ComplaintsforComstar, Inc.

• Initial Complaint

  06/29/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  HI COMSTAR LLC; ****** AMBULANCE SVC;NOT MINE. I am filing a formal complaint regarding a violation of my consumer rights under various sections of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) and the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA).According to 15 U.S.C. 602(a), I am entitled to privacy, and 15 U.S.C. 604(a)(2) specifies that a consumer reporting agency cannot furnish an account without my written instructions. I demand that all methods of communication and collections on this account cease immediately. I request the immediate deletion of this account from my credit report as I do not recognize this account, have no knowledge of it, and have no prior contractual obligations with the company in question.You have violated my rights under the following sections of the FDCPA:1. 1692d: By engaging in conduct that harassed, oppressed, and abused me in connection with the collection of an alleged debt, including sending a collection letter containing veiled and empty threats of legal action.2. 1692e: By using false, deceptive, or misleading representations in connection with the collection of a debt, including the following: * 1692e(2)(A): False representation of the character, amount, or legal status of the debt in the collection letter. * 1692e(5): Threatening to take legal action that cannot legally be taken or is not intended to be taken.3. 1692g(b): By engaging in collection activities that overshadowed or were inconsistent with the disclosure of my right to dispute the debt, as stated in the collection letter.4. 1692f: By using unfair or unconscionable means to collect or attempt to collect the debt, as alleged in the misconduct detailed herein.I demand the immediate deletion of this account from all credit reporting agencies. Your actions have significantly impacted my credit report and overall financial wellbeing, and I expect prompt rectification of this issue.

  Business response

  07/01/2024

  Good Morning,

  
  In response to the complaint from *****************:

  
  Comstar is the authorized billing agent for the Town of ****** and its emergency ambulance service. In performing its contracted tasks, Comstar follows the billing and collection policy established by the Town of ****** for its emergency ambulance service.
  On March 29, 2021, the ****** *************************** responded to a 911 emergency call, provided emergency services on scene and transported ***************** to the nearest hospital.  Per ****** policy,  bills were issued to the recipient of the emergency care and transport, *****************,  using information provided to the emergency crew that responded to the call.  ************ information was provided to the emergency crew at the time of transport.  ***************** was sent a total of 4 correspondence on 4/9/21, 5/10/21, 6/9/21 and 7/12/21.  No response to these requests for insurance information or payment were received.  Comstar reported these results to ******.  ****** then directed Comstar to report the unpaid debt to the ********************** on behalf of ******.  Comstar is not authorized to remove this reporting as ***************** has requested, only ****** can authorized this action. Below is contact information for ******:
  

  The debt reported to Experian is owed to:
  The Town of ****** MA ***************************
  ****************
  **********************
  ************
  

   

  
  Sincerely,
  ************; ******, CEO,Comstar

• Initial Complaint

  04/05/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  My 2 year old daughter was taken by ambulance in November 2023 and it took months for a bill to come. When it did, they had not submitted to insurance so we contacted insurance and they confirmed that the bill was paid in full on 3/4/24. We got another bill on 4/3/24 so I called comstar and they took a message and didnt call me back for over 24 hours and claimed they never got the payment which is a complete lie. This company is a scam and I am sick of dealing with never ending bills when my bill has been paid in full.

  Business response

  04/08/2024

  Good Morning,

  Comstar is the authorized billing agent for the Town of *************.

  Comstar isssues insurance claims and patient/subscriber bills to subscribers for amount deemed their responsibility by the insurance carrier on behalf of the Town of *************. Rates charges are set by the Town of *************. 
  

  Comstsar follows the billing policies set by the Town of *************.
  

  All payments made for services provided by the Town of ************* are to be  issued directly to the Town of ************* via check or ACH. Comstar had no access to client funds.
  

  Here is the chronology of event per Comstars records and transaction logs:
  

  *Subscribers daughter received services from the Town of ************* on 11/21/23
  *Total Charges were $1,732.
  *Comstar received documentation from ************* for billing purposes on 12/4/23
  *Comstar issued an insurance claim to the subscribers carrier on 12/7/23
  *1/22/24, Carrier made payment of $639.24  to ************* indicating this was the amount allowed under the subscriber policy leaving the balance as the responsibility of the subscriber.
  North Readings policy is to received payment in full for services provided
  Per the billing policy of *************,  Comstar issues follow-up statements/bills on unpaid balances due ************* where the patient is deemed responsible by the insurance carrier.
  *1/23/24,  Comstar issued 1st statement/bill to the subscriber indicating that the carrier payment, recommending that the subscriber appeal this short payment to the carrier and also advising that any unpaid balance is the subscribers responsibility.
  *3/22/24,  Comstar received correspondence from carrier indicating the payment of the balance due was in process at the carrier and would be made to the Town *************
  *3/25/24,  Comstar issued 2nd statement/invoice to subscriber (standard advisory notice per billing policy..)
  *4/5/24, subscriber called Comstar and was advised that the carrier had not yet made payment to the Town of ************* yet.
  *As of this writing,  the balance due of $1,092.76 is unpaid.
  
  Comstar has no further information on the status of the payment check or ACH coming from the carrier to the Town of *************.
  

  suggest the subscriber follow up with their insurance carrier to attain current status and appeal to them to make payment via check or ACH to the Town of *************.
  

  In the interim,  I will suppress further statements to the subscriber as requested for a reasonable period of time to allow them to work things out with their insurance carrier. 
  
  Sincerely,
  
  **************************; 4/8/24

• Initial Complaint

  07/07/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Customer Service Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  Hello Comstar, this is ****. As spoken on the phone today and from yesterday, I initially spoke to ****** at your company on the 6th. When initially speaking about my fear about the CMS's offer for only 1 year of protection due to the data breach including my SSN, ******** initial response was to tell me that "We have done what is required for us by law". That was it. I expressed my fear in great concern, and the woman that was proclaimed by the prior agent I spoke to, to be the company owner, told me that "She was doing what was required by law" no empathy, no concern, just a ***** apology that had no feeling behind it and no attempt to talk things over with me or remedy it. I am posting this publicly on ******* in hopes that other see it because your customer service was shameful. To boot, instead of Talking me to herself any further, she told me "someone would call me back" and directed me to her lawyer. I should note that both the lawyer and ****** required calls back by myself , as they did not reply when they said they would. I advised your team after providing your final offer I would be taking to ******* as well as reporting to each and every government body that is available to me to see what can be done and that further offers made by comstar would be refused by myself, and here I am.****** was the person I was directed to after being told I would speak to the owner (by their words, not by my request), so if ****** is not truly the owner that is directly below the president as she seemed to make out, feel free to correct me on ******** title.

  Business response

  07/08/2022

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

   

  My name is ***************************. 

  
  I am the *** of Comstar.   

  
  The ****** family owns Comstar.

  
  ****** is the Vice President of Comstar, my daughter and a valued member of the ownership team.

  
  I strongly disagree with your characterization of my daughter.  As her father, boss and person that sits in the office adjacent to her every work day, I am very proud of her very calm and professional demeanor.  I have observed first hand her empathy when dealing with patients in a variety of circumstances and know for a fact that that empathy and professionalism was fully provided to you in the call you had with her.

  In all the contacts you have had with the Comstar staff and the professionals we have engaged to ensure a compliant handling of this matter,  you have been treated with empathy, professionalism and respect.

  
  Comstar was recently attacked and victimized by cyber terrorists.  At the time of the attack, Comstar had in place  industry best in class security systems to protect the client and patient data we store as part of our work.  Our security systems knocked down the threat very quickly and secured the database.   Thorough forensic audits and on-going monitoring show no evidence that any client or patient data was taken.  In this circumstance, privacy laws require the sending of the notification and offer of credit monitoring services that you received.  Comstar is committed to comply with all applicable laws in the handling of this matter.

  
  In your numerous calls to the Comstar office, all of which have either been directly answered or returned in a business timely manner, you have characterized doing what the law requires as doing the bare minimum.  I strongly disagree with that characterization.  Doing what the law requires is the moral, ethical,noble and right thing to do.  The particulars of a given law are not the bare minimum, they are the law.  In all cases, Comstar will comply with the law.  Given vast numbers that do not comply with the law (our courts and prisons over flowing with such cases) for those of us that due comply with the law, we are doing the right thing.  Comstar does not expect any rousing applause for this but we  should not be minimized or criticized for complying with the law.

  
  Finally,it appears by the statements in your BBB complaint that you have made good on your threats to use social  media and any other means available to you to pressure Comstar to give you something beyond what the law requires, beyond what is reasonable in the eyes of lawmakers.  I do not feel making threats and acting on such threats is fair or ethical and find your threats and actions very disheartening.  Just the same,  Comstar will stay the course by continuing to follow all applicable laws.

  
  Sincerely,

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

  
  ***, Comstar

  Customer response

  07/09/2022

  [A default letter is provided here which indicates your acceptance of the business's response.  If you wish, you may update it before sending it.]
  
  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response submitted by the business and have determined that the response does satisfy my issues and/or concerns in reference to complaint #********. I understand that by choosing to accept the business response that my complaint will be closed as resolved. 
  
  Regards,
  
  *************************

• Initial Complaint

  05/28/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  I have contacted all parties from the town clerk to the fire department to their billing service Comstar that I paid this yet they continue to threaten me to report me to the credit agencies. I have a credit score 818 and no debt. I don't need a scam billing agency to ruin my good standing. I paid using Unipay from the insurance website. You can clearly see the report on my credit card and a receipt from Unipay.

  Business response

  05/31/2022

  Greetings,

   

  Comstar is the authorized billing agent for the Town of *****.

   

  I researched this matter and agree  that  payment has been made.

   

  The delay in posting was due to the fact that the payment was made direct to the Town of Athol instead of the patient following the directions  on the invoice  which directs the patient to Comstar's website to make electronic payments.

   

  Athol was not expecting a direct payment.  Comstar called Athol  and confirmed payment receipt.

   

  In past invoice  payment situations,  the patient has used the Comstar website.  We and Athol ask  that be the standard process for any future payments.

   

  I apologize for any inconvenience this matter may have caused.

   

  The account has been marked paid and no further billing shall occur on this account.

   

  Sincerely,

   

  *********************,  CEO, Comstar

  Customer response

  05/31/2022

  Better Business Bureau:I have reviewed the response submitted by the business and have determined that the response does not satisfy or resolve my issues and/or concerns in reference to complaint # ********. Please add your rejection comments below; if you do not provide any details, your complaint will be closed as Answered. 

  [You must provide details of why you are not satisfied with this resolution.  If you do not enter a reason for your rejection, your complaint will be closed as Answered.]
  
  Businesses and Customers should be civil, courteous and polite in their responses to complaints. It is important to remain professional and productive when participating in the BBB complaint process.
  
  FAQ
  
  Regards,

  *****

   

   

  My objection is that I had already spoken to Comstar and sent the exact same documents proving the payment to Athol. My objection is that it should not have taken me to involve the BBB to resolve this. It was bulky tactic from a collection agency on someone with stellar credit that offends me. No further action is needed other than Comstar being aware of my response. Thank you BBB for your assistance.

  Business response

  05/31/2022

  Greetings,

  Again, I apologize for any inconvenience  that was caused.  The account has been marked paid in full and Comstar will not contact the patient on this matter again.
  

   

• Initial Complaint

  03/21/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Zachary Stroup and I are enclosing a recount of our ongoing struggle with Comstar Inc regarding their failure to properly bill and submit a claim that was from the date of service of July 24, 2021. They instead sent the bill to the collections department despite following the directions of both us and the insurance company. *I am enclosing a detailed account of this situation for your review and assistance. Thank you!

• Initial Complaint

  03/14/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  I was rushed to the hospital by ambulance on September 15, 2021.I later received a **** for $2,328 from Comstar Billing on behalf of the *******************************. Since then, there has been nothing but stress and miscommunication due to Comstar Billing.For six months now, I have been trying to get this issue resolved. At the time, I was an unemployed college student and could not afford to pay a **** of this size. After providing my info online to no effect, I called Comstar billing to provide it again in order for them to receive payment from my provider. However, after giving all the required information, no claim was ever submitted. Apparently, this first time I had called, Comstar incorrectly wrote down my information (putting the wrong provider).After calling back and resolving the miscommunication to make sure they have the proper information, they still did not file a claim with my insurance. I found this out after receiving the same **** from Comstar in the mail again and then calling *********, my insurance provider, to discuss it.The ********* rep I spoke to on the phone sounded as if she had no knowledge of the issue and had me provide the invoice number, date of service, total amount of the ****, etc. She then had a conference call with me and Comstar billing to make sure each party had the necessary information to file the claim and make sure that there was no more confusion. However, thanks to Comstar, the problem persisted.I received the same **** from Comstar in the mail for a third time now, with bold lettering on it saying that "This **** is your responsibility." Underneath it said that my insurance had denied payment for the ****.However, after calling my insurance once more, there was still no claim submitted. The issue is still not resolved and I'm waiting on yet another conference call to try to clear up this matter.I have been dealing with this issue for over 6 months now and am absolutely livid with Comstar billing.

  Business response

  03/15/2022

  Good Morning **************,

  I sincerely apologize for your inconvenience in this matter.
  

  Comstar is the billing agent for the *************** FD Ambulance Service.

  Our records indicate Comstar did submit a timely claim to your insurance carrier.  Unfortunately,  the ambulance crew from the *************** FD that provided your care documented your last name as *****.   This resulted in the claim denial by your carrier  and the subsequent **** you received regarding that denial.  Your last name has been corrected in Comstar's system and a corrected claim emailed to your carrier per their instructions to Comstar.  You will not receive any further bills on this matter.  If you have any additional questions or concerns, please contact me via email , ********************************************** or my direct line, ************ any time.

   

  Sincerely,

   

  *********************, Owner

  Comstar

   

  Customer response

  03/15/2022

  [A default letter is provided here which indicates your acceptance of the business's response.  If you wish, you may update it before sending it.]
  
  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response submitted by the business and have determined that the response does satisfy my issues and/or concerns in reference to complaint #********. I understand that by choosing to accept the business response that my complaint will be closed as resolved. 
  
  Regards,
  
  *********************

• Initial Complaint

  03/10/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  On Dec. 15, 2021, I was having a hard time breathing, so I called 911. An ambulance came and they assisted me and suggested I be taken to the hospital. I have *************** and I gave them my information. On Feb. 23, I received a **** of $2,185.06 for Comstar, the company that handles the collections for the Town of ******** ****************** I immediately called Cigna, my insurance company, and they said that they sent a payment to Comstar, but Comstar refused it because it was not the amount in which Comstar wanted. So, Cigna called Comstar when I was on the phone with them, and we did a conference call. During this call, the representative at Comstar said that they would not accept the payment because it was out of service (whatever that means) and it was not enough, and they would not work accept Cigna's payment. This woman from Comstar was very rude, unapologetic, and offered nothing to assist me. After this call, the representative at Cigna said that they are going to try again to submit payment to have them accept it. However, they said that there was no way they can force Comstar to accept the payment. This is insanity! It is not my fault or responsibility as a patient not being able to breathe to ask the ambulance company who is taking me to the hospital if my insurance is accepted by their company: All insurances should be accepted by an ambulance service if it is within the town they cover. And, the ambulance company should accept the payment from my Cigna without trying to extort them or me for more money. This is a predatory practice and price gouging people who call an ambulance for an emergency, and this is wrong. I have already contacted my state representative, who is also looking into this matter.

  Business response

  03/11/2022

  Greetings ********************,

  I regret your troubles with this matter.

  
  Medical insurances can be confusing even to the most knowledgably of people.  I will do my best to explain the facts of this situation so that you can make a fully informed choice on what to do next in this matter.

  
  On 12/15/21,  you called 911 for and received  emergency ambulance services from the Town of ********. 

  
  Scituates fee for these services is $2,278.70.  The fee rate is set by the Town of ********.

   To address your concern that this fee is price gouging,  let me restate that the fees are set by the Town of ******** and that Scituates rates are comparable to rates charged by other municipal ambulance services in *************.  It is my experience in talking with ************* Town and City staff over the years,  that the rates set by municipalities are done so to cover the cost of the service they provide, no more and no less.

  
  Comstar is the billing agent for the Town of ********. 

  We follow the fee schedule and collection policy established by the Town.

   Comstar is not authorized to change the fee schedule or collection policy in any way.  Comstar is not authorized to adjust or ***** amounts properly billed on behalf of the Town.  The Town is the sole authorized party in all such matters.

  
  Comstar submitted a proper claim to your insurance carrier,*****,   based on the services provided to you per the documentation provided to Comstar by the Town.

  
  The following is a summary of the Explanation of Benefits we attained from *****.  Your should have been sent a fully detailed Explanation of Benefits by *****.
  
  Total Charge Submitted              $2,278.70             per the Towns ambulance fee for service schedule
  Patient Deductible                     -$1,000.00           per your contract with *****, this is your responsibility
  Patient Co-Pay                          -$30.16                 per your contract with *****,this is your responsibility
  ***** Contractual Deduction     -$1,127.98           This is a processing error by *****. 
                                                                             The Town of ******** does not have a contract with *****.  ***** should be paying this to the Town of ******** on your behalf.  Until they do,  this amount is your responsibility
  Payment By *****                          $120.68
  
  Comstar did not refuse the $120.68.  Those funds have been received by the Town of ********.

  
  The balance due to the Town of ******** after the ***** payment is $2,158.06.

  
  The deductible and co-pay are your responsibility per *****.

  
  As you noted in your complaint,  the Comstar team has made ***** aware of the processing error but ***** has declined to correct this error.  I cannot explain their rational for this.  ***** will not accept appeals from Comstar on this matter.  The will take appeals from you, their customer.

  
  Your requested remedy is for Comstar to cancel the $2,158.08 owed to the Town of ********.  Comstar does not have the authority to do this.  In general,  the Town expects payment for fee for service charges from the Town.  While you have not mentioned any financial hardship situation,  for situations where one exists,   the Town  has a process/policy for applying for hardship consideration.  I have directed my team to mail you the application form in case it does apply.  The form is also attached to this reply.

  
  Finally,  I did review the phone your and the ***** representative had with my **************** Team member.  I feel my team member from professional at all times.  She did her best to advocate for you and the Town of ******** when speaking with the ***** representative .

  
  Please feel free to contact me anytime via email,  ********************************************* or my direct line, ************ .  I will be glad to help in any way that I can.
  
  Sincerely,

  ****
  
  ****************** *********************, Owner
  Comstar *************************

  
  

  Customer response

  03/11/2022

  Better Business Bureau:I have reviewed the response submitted by the business and have determined that the response does not satisfy or resolve my issues and/or concerns in reference to complaint # ********. Please add your rejection comments below; if you do not provide any details, your complaint will be closed as Answered. 

  [You must provide details of why you are not satisfied with this resolution.  If you do not enter a reason for your rejection, your complaint will be closed as Answered.]
  
  Businesses and Customers should be civil, courteous and polite in their responses to complaints. It is important to remain professional and productive when participating in the BBB complaint process.
  
  First of all, when someone calls for an ambulance in a town, it is not the responsibility of the patient to know whether or not the town  has a contract with your company.  If a patient has medical insurance that is accepted in the state in which she received the ambulatory care, there should not have to be contracts made in order for any insurance to be able to cover any ambulance ride. 

  Second of all, I paid my ***** deductible to Cigna, so not sure where you are obtaining your information. Cigna never stated that I still had to satisfy any deductible. 
  

  Third of all, at no time did Cigna indicated that they made a -$1,127.98 billing error when I called them and did the conference call with your company.  They also said on the call that your company refused the payment in which they submitted to your company. So, not sure who to believe exactly, as I am getting one story from you and another from my insurance company. 
  

  And lastly, I find it completely insulting that you would listen to the call from your unapologetic woman who I spoke with from your company and not consider her rude when the Cigna representative asked if your company would be willing to work with me to resolve this matter or set up payment plan, to which your representative responded a hard NO. I disagree with you and so did the Cigna representative, who also stated that your employee was **** and rude. 
  

  I appreciate the application for hardship, which I will definitely be filling out and submitting.  In the meantime, I forwarded your email to my state representative (who I have already contacted and spoke about this matter) who asked me to forward any correspondence regarding this matter.  I feel both your company, Cigna and the Town of ******** are putting patients in the middle of a pricing and payment war.  This is completely unacceptable for a patient who has a high-profile insurance such as Cigna.  I am not sure where the problem lies and why I get 2 different stores from you and Cigna, but I feel that this whole situation is egregious and wrong and I will let the **************** find out what exactly is going on and who is not doing the proper thing by me.  I appreciate your response. 

  
  

  Regards,

  ********

   

   

  Business response

  03/11/2022

  Greetings,

  I do understand your concerns.

  I also understand that you are receiving conflicting information. All I can say do you in this regard is it Comstar is been in business for over 20 years and follows all rules and regulations. Everything that I included in my first response to you is 100% factual.

  I would like to clarify a point you made regarding CIGNA communication with my team. Signature offered a settlement amount or amount less than what was owed. As indicated earlier, Comstar is not authorized to accept settlements. I reviewed the call multiple times and did not hear any discussion or request for a payment plan. Payment plans are always excepted When offered by a patient.  
  

  The Point my customer service team member was trying to make to the CIGNA agent is that CIGNA has no authority to reduce the amount of the charge at the town of Scituates charges. It has been our experience that win we point this fact out to CIGNA, they re-process the claim. They have processed this claim as an in network service and reduced the amount to a contractual agreed amount. The problem with what they have done is that the town of ******** does not have a contract with CIGNA. It has been our experience that is a common tactic of CIGNA to do this to confuse the situation and avoid payment  on behalf of their subscribers.  I agree, you are stuck in the middle on this one. However, the facts are clear and the issue is with how CIGNA is handling this matter. Comstar and the Town of ******** have followed industry best practice in this matter..

  I will be forwarding all of our correspondence to the town of ******** show they are aware of your situation and concerns.

  unfortunately, Im not authorized to do anything further than  provide information and explain the options you have. I wish I could do more.

  sincerely,

  ****

   

   

   

• Initial Complaint

  12/27/2021

  Complaint Type:

  Order Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  This company refuses to contact myself or my insurance company about a **** they sent. I paid the R&C cost as told by my insurance company, the rest is way beyond reasonable charges. We have been trying to contact them for 3 months and they refuse to communicate with either the insurance company or myself. Now, I get a letter of collections.The insurance company and I are looking for the remaining part of the **** to be brought to a $0 balance. They are willing to bring in the ********************* if needed.

  Business response

  12/28/2021

  Greetings,

   

  I called ************************* and discussed / explained the matter.

   

  Comstar is the billing agent for the Town of ***********, **  ,  the ambulance service provider in this  matter.

   

  Comstar submitted a proper claim to the patient's insurance carrier, CIGNA.

   

  The Carrier is obligated to pay this claim less any contractual limitations (co-pays, deductions, etc....) that *** apply to the contract the carrier has with the subscriber.

   

  Comstar's role is limited to following the billing policy established by the Town of ***********.

   

  Comstar is not authorized to negotiate/change the fee rate established by the Town of ***********.

   

  Their are two options for resolution:

   

  1) subscriber appeals to the insurance carrier to pay the claim in full.  I have provided ************************* with my direct contact information should she need any assistance with the appeal process.

  2) contact the Town of ***********

   

  Beyond record keeping responsibilities,  Comstar has exhausted all the process steps it is authorized  to perform on behalf of the patient and ***********.

  The account  and its status are being returned to the Town of ***********.

  As noted above,  as record keeper,  Comstar will support requests for information that any authorized person has on this matter as the parties (Cigna, patient, ***********...) continue with the  resolution process.

  Sincerely,

   

  *********************, CEO

  Comstar

*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. ↩