to have Mr. **** transferred to Ascensions ***************. Mrs. **** agreed. Had she known that Bell Ambulance would charge her family $1,636.37 for a ***** mile ride, and that insurance would not cover the ride, she certainly would never have agreed. Bell Ambulance did not disclose its charges up front, nor did it tell Mrs. **** that insurance would not cover the ride. Bell Ambulance is now threatening to take Mrs. **** to collections over the unpaid bill.

      Business Response

      Date: 01/28/2025

      Hello, 

      Bell Ambulance prides ourselves on our willingness to work with our clients regarding their financial responsibilities. However, we cannot work with clients if they do not respond to our ******** or contact us.

      We provide professional out of hospital medical care and transport. Providing on-demand medical care and transport comes with enormous costs. You need to take into account not only the physical ambulance but  employee compensation, training, supplies, infrastructure and all the other costs of running a business, Unfortunately, insurance providers do not recognize our costs and continue to reimburse unfairly, leaving financial burdens to both providers and patients. 

      The ambulance industry whether municipal, for profit, non-profit or hospital based are forced to balance bill clients because of the insurance industry's refusal to reimburse fairly. This in part lead to ground ambulance providers being excluded from federal balance billing legislation. It may be surprising to know that the Wisconsin ambulance community, Bell Ambulance in particular is in favor of balance billing reform at both the state and federal level. Our support is predicated on the insurance industry being mandated to pay us, the providers fairly.

      We would be happy to discuss anyone's financial obligations due to their insurance failing to reimburse fairly. However, they would need to either contact us or respond to our attempts at resolution. 

      In summation, we sympathize with all of our clients regarding their financial obligations. Bell Ambulance billing practices are ethical and sympathetic. However, we feel that complaints should be directed towards the insurance companies rather than the providers. 

       

      ***** *********, CCEMT-P

      Director of Client Services

      Bell Ambulance 

    • Initial Complaint

      Date:04/15/2024

      Type:Product Issues
      Status:
      Answered
      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.
      On April 8, 2023, I was dancing at a discotheque in ********* when another patron who was inebriated lost consciousness, fell on top of me, and crushed me. The discotheque called this ambulance company, and when they came I spoke to them for a few minutes and told them I did not need their services, because my husband was coming to get me. I was told that night that they would not be charging me since I was not requiring their services. Today, April 15, 2024, I received a bill from them of $395.78. This is outrageous. It would have been outrageous to receive a bill from them anyway, considering I did not receive services from them and I was told that I would not be billed. But it is even more so seeing that they are billing me over one year after the incident took place. Had they billed me earlier, I would have been able to make a claim on an accident policy that I had, and be reimbursed, but now it is too late.I am also seeing that there are provisions in Wisconsin law that protect from providers being able to bill later than 365 days after a services. I would appreciate your help in resolving this issue because it is clearly out of bounds.

      Business Response

      Date: 04/26/2024

      Hello, 

      We billed out this claim on 4/1/2024 which is within the 365 days mentioned within the complaint. Unfortunately,  sometimes bills take longer to process than we would like.  Additionally, we are within our rights to bill for services provided. However, I can understand how getting a bill this far after the date of service can be upsetting.

      As such, I am writing the bill off as a courtesy. Be advised that we will also be notifying your health insurance provider as they applied the amount billed towards your deductible in 2023. Not sure if that will effect anything on your end. We will mail out a zero balance statement on Monday.

      Perhaps in the future you could contact the provider, merchant, etc that you are upset with prior to going to the BBB. I would have been more than happy to discuss it with you. 

       

      Best Regards, 

       

      *****************************, CCEMT-P 

      Director of Client Services 

      Bell Ambulance

    • Initial Complaint

      Date:10/28/2022

      Type:Service or Repair Issues
      Status:
      Answered
      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 went to an in-network emergency room and needed to be transported to another in-network emergency room. At no time was I informed that Bell ambulance is out of network for insurance companies. I was awake and able to make an informed decision if given appropriate information. Bell ambulance charged me approximately ***** for a 15 mile ambulance ride. The insurance paid the in-network amount of *****. ***** for 15 miles. **** wants another ***** for this ride. It is price gouging and inhumane. It is completely shameful and abhorrent to treat people so awfully at their most vulnerable point in their lives. I am utterly disgusted by Bell Ambulance.

      Business Response

      Date: 11/02/2022

      please see attached 

    Bell Ambulance is NOT a BBB Accredited Business.

    To become accredited, a business must agree to BBB Standards for Trust and pass BBB's vetting process.

    Why choose a BBB Accredited Business?

    BBB Business Profiles may not be reproduced for sales or promotional purposes.

    BBB Business Profiles are provided solely to assist you in exercising your own best judgment. BBB asks third parties who publish complaints, reviews and/or responses on this website to affirm that the information provided is accurate. However, BBB does not verify the accuracy of information provided by third parties, and does not guarantee the accuracy of any information in Business Profiles.

    When considering complaint information, please take into account the company's size and volume of transactions, and understand that the nature of complaints and a firm's responses to them are often more important than the number of complaints.

    BBB Business Profiles generally cover a three-year reporting period, except for customer reviews. Customer reviews posted prior to July 5, 2024, will no longer be published when they reach three years from their submission date. Customer reviews posted on/after July 5, 2024, will be published indefinitely unless otherwise voluntarily retracted by the user who submitted the content, or BBB no longer believes the review is authentic. BBB Business Profiles are subject to change at any time. If you choose to do business with this company, please let them know that you checked their record with BBB.

    As a matter of policy, BBB does not endorse any product, service or business. Businesses are under no obligation to seek BBB accreditation, and some businesses are not accredited because they have not sought BBB accreditation. BBB charges a fee for BBB Accreditation. This fee supports BBB's efforts to fulfill its mission of advancing marketplace trust.