Return-Path: Received: from b.gp.cs.cmu.edu by K.GP.CS.CMU.EDU id aa09933; 15 Jun 89 18:33:28 EDT Date: Thu, 15 Jun 89 18:31:13 EDT From: David.Kosbie@B.GP.CS.CMU.EDU To: bovik@K.GP.CS.CMU.EDU Subject: Health Insurance WARNING About 1.5 years ago, I posted alot of stuff about health insurance to bovik. I was sold that Union Bankers had the best policy. Perhaps they did... But a recent inquiry from another potential victim has prompted me to post this truly appalling story. It's hard to believe I was had quite so blatantly! For those who don't like lots of reading, here's the punch-line: ****************************************************************************** ****************************************************************************** ******************* DO NOT USE UNION BANKERS!!!!! *********************** ******************* DO NOT USE PRUDENTIAL!!!!!!!! *********************** ******************* DO NOT USE DOM PEALER!!!!!!!! *********************** ****************************************************************************** ****************************************************************************** For those of you who do like a (long) sad story, here goes.... (It's in response to the inquiry.) I'm glad you asked. I was fairly sold by them when I first enlisted their services. Now I wouldn't go near them with a 10 foot pole!!!! The story: I shopped around for some time, looking for the best insurance deal. I came up with Union Bankers -- good coverage for substantially less than everyone else. So I found this guy, Dom Pealer (who works for Prudential), and he was able to sell me a policy. But there was a slight problem -- I have had several nasty operations on my left knee, and I was still in post-op rehabilitation from one of them, and so they couldn't be expected to start paying for the rehab sessions. I agreed. But I still wanted to insure the REST of me!!!!! Well, they said they needed some info from my doctors out West (I had the surgery done in San Diego), but that if I paid them, my policy would start at that moment, even without the information. So I did. $415. That was in February of 1988. Some time passed, and I never got my policy in the mail, so I dropped a line. "Sorry, Dom Pealer isn't in. Can I have him return your call?" "Yes, please." Several weeks of that passed by before I got a little peaved, and started calling at least once per day! Finally, I got in touch with him. The date was sometime in mid- to late-April of 1988. He said he didn't know about it, but he would contact Union Bankers and let me know. Several weeks passed. Once again I played the phone tag game. This time I was provoked. And worried -- was I insured, or wasn't I? When we finally spoke, he said that there were problems with my doctors out West. Why the heck wasn't I informed of this? Why did I have to probe, *months* after paying them, to find out they still hadn't really written my policy?!? After much balleyhooing, I spoke with the person who supposedly was in charge of contact- ing my doctors out West. She said there was a problem, and they couldn't get them to disclose certain info about me. I said I'd call them. She said don't as it wouldn't help. That intrigued me, so I called them. What did they say? They said they had never heard of Union Bankers, and certainly nobody from that company -- or from any company for that matter -- had called them about me during the past 1/2 year!!!!!! Well, that did it! I called up Pealer and said I wanted my money back. He said there were "problems at the home office... down in Texas.." Like, what the heck do I care about their problems?!? They had my $415 for months and months now! So more time passed. And calls to Texas, almost daily, trying to track down my money. (Incidentally, a call to Pealer's boss's boss actually had some results -- I got called from Texas saying they'd hurry it up (yeah, right), and from Pealer, who was pissed that I did it (heck, it was only 1/2 year without my money *and* without health insurance, why should I care?!?). You would think the story is over. But NO!!!!! This game went on, and on, and on... Not for days.... Not for weeks... But for months!!!! In November I gave up and purchased Blue Cross, just to be insured! In early January I verbally warned them: pay me NOW or else it's time to go to court. I very much did not want it to be a hassle, and to have to go to court, but heh... Finally, on January 20th, 1989, a full 11 MONTHS and 2 DAYS after I had paid my money, I got the refund back. DO NOT USE UNION BANKERS!!!!! DO NOT USE PRUDENTIAL!!!!!!!! DO NOT USE DOM PEALER!!!!!!!! I still have thoughts of sueing them, not for the roughly $30 in interest that I lost by their having MY money, but for the fact that they exposed me to potential catastrophe -- they took my money, then they didn't insure me, and finally, they didn't even TELL me!!!!! Of course, not every case goes like this. Other people have insured with these guys. But... HAVE THEY FILED A CLAIM?!? That should make for a real interesting story! --dave