Horn Lake Animal Hospital

The name of the clinic is Animal "Hospital" yet they charge for "emergency visit" and in the lobby it states "We do not Bill" yet I received 2 bills.Account #: [redacted] On September 29, 2013, I took my dog Sheldon into the Horn Lake Animal Hospital due to him being very lethargic. Dr. [redacted] knew things looked bleak so we decided not to stay as it could be hours before we knew anything. Before leaving I noticed a sign stating "We do not send Bills". They decided to keep the dog overnight to monitor, but said they were only doing "comfort care." The next day the vet asked if I wanted to do a lab panel to find out what's going on. I agreed. She called me back a few hours later to tell me my dog had died. A few weeks later I got a bill for $422. $69 for an "emergency vet visit", but this is an animal "hospital" and open 7 days a week. It also lists $31 for "intensive care stay". My dog was not even in the clinic for 24 hours and weighs a pound. Boarding at any other place would be about $10, but they claim three times the amount it should be. $40 for fluids. Once again, the dog weighs a pound! $40 for fluids?? It also says after 90 days the bill will be turned over to collections. It says nothing about any late fees or interest charges if not paid within 30 days. I wanted to dispute the bill, but 30 days went by and I received a second bill with $20.99 charged for "interest" making my new amount due $442.99.Desired SettlementI am seeking the business to cancel this bill owed based on the following factors: 1) The sign in the lobby clearly states they do not send bills yet I received 2 bills. That's false advertising. I would have set up arrangements with them prior to leaving the clinic if they had spoken to me about payment. The vet recommended we leave, because things looked bleak and it could be hours. 2) They over charged for many items putting it as "emergency care" when that is what this clinic is "emergency care". Once again, false advertising. You shouldn't charge extra when that is what the practice is. 3) There was nothing said about late fees or interest on the bill yet they charged $22 interest, which is VERY high! 4) My dog died at the clinic. They knew things looked bad and continued to seek treatment in order to make more money. I was and am devastated over my sweet yorkie poo! I don't think they should even bill you if the result is your animal dying under their care! Business Response The nature of our business is we operate normal business hours in which we deal with routine veterinary care. However, we remain open 24 hours a day to deal with emergency cases at a designated time each day which is clearly indicated in all of our advertisements and we tell each individual that calls us during "emergency hours" that the charges are more. The patient in question presented to us at 11:04 Sunday morning on the 15th of September. The patient was nonresponsive. Dr. [redacted] explained to the owner what needed to be done and the owner agreed to the plan of action which was attempt to stabilize patient first then perform diagnositc tests to determine the origin of the problem. The owner was given a poor prognosis. Normally we secure at least a 50% deposit but for what ever reason it was not collected in this case. The owner was given verbal updates several times through the 15th. On the 16th Dr. [redacted] called the owner at 7:35 am and left a message for the owner to call. The owner returned her call at 9:40 am and Dr. [redacted] advised the owner that the pet was not much better and we needed to perform some diagnositcs tests to determine the etiology of the pets medical condition. The owner gave Dr. [redacted] verbal permission to perform a CBC, Chemistry profile, and bile acids. Unfortunately the patient worsened and died at 2:37 pm on the 16th. The owner was informed of the pets passing. As for the owners desired resolution. (1) There are numerous signs in our hospital that states payment is due when services are rendered. As stated before we normally secure a deposit before beginning treatment but it was not secured in this case. The "we don't do billing" means we do not allow services to be charged. The owner received 2 bills because they never paid a dime for any services rendered. (2) The emergency fees are applied during our emergency hours. Technically as a business owner I can charge whatever I want, but any resonable person should know that a person going to the emergency room is going to pay more than a routine visit to the family doctor. (3) As for the interest and late fees. I can legally charge interest towards any balance that is owed. With this logic Visa or Mastercard should not charge interest or late fees. (4) Yes the patient died under our care but that does not make them exempt for paying their bill. Services were rendered and therefore payment is due. Do they seriously think that human hospitals do not charge you when a person dies under their care. I truly understand that the [redacted] are upset over losing a pet that they oviously cared about, but we performed our task ethically and professionally. We are not exempt paying for services because the result was not as we desired. My resolution to this complaint is for them to pay for the services that were renered. Because of the action they have taken I will accept nothing less than 100% of what is due.[redacted]Final Consumer Response (The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)The response says they "usually" get payment and they "usually" do things a certain way, but this was not the case with us. Why are we in the atypical catagory? There is nothing on the bill stating any late fees or interest. It actually makes it look like you have several months to pay it, because it lists down at the bottom 0-30 days, 30-60, 60-90, but it doesn't say any additional fees. They say "any reasonable person". This is bashing me sounding like I'm being unreasonable. I think I was overcharged and then given false information. They should at minumum take off the late interest fee and work with me on payment. That would be the "reasonable" thing to do. Going through the Revdex.com as a liason between us shouldn't set Dr. [redacted] off into not wanting to work with us at all and say he'll take nothing less than 100%. This is the most insensitive response I could've imagined. I know they deal with pets dying all the time, but I don't and am very upset with the situation and how the billing was handled. I wish they would've charged 50% so I would've known what I was getting into as far as money and didn't receive a bulk bill. I don't have $500 just sitting around. I have 5 children to feed and Christmas coming up. I request that they reconsider lowering the bill or at minimum taking off the late fee and work with me on a payment plan, because the only amount even told to me was $130 for labs and there is nothing saying how much interest or late fees they charge. Final Business Response Consumer should call me directly to discuss this matter. I am willing to resolve this matter to the satifaction of both parties. This matter should have been resolved personally in the first place.