Smile Straight Orthodontics

My son got his braces on today. I must say we had the nicest team assisting us. They are so professional. The best part about it was, I was able to go to the back and be with my child during the entire process. I would recommend this place to anyone.

Thanks so much

This Ortho office owes me money and has since July. Every time I call they transfer me and the lady I leave a message for never calls me back. Smile Straight owes me money and has since July 2015 and it is now going into October 2015. They say that they are waiting on insurance payments but I have already received confirmation that they have been paid from insurance. I also believe that they owe me more than they are stating they do. It is for my daughter [redacted] and we have double cover insurance. I paid them total for the cost of treatment and actually paid them early. They transfer me to [redacted] or to leave a message and she will call me back but she never calls me back. They always have some excuse when I call and I need someone to step in. Also they have a referral program and something needs to be done about that. Never did they say if you don't finish treatment and get moved by the military they don't follow through with their agreement and I think they should state that in the beginning in writing. Also I have started by daughter at another orthodontist here in Fort Benning, GA and he says there is a gap that they have opened in her teeth and he has no idea how they did that so seems to me that they have charged me a bunch of money and really don't know what they are doing. Now she has had these braces a little over 2 years and we are looking at possibly another year when the initial treatment was 24-28 months and another roughly $3,000-$4,000.Desired SettlementI would like to be charged the right amount of money, also would like to receive the referral amount that I was told in the beginning, and explanation as to how and why they made a bigger mess of my daughter's teeth that is costing me way more money and why they are over charging me.Business Response Good Morning Alexis [redacted] ( patient ) has transferred out of our office due to her parents being relocated. When patients transfer out of our office we prepare whats called a financial breakdown. This financial breakdown includes all the work that has been delivered up to date including supplies. The American Association of Orthodontics states fees vary widely throughout the country. What we charge here in El Paso is not what they will be charging in Washington for example or even Austin TX. Patient responsible parties always usually incur additional fees. In the case of Alexis [redacted] this responsible party paid in full. She was originally quoted a REFUND with the exception that her INSURANCE company was still pending ONE last payment so the refund would be larger than expected. Its standard procedure we do not cut a final refund check until the insurance company has sent final payment. We indeed received final check from insurance on XX-XX-XXXX and it takes anywhere from 30-45 days to have a refund check cut after request. Our system does show the check was cut on 10-23-2015. Patient should have already received check or in the process of receiving it. As far as our referral program, we give patients a 50.00 gift card if they refer another patient and they start treatment. The 50.00 GIFT CARD TO WALMART was sent certified mail and the tracking # XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX. It shows received and signed for. We do our best with our patients that transfer out to other cities due to military or for any other reasons. Financial Breakdowns and refunds unfortunately do take some time to sort out and process but we feel we have delivered everything in a timely manner according to our protocols. Please feel free to contact us with any further questions or concerns. Thank YOU ! CLONAConsumer Response (The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)First of all I have not received the refund check as of 10/30/2015 and if you sent it on 10/23/2015 like you said you did it would have got to me by now. Secondly I didn't see you mention that the referral program is $100 off treatment if you Refer someone to your office. Is it written down that if you transfer out with the military the offer is not valid? No it's not in your fine print. So you need to tell military members that basically your offer is not valid with us because we do move often for your freedom we serve. I feel like I shoul have got the $100 off. Third what about my daughters teeth that are really messed up now? The new orthodontist don't know what you guys did but it's clear something wasn't done right on your end. So we are in braces at least another year with $3000 more.