Is it fair that the squeaky wheel gets the grease?

[TravelingGal]

To make it short:

I got a bill for $50 for a missed appointment for Amelia this month. The problem is that they called me months ago THREE times to cancel the appt, saying the doc would not be in that day, and to please call back to reschedule. The appt was made back in April.

I called the office. They said they had no record of the calls, but did acknowledge that they called many patients in June as the doc broke her shoulder, but did this on a case by case basis and would not have called appts in Sept. Based on the info about the calls that I got, the woman did acknowledge that it sounded like someone called me.

She offered to split the bill. She said she could not forgive the bill completely. I did not hesitate. I KNOW I'm not crazy, and I KNEW they called multiple times to ask me to reschedule. I told her normally I wouldn't push this, but I know I was called on three separate occasions and while it was my fault that I didn't reschedule, in the messages it said the appointment was cancelled. Period.

She asked me what I wanted her to do. I explained kindly, but firmly that I should not have to pay a missed appointment message for a bill that was cancelled. She then said, OK, I'll do that and proceeded to clear the bill.



Not that I'm complaining, but she said 2 minutes prior that she could not cancel the bill. That made me think, no wonder the squeakers squeaker louder and how unfair it might be for the more...laid back (for lack of a better word) person because they get shafted.

Do you squeak?

 

[MichelleCarmen]

Yes, over some situations I do squeak. Later I look back and wonder if what I did was nutso or not. If I took something a little too far.

We did have a dr situation...different than yours, but still in the medical field and I put my right foot forward and called the office and spoke with 2 or 3 individuals and after that, they treated me differently. It wasn't even over a bill, but how certain treatments can cause symptoms out of the norm and I thought my son was experiencing that. They quit saying hi to me after that. Interestly enough, after a trial run, I ended up being right! Sigh!

 

[Haven]

OH YEAH I squeak. My dermatologist's office did the same thing to me earlier this year--they called me to cancel a future appointment, and then called me to confirm said appointment the day before I was to come in. When I told them they had cancelled it they tried to charge me a fee and I said ABSOLUTELY NOT. They didn't charge the fee in the end, and I was shocked that they even thought that they were entitled to do so.

 

[Autumnovember]

To make it short:

I got a bill for $50 for a missed appointment for Amelia this month. The problem is that they called me months ago THREE times to cancel the appt, saying the doc would not be in that day, and to please call back to reschedule. The appt was made back in April.

I called the office. They said they had no record of the calls, but did acknowledge that they called many patients in June as the doc broke her shoulder, but did this on a case by case basis and would not have called appts in Sept. Based on the info about the calls that I got, the woman did acknowledge that it sounded like someone called me.

She offered to split the bill. She said she could not forgive the bill completely. I did not hesitate. I KNOW I'm not crazy, and I KNEW they called multiple times to ask me to reschedule. I told her normally I wouldn't push this, but I know I was called on three separate occasions and while it was my fault that I didn't reschedule, in the messages it said the appointment was cancelled. Period.

She asked me what I wanted her to do. I explained kindly, but firmly that I should not have to pay a missed appointment message for a bill that was cancelled. She then said, OK, I'll do that and proceeded to clear the bill.



Not that I'm complaining, but she said 2 minutes prior that she could not cancel the bill. That made me think, no wonder the squeakers squeaker louder and how unfair it might be for the more...laid back (for lack of a better word) person because they get shafted.

Do you squeak?

I never used to 'squeak' until I met SO. He has completely rubbed off on me and now I squeak real loud. I realized by being more laid back people were walking all over me and I just took it and went along with it. Not anymore. My best friend was the same way in many aspects and finally stopped being so laid back with things like paying a 50$ bill for something that wasn't her fault, people have stopped taking advantage of her (including her friends/family/coworkers).

 

[Steel]

I look at it differently and will refuse to suffer for somebody else’s incompetence. I manage my affairs and expect others to do the same, if they don't I will not cushion their mistakes and certainly not financially. But I'm not one to suffer fools gladly.

Why would you pay? She really expected you to pay half? I hope she apologised for her firm's mistake and that you had to call to rectify it. Customer loyalty should not be taken so lightly.

 

[Jennifer W]

Interesting!
Things are different in the UK, as we don't pay for healthcare at the point of delivery, but I just had a similar experience.

I needed some major dental work, and it needed to be done under a general anaesthetic, so my dentist referred me to the hospital dental service. After an initial flurry of assessments and testing, It took nearly 5 months for me to receive an appointment for the actual treatment, and of course I couldn't attend. It clashed with my daughter's paediatrician appointment. I called to re-schedule and was told that I'd just go back on the waiting list. Or, another 5 months to wait. At that point, I thought, sod it. I'm in pain and this condition isn't exactly getting better. I'll get a referral to a private hospital and just pay for it. Then I thought, what about people who don't have that option? Then, why the heck should I pay upwards of £2k for something I already pay tax for?

Long story short, I complained in writing and within about an hour of my letter arriving, I had an appointment for the following week. I'm not a complainer by nature, but this made me think that maybe I should be.

 

[packrat]

Depends on the situation for me. Our last internet provider had issues that were not our problem-we pay for service, so we should get it, is what I figure. At the time I was working from home and might sit at the computer for 2 hours and get kicked off and have to sign back in 37 times. I called them so many times I knew the number by heart and finally they ended up on two different occasions sending a tech out. The tech flat out told us it was the providers issue, they knew it, were not about to fix it on their end and would keep jerking us around. We switched to Qwest (and I frequently kick myself for that as well, and will be switching again) and kept getting a "final bill" from the other place. I called them up and said absolutely I would NOT pay that bill and they could send me to collections for all I cared, seeing as how almost the entire year we had their service we rarely could use it and I was working from home so yeah, kinda hard to bring in a fricken paycheck if I can't connect eh? I told them I'd send them copies of my time sheets where I tracked the minute by minute I was able to work, and the fact that they even got paid for the rest of the time we had the service was b/c they kept saying it was OUR fault and quite possibly they should be reimbursing me for lost hours at my job.

That's the only time I can think where I really squawked about anything..but I felt I was justified in it.

 

[radiantquest]

I am not afraid to squeak at all. In fact I do in monthly to my cell phone carrier. It does bother me that people that do not pay attention to their bills and just pay them because someone tells them that they are due end up getting the shaft. I always think of the old lady that has a strict budget and pays her bills as soon as they come in. She would open the bill, see that it is $50 more than usual and think I must have used more this month and just pay instead of asking. I wonder how much money is actually made by electric companies, phones companies and doctors offices charging people for stuff like this when they really shouldnt be.

Dont squeak too much or you will become the patient that is a fruit loop, but dont be the doormat that pays money for something that you shouldnt just because someone tells you to.

 

[steph72276]

Yes, I would have fought it too and would even have gone as far as retrieving old phone bills as proof. I don't mind paying for something if I'm in the wrong (like my husband's speeding ticket), but I will fight it if I'm right.

 

[Iowa Lizzy]

I have a hard time squeaking. I'm just really quite non-confrontational. I will do it if I'm super angry and overcharged or wronged, but I'm usually pretty much laid back.

I recently left a job working in billing for an energy company and yes, I saw squeaky wheels get greased ALL THE TIME there. I feel like sometimes certain people get so used to getting what they want from complaining that they just take it too far. I remember going out to dinner with an old boyfriend's family and his mother was a real squeaker. To the point of embarrassment. When our meals were taking a long time to be brought to us, she actually opened the door to the kitchen to ask what the hold-up was! I was mortified and didn't really touch my food for fear of kitchen staff spit.

 

[Allison D.]

Do you squeak?

HA - are you kidding? Is it even possible for me to NOT squeak?

For the record, I'm a squeaker of the largest magnitude (only when justified)....and when I first got together with my husband who was a classic NON-squeaker, he'd go completely 'deer-in-the-headlights' slack-jawed every time I did squeak and run for proverbial cover. He's SO not comfortable with 'confrontation', and well......let's just say that doesn't ruffle me at all.

Funny thing about that....within a few years, his thinking changed. More and more, he began thinking to himself "DAMN.........she gets results! She gets it DONE." Then he became like a kid with a new light saber toy; he decided to use "the force" (me) for his benefit, kinda like his own little pit bull.

Now we've been together for eight years, and he HIMSELF has not only learned to squeak on his own but to do so very effectively. No longer does he feel run over; he feels empowered that he can impact the outcome. Yep, I'm proud of him.

 

[Allison D.]

IWhen our meals were taking a long time to be brought to us, she actually opened the door to the kitchen to ask what the hold-up was! I was mortified and didn't really touch my food for fear of kitchen staff spit.

UGH - that's not ok, and that's honestly not squeaking. That's probably more a tantrum, which is never usually well-rewarded.

The best squeaking is done calmly, rationally and firmly.....and with a huge dose of tolerance. Some things are just out of our control, and there's nothing you can do. My MIL went mental on a parking lot attendant because there were no spaces left in the facility lot on one of its busiest holidays (she was a member of the facility). Screaming at the kid manning the parking lot is not going to somehow magically make a space open up, yanno?

 

[Allison D.]

Not that I'm complaining, but she said 2 minutes prior that she could not cancel the bill.

HA - and that's the operative piece for me. Is it *really* impossible, or is it possible and you just don't want to change course now that you've dug your heels in?

My friends still recount with glee the story about the night we went to the beach and ordered soft serve ice cream. I ordered the orange flavored soft serve with hot fudge, and the teenage girl waiting on us said "You can't get the flavored soft-serve with hot fudge."

Kinda silly, I think to myself, but ok, no problem. I tell her I understand, so in addition to the orange soft serve, I'd like a side order of hot fudge. She then said "we don't sell sides of hot fudge." Uhhhhhhhhh - ok. I'm thinking B.S. now, but hey - maybe they've have trouble keeping it in stock and it's only for sundaes, right? So, I said "no problem. i'll have a cup of orange soft serve, and also a hot fudge sundae with no ice cream, no nuts, no whipped cream and no cherry."

THIS is where it got ridiculous....she said I couldn't buy it that way. I asked why I wasn't allowed to buy a sundae and have items withheld? Not wanting to reverse her decision, she *actually* said this to me: "It's against our policy to sell an ice cream sundae without ice cream."

NOW, I'm PISSED because this is a blatant lie. What #)$*%^# ice cream stand in AMERICA actually has a POLICY about sundaes having to include ice cream? Right....NONE.

I asked to speak to the manager; if she could have refused, I'm sure she would have. Her manager came to the window; I explained that I wanted to purchase the soft serve and a sundae with no ice cream, etc., that her attendant had refused to sell me that sundae under the guise of a 'store policy', and asked her to verify that policy. The manager told her 'if she's willing to pay for a sundae, charge her for it and give it to her."

I will confess that it did feel quite good to sit at the picnic table in full view of the ice cream stand and ceremoniously dump the hot fudge onto my orange soft serve.

 

[Sabine]

I think a lot of it also depends on your tone and attitude as you squeak.

I only squeak when it's something that really matters to me or something that's very blatantly wrong. But I have a terrible habit of letting my emotions get the best of me and coming off rude when I've been wronged, and I know that that is not the right way to go about it and I usually feel terrible afterwards (and my dh guilts me too).

But sometimes I just let things go. Recently we put in a maintenance request with our property manager. A maintenance guy called, said he had to get something approved and get back to us. 2 weeks went by. I called again to check in. Just got an email back...the guy never bothered to get the thing approved, so property manager said as soon as he gets it in he'll be back to fix it. Yeah, they're wasting our time, but it's not really a big issue, so I just said that's fine, let me know when he wants to come by to fix it.

 

[princesss]

AllisonD, I'm still stuck on what kind of asinine policy it is to not allow hot fudge on orange soft serve. I'd have squeaked a bit, too.

 

[Cehrabehra]

I am more squeaky than not but not always... Occasionally I feel too out of bounds. I think even suggesting you should pay is total bullpoop!!!

 

[LtlFirecracker]

I squeak, and I always have. But since I have been on the other side of it and am often the one receiving the questions, complaints ect, I squeak differently.

I noticed that the patients who are rude to me, insult me, or tell me "I don't know what I am doing" get a lot of attention, but I avoid dealing with them at all costs and certainly don't go the extra mile. The human part of me had my feelings hurt.

The patients who ask a lot of questions in a polite and respectful manner (even if they are not fully agreeing with me) and than thanks me for my time usually keep me in the room longer than either the rude patients, or the ones that don't say anything. Because they show appreciation and respect, the human part of me if flattered and has no problem picking up the phone to clarify something with that patient (as I am not in fear of verbal abuse) or making an extra phone call on their behalf to expedite something.

When I am the one who needs something to be dealt with, I have shifted my technique to the second strategy. It has been working well. Just last week, we were going on a tour in Hawaii and the bus did not pick us up. We went to the hotel guy who oversaw the busses and asked him where our bus was. He made some phone calls and stated they had no record of us signing up. My husband told him that the tour was paid for, so the could not understand why they had no record. The hotel guy looked like he was bracing himself for a confrontation and started telling us how sorry he was for all this. I looked at him and said, "it is not your fault, we will just get a refund, and if they refuse we will dispute it with the credit card. Thank you for taking the time to make those phone calls."

About 10 minutes later we got a call from the owner of the company telling us they had a new employee who messed up, and that a separate bus was coming to get us. Turns out there were 2 more couples in my situation who did not say anything. When we got to the tour, we were all given a free sunset boat tour. The other couples thanked me for complaining as we were drinking at the open bar on the boat that evening!

 

[TravelingGal]

I am always (or almost always) very polite and even cheery when I squeak. I maintain humor. But I'm firm. I think you have to make people want to help you...it's almost always nearly in their power to do so (or they can find someone who can). There are people out there who simply will not help you to spite you.

My cousins were once totally screwed by Qantas' policey while we were in Oz. We were looking at an extra $3000 to fix the situation. My cousin in law called, then TGuy called, to no avail. I got the situation remedied for $100 per ticket, and it was because I made the person feel like he could be a hero for helping me (plus I "bribed" him with a jar of peanut butter...which a lot of Aussies seem to hate?)

 

[TravelingGal]

AllisonD, I'm still stuck on what kind of asinine policy it is to not allow hot fudge on orange soft serve. I'd have squeaked a bit, too.

Agree, that's nuts! (they probably wouldn't sell you on that on the side either!)

 

[Kaleigh]

OOOh I am really good at squeaking.. I pick my battles so don't squeak over the little stuff. BUT I love when I do and get the results I want.. TGal you were so right in this case. Period.

 

[charbie]

I'm a major squeaker. It kinda drives DH crazy because I will speak up and make my voice heard even if there is nothing that can be done.
So do I think it is fair? Probably not. But I like to correct injustices whenever they happen to me, and I refuse to stand for it.

 

[LtlFirecracker]

I am always (or almost always) very polite and even cheery when I squeak. I maintain humor. But I'm firm. I think you have to make people want to help you...it's almost always nearly in their power to do so (or they can find someone who can). There are people out there who simply will not help you to spite you.

My cousins were once totally screwed by Qantas' policey while we were in Oz. We were looking at an extra $3000 to fix the situation. My cousin in law called, then TGuy called, to no avail. I got the situation remedied for $100 per ticket, and it was because I made the person feel like he could be a hero for helping me (plus I "bribed" him with a jar of peanut butter...which a lot of Aussies seem to hate?)

Totally agree.

I have been seeing a lot of articles on CNN about how it is bad to be a "good patient." That is kind of misleading, because I think a patient who is respectful but asks questions and speaks up when they feel something is wrong is a good patient. Of course they are referring to the patients who say nothing when they think something is wrong. But unless you actually read the entire article, it comes across as you need to be aggressive to get what you want, and that is not always the case. Persistent yes, but aggressive, usually not necessary and may actually work against you.

BTW, I think you were totally right for calling them out on that no show fee, it was their mistake, they need to eat the costs of the lost appointment.

 

[Autumnovember]

I have a hard time squeaking. I'm just really quite non-confrontational. I will do it if I'm super angry and overcharged or wronged, but I'm usually pretty much laid back.

I recently left a job working in billing for an energy company and yes, I saw squeaky wheels get greased ALL THE TIME there. I feel like sometimes certain people get so used to getting what they want from complaining that they just take it too far. I remember going out to dinner with an old boyfriend's family and his mother was a real squeaker. To the point of embarrassment. When our meals were taking a long time to be brought to us, she actually opened the door to the kitchen to ask what the hold-up was! I was mortified and didn't really touch my food for fear of kitchen staff spit.

Thats absurd! I hope I didn't give off the wrong impression when I said I squeak loud! I try to be as polite as possible but firm at the same time....I find myself getting much further that way then being plain nasty to someone.

 

[Tuckins1]

In cases like this, oh yeah I squeak. If I really did screw up, or maybe I misunderstood something, etc... then I would just accept the responsibility/consequences. But when I clearly am correct, then i'll make a scene if I have to.

 

[JewelFreak]

When I lived in NYC I learned to squawk loudly & often -- only way you get noticed in the crowd. Everywhere else, I yap politely but very firmly -- if it's a big enough issue, go with the old adage to 'start at the top." I've called company presidents or dept. vp's. Usually you get results real fast.

Once while I was on a business trip to Japan for 2 wks, the electric bill came. Arriving home I found a Cut-off Warning dated a week later because the bill hadn't been paid. (We always pay every bill on time, AAA credit rating.) That steamed me so I called the Finance VP & explained nicely -- but also said I don't treat my customers that way & don't expect a vendor to do it to me. I said I understood they have lots of customers who pay late or not at all (this was in San Francisco) but you do not treat everyone alike -- those w/a responsible history like the lowest common denominator. Expected BS & resistance; she surprised me. "Wow!" she replied, "coincidentally, we are having a meeting today on this exact subject. Would you mind if I used you as an example?" Of course I said, "Knock yourself out!" Great woman & we never had trouble again.

Often you can not only ameliorate a situation but make a good contact in the bargain if you are civil but don't back down. And it FEELS GOOD.

--- Laurie

 

[princesss]

I am always (or almost always) very polite and even cheery when I squeak. I maintain humor. But I'm firm. I think you have to make people want to help you...it's almost always nearly in their power to do so (or they can find someone who can). There are people out there who simply will not help you to spite you.

My cousins were once totally screwed by Qantas' policey while we were in Oz. We were looking at an extra $3000 to fix the situation. My cousin in law called, then TGuy called, to no avail. I got the situation remedied for $100 per ticket, and it was because I made the person feel like he could be a hero for helping me (plus I "bribed" him with a jar of peanut butter...which a lot of Aussies seem to hate?)

You squeak like I squeak. I'm all about making people feel like the hero of the day. My boss always laughs because he knows if I call to get something done (no matter how impossible it seems), I get it done. They call and yell and stomp and try to get things done, and I call and say, "I've got a question and I'm reaaaaaally hoping you've got a good answer for me!" and I get accomplished in 5 minutes what they spent an hour complaining/grouching at people on the phone about. I find that the more I assume from the outset that the person I'm talking to will be able to help, and that they're going to save the day for me, the better the results.

Squeaking is definitely all about how you present it and yourself. Yelling rarely accomplishes what you want, so I've learned to be more effective and it really helps. For instance, I bought a jacket a few months ago and got a coupon for $20 off a $60 purchase. The jacket was $80, and the coupon became effective the next day. I went in and asked for a price adjustment, and the woman said no. So I said, "Okay, then I'd like to return this jacket and then buy it again with this coupon." (Accompanied by a big smile.) Guess who got her price adjustment? I'm not about to spend $20 more than I have to, but I also got my money back while making the cashier laugh even though she'd told me 2 minutes earlier that what I wanted to do was against store policy.

 

[MichelleCarmen]

Tgal - I know this may be a bit extreme - but get whatever the end result of this dispute is in WRITING. You never know if some little discrepancy may come back to haunt you. Could show up on your credit report. . .(a bit unrelated, but I found a $7.00 *credit* on my credit report from a dr. and it somehow ended up lowering my credit score! Took a few phone calls to clear it up. Annoying!)

 

[elrohwen]

Yes, laid back people do get shafted. I tend to be laid back and I don't like conflict or making a scene, but sometimes I can't take it and I do escalate things - on those occasions I do get what I want, while some moderate complaining gets me nothing. It's too bad that customer service only helps those who are obnoxious enough (and I apply that term to myself) to escalate it up the management chain or complain until they get what they want. My mom has always been a squeaker, so I do know how to do it when necessary and the older I get, the more I tend to squeak.

DH doesn't squeak about anything. He had the worst food I have ever tasted the other day (for $26) and refused to complain. I almost had to spit my bite out in a napkin, it was that bad, and neither of us are picky. He's a huge eater and he couldn't even finish the tiny portion. He wouldn't complain, but finally when the bill came I couldn't contain myself and just told the waitress. Obviously it was stupid to complain after the fact, and I felt like an idiot, but at least they took it off the bill and were nice about it. I still can't understand why he won't complain in such obvious situations. I don't think I've ever sent food back in my life, but in this situation it was so bad, I don't know how he could stay so non-confrontational about it.

 

[MichelleCarmen]

DH doesn't squeak about anything. He had the worst food I have ever tasted the other day (for $26) and refused to complain. I almost had to spit my bite out in a napkin, it was that bad, and neither of us are picky. He's a huge eater and he couldn't even finish the tiny portion. He wouldn't complain, but finally when the bill came I couldn't contain myself and just told the waitress. Obviously it was stupid to complain after the fact, and I felt like an idiot, but at least they took it off the bill and were nice about it. I still can't understand why he won't complain in such obvious situations. I don't think I've ever sent food back in my life, but in this situation it was so bad, I don't know how he could stay so non-confrontational about it.

I never complain about food! There was the one story (not sure if true or not) where a woman complained twice about her steak and finally it came back acceptable and she ended up with ecoli. She had taken a portion home and that is how it was discovered. So says the story, she complained too many times and the cook went into the bathroom and wiped the steak around the toilet! Probably an urban legend.

 

[elrohwen]

DH doesn't squeak about anything. He had the worst food I have ever tasted the other day (for $26) and refused to complain. I almost had to spit my bite out in a napkin, it was that bad, and neither of us are picky. He's a huge eater and he couldn't even finish the tiny portion. He wouldn't complain, but finally when the bill came I couldn't contain myself and just told the waitress. Obviously it was stupid to complain after the fact, and I felt like an idiot, but at least they took it off the bill and were nice about it. I still can't understand why he won't complain in such obvious situations. I don't think I've ever sent food back in my life, but in this situation it was so bad, I don't know how he could stay so non-confrontational about it.

I never complain about food! There was the one story (not sure if true or not) where a woman complained twice about her steak and finally it came back acceptable and she ended up with ecoli. She had taken a portion home and that is how it was discovered. So says the story, she complained too many times and the cook went into the bathroom and wiped the steak around the toilet! Probably an urban legend.

I can't stand people who send food back over multiple little issues, and I'm pretty sure the cooks are back there spitting on it, at the very least That's probably what I would do to those people! In this case, we'd finished both of our meals before we said anything, and we don't plan to go back, so nothing they could really do but take it off the tab. It was really horrible though - didn't even taste like tuna. ::shudders:: I really couldn't bring myself to pay $26 for something I could barely swallow - I'll eat anything!