My daughter went to an urgent care place for a suspected UTI. They did some sort of vaginal swab while she was there as well. A month or so later we get a bill from the lab that tested the swab for $908! So I went to the urgent care place and said if I have to pay $908 I sure as hell want the results! They dug up the results and she tested positive for yeast. But nobody told us that and by now she was feeling fine so we did nothing but pay the stupid bill. They ran the test, we have no right to stiff the lab.
Agree with all that are saying pay the bill and skip the letter! Just a heads up vet’s do talk to each other. While you are justified in being PO’d about the billing practice of this vet, you don’t want to get labeled as being a bad client by this clinic and have them tell other clinics this. It is your responsibility to pay attention to the bills as you get them and of the service as it is being done, dispute it immediately if there is question. Doesn’t mean you can’t still be trusting and expect the best of people but in the end it’s really up to you as the client/customer to ensure you the service you requested and are expecting.
As for buckeye vet - I lived in Ohio and while I did not use this particular vet I know several that have and are quite happy and find them reasonable and vary from very very nice barns to backyard pasture ponies. I have mentioned that I didn’t care for certain vets but never directly by name as emergencies do arise and well in Ohio you don’t have a ton of options. You may need them one day and nothing is worse than having an emergency and a vet refusing to come out as a result of non payment or killed relationship.
I got caught in a situation over a horse I was interested in leasing from a man who lived about 17 hours away, pending a simple PPE. After finding/emailing a vet and then faxing what I wanted done and my cc#, I was told (by email) the vet charges wouldn’t exceed $300. Two weeks later, visa bill comes In with a charge of $725!!! I called the vet to ask what the h@&$ they did for that charge? Vet tells me that teeth were floated times 3, inoculations times 4, flexion test times 1 and check up for one.
I asked him how one mare could accumulate so many needles and why her teeth needed to be floated THREE times? He said the BO told him I was taking FOUR horses so it was all on one bill. I told the vet he was well aware I was only getting one mare checked as I had spoken directly with him regarding this because I wasn’t going to be there. Vet says he will talk to BO. Apparently, the owner tells the vet the charges were all mine, as I owned these horses and he was just boarding them for me. Seriously???
Vet calls me back and tells me he’s in a rough spot, could I just pay it and go after the BO for the money so he won’t be out his fees. I told him I was disputing it with visa, had the emails and fax I sent the office detailing what I wanted along with an answering email stating the estimated cost. I ACTUALLY ended up having to dispute the charges through Visa!! The charges were eventually reversed except the mares costs, and I didn’t lease the horse. No words for this owner, simply no words…and the vet too!
I do feel for you personally I would be inclined to just pay the bill. Did you get a quote before you okayed the treatment? If they charged you significantly more than they quoted you might you would have something to question them on. Also check the bill closely for duplicate charges and I once got charged double because they simply entered all the charges twice and never noticed. I recently had an invoice cost twice what I had been quoted in written. I was a bit surprised, stressed as I really could not afford it, regardless I just paid the invoice and thanked them. In my opinion it’s not worth risking your credit history on an unpaid bill. If I were you I would just pay it.
I would just pay the $100 and see it as a lesson learned…next time, lay out the plan from the beginning and be clear with each other. Even if the vet WAS in the wrong in some areas, burning bridges will sometimes come back to haunt you. Good luck! 
I got caught in a situation over a horse I was interested in leasing from a man who lived about 17 hours away, pending a simple PPE. After finding/emailing a vet and then faxing what I wanted done and my cc#, I was told (by email) the vet charges wouldn’t exceed $300. Two weeks later, visa bill comes In with a charge of $725!!! I called the vet to ask what the h@&$ they did for that charge? Vet tells me that teeth were floated times 3, inoculations times 4, flexion test times 1 and check up for one.
I asked him how one mare could accumulate so many needles and why her teeth needed to be floated THREE times? He said the BO told him I was taking FOUR horses so it was all on one bill. I told the vet he was well aware I was only getting one mare checked as I had spoken directly with him regarding this because I wasn’t going to be there. Vet says he will talk to BO. Apparently, the owner tells the vet the charges were all mine, as I owned these horses and he was just boarding them for me. Seriously???
Vet calls me back and tells me he’s in a rough spot, could I just pay it and go after the BO for the money so he won’t be out his fees. I told him I was disputing it with visa, had the emails and fax I sent the office detailing what I wanted along with an answering email stating the estimated cost. I ACTUALLY ended up having to dispute the charges through Visa!! The charges were eventually reversed except the mares costs, and I didn’t lease the horse. No words for this owner, simply no words…and the vet too!
Wow…that is so awful!
Oh for cryin’ out loud. Just call the clinic and ask about the charge. I always check my bills and occasionally there may be a mistake on one. My vets have always either said, yes, we made a mistake, or explained the charge. We all maintain a good working relationship that way.
Generally it’s not the vet that prepares the bills, it’s some office person just working from a fee chart. The vet may have simply forgotten to omit the call from his report (gasp, vets are human!) and it ended up on a billing statement.
Instead you’ve bashed this vet on a widely-read bulletin board, and you may have established yourself as a problem client to any vet in the area.
Also, did you ever communicate to your vet that you could give the medications yourself? Or ask if that was a possibility?
