Unaffordable vet debt

bellalu

I have had issues all year with my previous vet. They have had new management who have been making my life as difficult as possible. 

My boy, who was my world and sadly passed a couple of weeks ago, had been battling so much in recent years. I now believe that the vet didn’t act appropriately on separate occasions, resulting in my boy needing two major operations. He went through hell as a result and they declared the second time that the fees has more than doubled. 

Since March this year, I had been chasing accurate billing information which they were unable to provide me with. I kept receiving different/conflicting figures and spent so much energy trying to sort it out. 

Fast forward to October this year, they threatened debt collection and I once again advised them I was still waiting on them to provide accurate billing at which point they fired a 43 page document straight back with all itemisation. They had been withholding it or had taken many months to send this. I told them I would need time to now go through it. Unfortunately by this point my baby was extremely unwell and all my focus had been on him and back and forth trips to his new vet. On November 23rd we lost him and it has affected me greatly. I’m already very unwell with M.E and this has taken a huge toll. 

So I haven’t been able to look at their information, which they should have provided me with months ago. 

I received a letter from them yesterday saying they are sorry to hear about the passing of my dog (I have not told them this information and it indicates that they are looking at my social media which is set to private to gather information) but they require payment in full within the next 7 days or my account will be passed to debt collection services. 

I believe they have acted intentionally this entire time to make life as difficult as possible for me and are now doing this at the worst time in my life. 

I had been trying to establish what I owed so I could set up an accurate payment plan. At this point now, I have nothing. I had to use all remaining money (I even started a fundraiser) to keep him alive and ultimately put him to rest. I haven’t been able to pay my fuel bill in months, which I’m getting help with. And they are demanding over £2000. 

I spoke to CAB and they advised I could argue that their costs are unreasonable compared to other vets. Our new emergency vet charges £3-4k for the same op, the old vet charged over £6k. 

It’s just taken so long to get a final breakdown from them (and £500 still remains unaccounted for) that now I’m in such a state, I don’t know what to do with any of this. They have done this knowing I am broken and hoping I’ll just pay without question I’m sure. 

As it stands I have nothing left. I don’t even want to be here any more, but I’m not going to act on it. All I can see is darkness and people actively trying to drown me at the most difficult time in my life. I have lost what I considered to be my child. I have nothing else. 

If anyone has any advice on who to contact regarding the issue and the outstanding debt (which is still not accurate) I’d be grateful. I can’t let this continue and definitely can’t cope with a court case. 

Thank you

Voyager2002

I am so sorry to hear your story.

I suggest that you write back to them saying that you are grieving and that you require 30 days to make sense of the information that they sent you. Say that there is still a £500 discrepancy that they need to explain before you can even consider making arrangements to pay. Conclude that you insist on a proper itemised invoice, and that if they contact you about the debt within the next month (apart from sending you the billing information that they should have provided earlier) you will regard that as harassment and respond accordingly.

sourcrates

Write and dispute the bill if you think its wrong.

Debt collector can`t do anything but write and ask you to pay, as its not their debt, they will just be engaged to collect it, they don't own it so they can be ignored completely.

After a while they will pass the account back to the client (vet).

None of this will show on your credit file in case your bothered.

bellalu

Thank you for the responses. I had trouble finding my post on the app after I made it so I’m only responding now. 

To clarify, they had sent a 43 page invoice back at me in October, as they threatened debt Collection then and I told them I still hadn’t received itemisation. So they sent a series of itemised invoices, but the £500 just appears on the bill as having been ‘paid’ But it doesn’t seem to have been applied anywhere on the account bill like all the other payments. I don’t think they know where it went and are trying to hide the fact. 

I was going to send them a vulnerable person’s notice and ask them to back off. What’s worse is they have written in the letter that they are sorry to hear about my dogs passing. I have not told them this and I believe they’re getting this information from social media so I’m planning on doing an SAR as I believe they’re possibly breaching data protection. They are using this information knowing I’m at my most vulnerable to strike. It’s deplorable. 

I’m doing ok, I’m planning on fighting this regardless. They have underestimated me. I just wish I had a bit more cognitive capacity to be sure I’m doing everything right. 

mr_stripey

just to play devil's advocate here, why does it matter that they found out about the dog being dead?

It doesn't detract from the fundamental issue which is the dispute over the amount(s) being charged? Presumably you have a figure in mind which would be reasonable on the treatment the vet gave to the dog?

If you've posted about your dog on socials then it's very possible they've found out first, second or third hand about it? Either way, perhaps they just thought it would be nice to pass their condolences, rather than just sending the invoices out?

I get that you're very emotional about this and it is a difficult time. But the vet has done the work and is entitled to ask for payment. 

bellalu

For the devils advocate, I wrote all the relevant info in the post that there potentially shouldn’t have even been an op. Also garnering information and then using it at your most vulnerable time is tactical and I know the way they have behaved throughout. It is too much to post the ins and outs. 

I have written the information and request of what I’m looking for, with respect I do not need a ‘devils advocate’ or any further gaslighting. Honestly I’ve had enough of that from them. I’d appreciate the responses to kept to what I’ve asked and not further exacerbate my anguish. I might be emotional but I can see very clearly what is happening and when something isn’t right.