Bay Alarm Medical

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 9, 2015/11/03) */
Bay Alarm Medical offers 3 different styles of payment. This is detailed on our website. Customers can pay month to month, every 3 months, or every 6 months. The longer the payment plan, the less expensive each month becomes. Customers may...

cancel at any time. There will be no further charges to the account once the equipment is returned back to us. Please note that if a customer chooses to purchase a Semi-Annual or Quarter plan, no refunds or pro-rations are issued after the initial 14 day trial period. All payment plans auto renew at the end of their term unless the medical equipment is returned prior to the next bill date.
Thank you.
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (3000, 11, 2015/11/04) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
It appears from Bay Alarm's response that they are not bending one bit with their return policy, which compared to others, is clearly unfair against the elderly. I think it is telling at no "good faith" compromise or even "partial reimbursement" was offered, which I believe exemplifies their unethical business practices against senior citizens, their prime market. I am very disappointed with their lack of an attempt to find a resolution to my grievance and will be seeking further protection from the Revdex.com and possibly their means as well so that my mother and other senior citizens do nothing themselves at the mercy of this company which seems to be fleecing them of their money.
Final Business Response /* (4000, 23, 2015/12/10) */
We stand by our initial correspondence. Thank you.
Final Consumer Response /* (4200, 25, 2015/12/11) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
I have contacted the California Department of Consumer Affairs to help resolve this issue and am prepared to take this case to the small claims court if this business stands by thier policy which promotes the financial abuse of senior citizens.

Hi [redacted], we are so sorry regarding our clerical error with your mother’s account and we would like to thank you for bringing it to our attention. We assure you that we have updated our records and you should no longer receive any notices from [redacted]. If any notices have slipped through...

the cracks following 3/12/2017 until now, please go ahead and disregard them. Thank you again for bring this to our attention and allowing us to resolve this for you. Feel free to contact Revdex.com or our office at [redacted] if you have any further questions or concerns. We are here Monday through Friday, 8AM to 5PM Pacific Time.
Sincerely,
[redacted]

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2015/07/27) */
Bay Alarm Medical offers 3 different styles of payment. This is detailed on our website. Customers can pay monthly, quarterly, or annually. The longer the payment plan, the less expensive each month becomes. Our customer may cancel at any...

time. There will be no further charges to the account once the equipment is returned back to us. Please note that if a customer chooses to purchase an Annual or Quarter plan, no refunds or pro-rations are issued after the initial 14 day trial period. All payment plans automatically renew at the end of their term unless the medical equipment is returned prior to the next bill date. These details are also stated under Section 6 in the signed Service Agreement that our customer mailed back to us on 07/16/2013.
Upon researching the activity on our customer's account, we can confirm that the service renewed on 06/27/2015. We were notified of customer's intent to cancel after the renewal date.
As a courtesy to our customers who are no longer in need of the service but might still be in the middle of their service term, we offer the option to transfer service to another family member or friend without additional transfer fees. Simply give us a call at XXX-XXX-XXXX and we can help set this up. Thank you.
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (3000, 7, 2015/07/28) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
The company's email to me dated 7/1/2015 states that my next bill date was supposed to be 9/27/2015 and that I needed to return the equipment by then in order to avoid further billing. The email went on to say that "your account is currently $0.00 past due" which infers that there was no outstanding balance. I have copies of these. Meanwhile, they had billed my credit card in the amount of $71.85. I find this to be a questionable practice that the representative to whom I spoke over the phone with on 7/1/2015 (the day I called to cancel service) made no mention of any stipulations . She just wanted the equipment mailed back with a tracking number. Nor did she mention that my credit card had just been billed. Even the cable company only billed for the time that I was in possession of their equipment. It was prorated. To bill me for 3 months of unused service is immoral and as I promised, I will be reporting this company to the [redacted] State Department of Consumer Affairs so others may be warned of their billing practices. Meanwhile, I have a dispute under way through Discover Card.
Final Business Response /* (4000, 9, 2015/08/03) */
Bay Alarm Medical offers 3 different styles of payment. This is detailed on our website. Customers can pay monthly, quarterly, or annually. The longer the payment plan, the less expensive each month becomes. Our customer may cancel at any time. There will be no further charges to the account once the equipment is returned back to us. Please note that if a customer chooses to purchase an Annual or Quarter plan, no refunds or pro-rations are issued after the initial 14 day trial period. All payment plans automatically renew at the end of their term unless the medical equipment is returned prior to the next bill date. These details are also stated under Section 6 in the signed Service Agreement that our customer mailed back to us on 07/16/2013.
Upon researching the activity on our customer's account, we can confirm that the service renewed on 06/27/2015. We were notified of customer's intent to cancel after the renewal date.
As a courtesy to our customers who are no longer in need of the service but might still be in the middle of their service term, we offer the option to transfer service to another family member or friend without additional transfer fees. Simply give us a call at XXX-XXX-XXXX and we can help set this up. Thank you.
Final Consumer Response /* (4200, 11, 2015/08/06) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
I already responded to the Revdex.com's email to me regarding this case in an email dated 7/28/15. But I will give you the same response. Bay Medical's response is unsatisfactory. When I called to cancel on 7/1/15 and asked questions about the procedure involving this process, the representative said that I would be getting an email from them. I did get a response via email several minutes later stating that I had NO BALANCE and to avoid further charges I needed to return the equipment by 9/27/15 to avoid FURTHER charges. I returned the equipment and the representative said nothing about my Discover Card being charged on 6/27/15. So the representative was misleading as is their email dated 7/1/15 which states "your account is currently $ 0.00 past due". As I stated in my previous email of 7/28/15 to the Revdex.com, even the cable and electric companies pro-rate bills for actual service provided. My dispute remains and is also being examined by Discover Card. Of course all of these complaints I have read about Bay Alarm and on the Revdex.com's website and in reviews online do nothing to offer consumers a favorable opinion of the company's billing practices.

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2015/05/29) */
Thank you for bringing this issue to our attention. We apologize for any inconvenience this has caused. We did some further investigation regarding the damage to the equipment and found that the device was definitely tampered with before...

making it to our facility. If customer suspects any foul play during shipping, we kindly request that she contact the shipping company to file a claim.
We do confirm that the equipment was returned within the 14-day trial period. Because our customer purchased a warranty at time of order, that covers the equipment replacement fee. We apologize for the oversight on our part. Our customer is entitled to a refund in the amount of $146.75, which is the total amount paid, less warranty and shipping costs. This will be processed to our customer's credit card on 5/29/2015 and may take up to 2 business days to post with the credit institution.
If our customer would like an itemized description of the refund or has any further questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact us at X-XXX-XXX-XXXX.
Thank you for helping us get this resolved.
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (2000, 7, 2015/06/01) */
(The consumer indicated he/she ACCEPTED the response from the business.)
We accept the refund offer as we purchased the warranty. Thank you for intervening in this matter.

Complaint: [redacted]I am rejecting this response because: no contact was received until the bill was sent.  We received written notice in april that the device was not working.  I called and cancelled.  Rep directed me to mail box back.  I emailed a brother with the directions.  I did not know that the box was not mailed back until the bill came.  there was no notice between april and october whatsoever.  Had I received the legal notice I would have known that brother had forgot to mail it back and would have seen that it was taken care of.  I live in a different state than my mother (Georgia) and was helping her with her affairs.  Company knew that I intended that the box be mailed back.  My error does not absolve them from giving me the no less than 30 days and no more than 60 days notice that Illinois law requires to protect consumers from reoccurring automatic contract renewals. this company has both an ethics problem and a problem following the law.I let the company know that mom was in a nursing home, and that she would not be renewing and that a brother would mail the box back as I live out of state.  Not only are they not truthful they were cold and uncaring as to my mothers welfare.  Sincerely,[redacted]

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 8, 2015/02/20) */
2-13-15
Sent via email:
Bay Alarm Medical offers 3 different styles of payment. This is detailed on our website. Customers can pay month to month, every 3 months, or once per year. The longer the payment plan, the less expensive...

each month becomes. Customers may cancel at any time. There will be no further charges to the account once the equipment is returned back to us. Please note that if a customer chooses to purchase an Annual or Quarterly plan, no refunds or pro-rations are issued after the initial 14 day trial period. All payment plans auto renew at the end of their term unless the medical equipment is returned prior to the next bill date.
We take our dispatch procedures extremely seriously and need to know if a proper procedure has not been followed. After receiving notification from our customer that we may not have followed protocol, we immediately researched the alarm event that took place on 1/24/2015. We were able to confirm that we followed protocol set in place by our customer and provided the proper access instructions for the residence to the emergency dispatcher.
Thank you.
Customer Accounts
Bay Alarm Medical
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (3000, 10, 2015/02/23) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
They cheated a 94 yr old women out of money she needs because they kept bugging her to pay in advance I would be interested in how many people they bilk out of money what a business preying on Los people who can't defend themselves SHAME ON YOU BAY ALARM
Final Business Response /* (4000, 14, 2015/02/27) */
2-26-15
Sent via email:
The payment plan is entirely up to the customer at the time of purchase and it is not in our practice to persuade or coerce a buyer into a longer plan. We stand by our initial correspondence.
Thank you.
Customer Service
Bay Alarm Medical
Final Consumer Response /* (4200, 16, 2015/03/03) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
The company is praying on the elderly with unethical business practices and refuses to help those who are the most vulnerable D NOT SUPPORT A COMPANY THAT GOES OUT OF THEIR WAY TO CHEAT SENIORS!!

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2015/04/28) */
Thank you for bringing this matter to our attention.
Bay Alarm Medical offers 3 different styles of payment. This is detailed on our website. Customers can pay month to month, every 3 months, or once per year. All payment plans auto...

renew at the end of their term unless the medical equipment is returned prior to the next bill date. There will be no further charges to the account once the equipment is returned back to us. These details are also stated in the signed Service Agreement that our customer mailed back to us on 1/10/2014.
Our records indicate that Ms. [redacted] called us on 10/10/2014 to inquire about cancelling service and we advised her to return the equipment on or before the next automatic renewal date of 12/11/2014. She advised that she might not be able to return the equipment by that date but would call us to pay for the equipment so that we could complete the cancellation. We also emailed the cancellation information to her on the same day.
We did not hear back from Ms. [redacted] until 1/15/2015, after the service renewed. She called to advise us that she was going to dispute the 12/11/2014 charge and pay for the unreturned equipment so that we could complete the cancellation. She also advised us that she planned to initiate a chargeback for the monitoring charges. We did advise her there would be standard penalty charges for the reversed payment so she was aware of this.
The account has been cancelled as of 2/1/2015. We are willing to work with Ms. [redacted] by removing the penalty charges if she can remit payment for the final amount due: $74.85.
Thank you again for allowing us to come to a resolution for you.
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (3000, 7, 2015/05/13) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
I would accept fifty dollars because I tried in my fall phone call to pay for the machine and the employee who answered gave me the run-around on this matter. All I wanted was to be done with them and their obvious disregard for the fact that they are dealing with a client base that frequently has difficult situations with ageing and mentally challenged adults. From other things I have read on the internetthis company will even bill dead people!
Final Business Response /* (4000, 9, 2015/05/22) */
We stand by our previous correspondence to waive the penalty fees. We kindly request that our customer contact us at X-XXX-XXX-XXXX to make final payment arrangements. Thank you.
Final Consumer Response /* (4200, 11, 2015/06/05) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
I do not want to communicate with this business that is why I am going through the Revdex.com. I had told them in a previous phone call to NOT send any bills to my mother, so just 2 weeks ago, while already going through this with the Revdex.com, they sent my mother another bill for $114! She 84 years old and I had told them she is in a very fragile mental state, so they once again decided to do something that causes her to think she's going off the deep end. My offer stands at $50 and if they contact my mother again, it will be ZERO. This is supposed to be an organization that helps frail people, not aggravate them to death. They got a year of fees from me when the service was never even hooked up, plus I paid an additional $200 for the box. They have aggravated me enough and this letter writing to my mother is over the top.

Complaint: [redacted]I am rejecting this response because: I have already sent in the power of attorney forms. I spoke to someone at Bay Alarm and told them I will not return the alarm until my mother dies. She is in hospice in Wisconsin and the alarm is in Illinois. I am not going to get the alarm until she dies. I have already paid the price of the alarm. I am not disputing that fee. They told me they will refund this charge once I return the unit. It has not been used. I hope they will refund the cost of the unit once they get it back, as they have stated. I am disputing all the $49 monthly fees. My mom went into the hospital before the unit could be set up. She is now on hospice. She has not used the unit. They are aware of this as they sent a letter that my mother has not done her weekly check ins. She never will. She is dying and is on hospiceSincerely,[redacted]

If you have any concerns regarding the possible damage of the equipment from the shipping company that you chose, we encourage you to file a damaged claim with them. You may be reimbursed for the fee being charged to you. As previously stated the cellular network is provided by the AT&T 2G-3G services and may change at any given time. As stated in our Service Agreement, these changes are beyond our control. Our automated dialing system made multiple attempts to notify the customer and emergency contacts that they needed to perform a test and call Customer Service for assistance. 
 
Thank you, Bay Alarm Medical.

Complaint: [redacted]I am rejecting this response because: company violated illinois state law.  no written notice was provided between 30 and 60 days of automatic renewal of this contract.  No notice whatsoever was ever provided.  Contracts cannot be automatically renewed without written notice pursuant to illinois state law.  Written notice was sent telling me that the signal was not working.  I called and was told to mail the box back.  this was in April.  the 60 day notice would have been due betweeen june and july.  there was no communication received from this company in that time period.  I mailed the company a copy of the statute that they violated.Sincerely,[redacted]

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 8, 2014/07/31) */
Bay Alarm Medical offers 3 different styles of payment. This is detailed on our website. Customers can pay month to month, every 3 months, or once per year. The longer the payment plan, the less expensive each month becomes. Our customer...

may cancel at any time. There will be no further charges to the account once the equipment is returned back to us. Please note that if a customer chooses to purchase an Annual or Quarterly plan, no refunds or pro-rations are issued after the initial 14 day trial period. All payment plans auto renew at the end of their term unless the medical equipment is returned prior to the next bill date. These details are also stated under Section 6 in the signed Service Agreement that was mailed back to us by [redacted].
Our customer originally purchased the Annual payment plan on 2/20/2013. The service plan renewed on 2/20/2014. We receive a call on 3/31/2014 with a request for instructions on how to cancel the service. The equipment was returned to our facility on 4/7/2014.
If customer can provide tracking information that determines the equipment was returned to our facility by 2/20/2014, the service charge that incurred on 2/20/2014 can be refunded. Thank you.
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (3000, 10, 2014/08/03) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
No copy of the service agreement was provided that I could find. The agreement was entered into on line and signed by my daughter while I was in the hospital. No hard copy was mailed to me. Please provide a signed, hard copy of the agreement for my review.
Final Consumer Response /* (4200, 14, 2014/08/14) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
There was no notice of renewal beyond the terms and conditions, which were only provided on line. I signed up for service in February and did not receive equipment until March. The renewal billed to my credit card in February at the beginning of the billing cycle and I didn't even know it was charged until March 23. I believe the company's should provide prorated reimbursement for unused services. I installed my own equipment, never used the service and returned the equipment as soon as I received my credit card statement in March. The company provided no value.
Final Business Response /* (4000, 16, 2014/09/09) */
Bay Alarm Medical currently does not offer prorated services. Again, we offer our services with tiered pricing and this, along with our cancellation period, is detailed on our website at www.bayalarmmedical.com. Customers choose the pricing based on their circumstances. We stand by our initial correspondence. Thank you.
Customer Accounts
Bay Alarm Medical
[redacted] Ste [redacted] CA XXXXX
General XXX-XXX-XXXX Fax XXX-XXX-XXXX

Revdex.com:I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me. Sincerely, [redacted]

I contracted with Bay Alarm Medical to provide Medical alarm service on June 21, 2012. On April 9,2016 I advised Bay I was canceling their service effective June 21, 2016 which was the expiration date of the their contract. I received a letter stating that I must return their equipment before June 20th or I will be charged $200.00. Their contract clearly states that "At the end of this agreement you must return all equipment to Bay in good operating condition. If you fail to do so within 10 (TEN) days of the expiration of this agreement you will be --- liable for the value of the system which you agree is $150.00". This is a violation of their contract and denies me service which for safety reasons is critical and for which I have paid in advance. This is not acceptable and in a court of law Bay would be held liable. If I encounter a life saving situation I would not be covered and they would be held responsible, In a prior telephone conversation this their customer service representative she was rude and told my invalid wife the return date was the 12th and if it was not in their hands by then my credit card would be debited.

On behalf of Bay Alarm Medical, we would like to send our condolences for the loss of this loved one. We understand these circumstances and provide alternate options to cancel the account to defer further monitoring fees. Looking into the account for [redacted] we can see that two services were ordered with us. Our mobile services do require a one time equipment fee that is non refundable outside of the 14 day trial period. This equipment is not required to be returned to us as we only need a notice in writing from the user or the billing contact on the account to cancel this portion. If a billing contact is not listed the Financial Power of Attorney is also able to send this written request to us with proper documentation included. Our in home monitoring services do not include any equipment fees as the equipment is leased and is required to be returned to us. As stated previously if the equipment was not able to be returned back to us at that time we provided the option to pay the refundable equipment fee which would have stopped the monitoring service fees. Once the equipment was sent back in re-usable condition, the charge would be refunded. At this time the account has been closed and no adjustments are due.
The Executor of the Estate may contact us with provided documentation if any further information is needed in regards to the billing on the account.
Thank you, Bay Alarm Medical.

Thank you for bringing this matter to our attention. So that we can discuss the billing details on this account, we will need a financial Power of Attorney.
In order to stop the monitoring and charges, we do need the equipment returned to us. If you are currently unable to mail the...

equipment back, you have the option to pay the refundable equipment fee. Once you are able to send the equipment back in re-usable condition, the charge will be returned to you.
Feel free to contact our Customer Service Department at [redacted] to assist with taking care of this. We are available Monday through Friday, 8AM to 5PM Pacific.
Thank you again.

Bay Alarm Medical offers our customers 14 days starting on the date the equipment is delivered to try out the service and see if it works for them. We do offer a full refund for the monitoring service if the equipment is returned to us within the 14 day trial period. There are no refunds after...

the 14 day trial period.
After looking into [redacted] account activity, we found that upon ordering services with us in July 2014 she was able to successfully test her alert system in her home on the confirmed dates of 7/26/2014, 8/14/2014, and 8/20/2014 without any issues from the cellular network or the equipment. It is required that our customers test their equipment on a monthly basis, which is stated in Section 12 of our Service Agreement. This was signed by Mrs. Dugan on 8/1/2014 and a customer copy was provided as well with the equipment. If any issues arise we can troubleshoot and assist at that time. We do not see any successful tests performed by our customer other than the dates listed above. As an added feature of our services, that is not listed in our Service Agreement and not required on our part, we will silently attempt to connect with the system on a regular basis. If we are unsuccessful in doing so, our automated dialing system will call to notify the customer and emergency contacts that they need to perform a test and to call Customer Service for assistance.
Cellular network is provided by AT&T 2G-3G services and may change at any given time, which are beyond our control as listed in the Service Agreement.
We performed an inspection of the equipment at the time it arrived in July 2016 and confirmed that the equipment was damaged due to an unattached antenna. At this time the account has been closed and a bill was sent for the damaged equipment.
 
Thank you, Bay Alarm Medical.

Thank you for giving Bay Alarm Medical the opportunity to address your concerns. We offer many different auto-renewing payment options at the time of order: monthly, quarterly, semi-annually, and annually. Customers select the payment options that fit their needs....

Customers get 14 days starting on the date the equipment is delivered to try out the service and see if it works for them. We do offer a full refund for the monitoring service if the equipment is returned to us within the 14 day trial period. There is no refund after the 14 day trial period. All plans automatically renew at the end of the term unless the equipment is returned to us by the renewal date. This is detailed in the service agreement that was signed and returned to us by our customer on 10/2/2013. 
We do see that contact was made regarding a move of our customer on 4/13/2016. At that time all information was given on how to proceed with cancellation of the account prior to the next billing date. A hard copy of this information was also provided via standard mail and sent via email. Disconnecting the unit does not cancel or suspend our monitoring services as they remain active until the equipment is returned to us. Many of our customers continue using our services even when provided by senior living facilities based on the convenience and reliability of our product. We can always update the protocol on the account to tailor fit anyone who needs facility nurses or responders contacted as opposed to local emergency services. Feel free to contact the Revdex.com or our office at [redacted] if you have any further questions or concerns.
 
Thank you, Bay Alarm Medical.

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2014/07/09) */
Bay Alarm Medical offers 3 different styles of automatic payment plans. This is detailed on our website. Customers can pay month to month, every 3 months, or once per year. The longer the payment plan, the less expensive each month...

becomes. Our customer may cancel at any time. There will be no further charges to the account once the equipment is returned back to us. Please note that no refunds or pro-rations are issued after the initial 14 day trial period. All payment plans auto renew at the end of their term unless the medical equipment is returned prior to the next bill date. These details are also stated under Section 6 in the signed Service Agreement that was mailed back to us by our customer.
Our customer originally signed up for the auto-renewing monthly payment plan on 5/27/2014. To cancel the service and avoid any further charges, customer simply needs to return the equipment to our facility on or before 7/27/2014. If our customer would like the service cancelled without the return of the equipment, this can be done in writing with your signature. Please keep in mind that there is a $200 fee for any unreturned medical alert units.
Thank you.
Customer Accounts
Bay Alarm Medical
[redacted] Concord CA XXXXX
General XXX-XXX-XXXX Fax XXX-XXX-XXXX

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2016/01/19) */
This matter has already been handled internally with the customer. Thank you.

Complaint: [redacted]I am rejecting this response. I appreciate [redacted] efforts. I am done dealing with Bay Alarm. I hope they provide better customer service to their other customers. Sincerely,[redacted]