Complaints

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• Initial Complaint

  Date:05/10/2022

  Type:Customer Service 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.

  Quality Biomedical received my cpap machine on 3/31/2022 for repairs. GB had an agreement with Performance Home Medical with special conditions and prices. On 4/11/22 I started calling and asking about my machine per their agreement with PHM. For 8 working days the phone was answered only one time on 4/14 and the person on the line was no help. I was calling multiple times a day and sending multiple emails. I just wanted to get my cpap machine back. I needed to know how much the **** was and how to pay it. I finally got a **** on 4/19 for $255. It was for $75 more than the agreement with PHM said it would be. I needed my cpap machine so I paid it on 4/22. Again there was the whole nonsense with no one answering the phone or emails. From 4/19 to 4/22 I tried to reach them saying I would not give them my credit card number over the internet. I wish I could say the machine was perfectly fixed as they promised, but I can't. The first night was fine, but then I noticed it was using double the amount of water it had in the past and it was skreching at me. These were problems that I did not have before. Neither of these problems was covered by their warranty which is only for the hot air blowing even though they were not a problem before they fixed my machine.The replaced a gasket on my machine to stop the hot air blowing. I don't think it was done properly and so caused the other problems. I think this company and PHM could be involved in a bait and switch. I was told the price would be $180.00 at the beginning but my **** was for $255. I paid what I had to to get my cpap machine back because I need it.

  Business Response

  Date: 05/19/2022

  ******************* was referred to Quality Biomedical for repairs to her CPAP device. It appears that at the time of the referral our partner provided her a handout which now reflects an outdated flat rate pricing structure; however,no final cost is guaranteed within the written material nor was one provided by the third party referrer. In the materials that ******************* was provided, three pricing tiers are defined. The customer appears to believe that her repair should have automatically fallen into the lowest priced tier. However, the actual cost of repair, even our former tiered flat-rate model, depends on the complexity of repairs diagnosed once the device has been assessed in the service center.
  
  Quality Biomedicals call center is open weekdays from 7:30 MST 4:00 MST and provides support for our service centers across the *************.We are sorry to hear that ******************* had a difficult time getting through on the phone. We always want to be available to engage with our customers.  During the same timeframe between the dates of April 11th, when her estimate initially became available, and April 19th, when she spoke with our team member in the finance department, Quality Biomedical was also trying, without success, to contact ******************* regarding the cost of her repairs. The customers final cost for repair, which is now based on parts and labor, was slightly higher than the lowest priced tier, but significantly lower than the mid-level tier cost. Mrs. ******** repair fell below the median cost for the service even based the handout she was provided.
  
  We initially became aware this customer was unhappy with our service when she registered a complaint to the Better Business Bureau about the company who referred her to us.  In response to hearing from our partner that ******************* wasnt satisfied, Quality Biomedical proactively reached out regarding our warranty to be sure she knew about it. Our customer service manager apologized that her device hadnt performed as expected after the initial repair, explained our warranty and offered ****************** a pre-paid shipping label to send the device back to our service center at our expense for re-assessment. We followed up with an email that reiterated this warranty in writing.
  
  Quality Biomedical performs both in-warranty and out-of-warranty repairs for CPAP devices. Our technicians are certified by the manufacturer to repair the devices utilizing the manufacturers software for testing. Sometimes,as can happen with any mechanical repair, the original repair fails to fully solve the problem to a customers expectation - despite the unit passing the manufacturers specifications for performance during the quality control.   Additionally, replacing aged parts with new parts can sometimes result in a device having problems that werent being experienced previously as parts of the system that gradually had loss of pressure become properly and fully pressurized once again.
  
  Accordingly, devices repaired by our technician team come with a 90-day warranty on labor and all parts used in our original repair. The customer was not told by ********************** that certain aspects of her complaint,such as it continuing to blow hot air or using more water than previously,would not be covered by our warranty. Its not possible to make an assessment regarding necessary repairs, and what would or would not be covered, without having the device in the service center.

  We want our customers to be happy and welcome the opportunity to reassess the repair under the terms of our warranty.

  
  

  Customer Answer

  Date: 05/20/2022

   
  Complaint: 17187096
  
  I am rejecting this response because:

  Paragraph 1:  I never expected the lowest price and I never said that.  I was actually quite glad that it was on the bottom tier and not one of the higher ones.  What I said is that I do not like medical pricing surprises.  They never contacted me with an estimate even though I received a work order saying it was fixed on 4/11/2022 and a **** asking for payment on 4/19/2022.  I received a copy of the work order and the **** on 4/19/2022.  From that date I called and left messages every day and also sent emails every day.  In total I sent 8 emails and probably over 30 phone calls that were never returned since they received my machine.  Starting 4/18/2022 I sent 6 emails and called every day.  I didnt want to send them my credit card number in an email.  The first emails were sent to the email address on the information I was given about them, the last six were sent to the email address on the ****.  I think that BM doesnt want to hear from their customers and this is one way to do that. 
  Paragraph 2:  My husband and I are retired and we are home almost all the time.  Every time we left the house my husband checked the phone as soon as we got back and there were no messages from BM.  I checked the information I sent them and the phone number I gave was correct.  They could have reached me by email.  They had done that in the past and it had worked.  This is all CVA and a big lie.  The work order I have said the work was completed on 4/11/2022.  The lady in finance was very nice and I knew the problems I was having were not under her control so I saw no need to get upset with her.  I've worked customer service and I don't want to blame the wrong person.  I was not upset with the **** I was upset that I was not give an estimate as promised.
  Paragraph 3, 4, and 5:  How can you take a complaint to a company if they will not respond to your phone calls or your emails?  I think their warranty is pretty much worthless and they will not see my machine again even though it is not working as well as it should be.  I have two problems that only started happening after I got the machine back.  The gasket will occassionally skreech at me and I am using much more water in my machine than I did before.  None of this applies to the reason my machine was repaired (blowing hot air) but I am unhappy that the problems started after they worked on my machine.  I looked into gaskets and if not installed properly they will skreech.  BM replaced a gasket on my machine.  So if I sent in again to have these problems looked at I most likely will get a **** as if it were a brand new problem.  On some paperwork they sent me, they said it would be returned in "like new" condition.  I understand what they are saying and that is why I don't want them to touch my machine again.  I could end up eventually paying in repairs as much as I would for a new machine.
  BM called Performance Home Medical about me.  They told two big whoppers.  One was that I only tried to reach them by phone two times and hung up after 20 seconds on each phone call.  Starting 4/11/2022 I started calling several times a day and leaving detailed messages but they never responded. I gave up on that.  I just called and if nobody picked up I didn't leave a message.  ************ does not pick up their phone or answer the 6 email messages I sent .BM also said the estimate was done on 4/11 and I was notified on 4/19 but again my paperwork which I received from them  said the machine was repaired on 4/11 and the **** was sent on 4/19.  I made so many phone calls and sent emails trying to pay the **** because I was becoming afraid I would not be getting my machine back. There was never an apology for not answering my phone calls or my emails.  There was never an apology for not sending me an estimate.  I was trying to be nice but now I don't care any more. 
  ************************ of ******, ** bears some blame with this problem.  They sent me to BM knowing that other customers of Performance Home Medical were having the same problems I was having.  So BM is treating other people the same way they treated me. 
  I don't know if you can do anything but thank you for listening.  I feel that other potential customers need to be aware of how BM treated me.
  Checking my notes:  On 4/14/2022 a young woman did answer the phone at BM.  I asked her what was happening with my machine and after identifying my order number she said it was fixed and ready to be returned.  I asked her the price and she said it would be $219.  If I had any questions I could talk to billing about it.  At this point I wanted to talk to Performance Home Medical and ask about the $180 they had told me would be the price.  The final repair price was $255.
  I need to be able to let this go.  Right now I am pampering this cpap machine.  It needs to last me through 3/13/2023 to get a replacement through Medicare.  The price of a replacement machine is $999.  Im not expecting BM to pay for this or for anything else, I just want them to improve their customer service skills which I think are extremely low.  I dont want someone else to go through what I went through. 
  Thank you,   ***************************
  
  Sincerely,
  
  ***************************