ComplaintsforGreen Apple Dental

• Initial Complaint

  19/07/2024

  Complaint Type:

  Product Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  About a month ago, two of my 3 younger kids had planned treatment, and there were some other things to do. I asked them to email me a possible date and time, but I told them not to book anyone for a particular week, as I must probably will be on another continent.I never received any emails or phone calls from them after, until June 18th, when I received a text message with reminders for that day about appointments for two kids. I texted back right away with questions and didn't receive any answers. Later, my wife had her dental treatment and she was silently charged $100 for the kid's missed appointment fees. I called the clinic many times after that and emailed them with screenshots of what they emailed me recently and there were no emails that they sent me about approval for appointments. Now they blame me that I booked those two appointments in person which I never did.

  Business response

  09/08/2024

  Hello, 

  Here is our response to the complaint:

  The appointments in question were scheduled when **** was in our office on May 28th. Two of the boys were here for appointments and **** was with them. These appointments were made for June 18th.  These appointments were not made arbitrarily without ****'s consent. They were not made while **** was away.  He was in ******, more specifically he was standing in our office when these appointments were made. 

  
  **** has opted to receive his automated appointment reminders via email. Our reminder software program shows that **** has received reminders of the childrens appointments for June 18th on both June 12th and June 15th, 2024.

  As per ***** request for proof, we have emailed him the screen shots of the email reminders.

  
  **** has also received 2 automated reminders (1 per child) via text, on the day of their appointments on June 18th, 1 hour before their appointments. We sent the final 3rd text on the same day to **** to follow up if the kids are on their way for their appointments, as they were late. **** responded to that text message roughly 2.5 hours after receiving it claiming he wasnt aware of the appointments. Only at this response did he inform us that he is out of the country.

  
  We have seen ***** wife at her own separate appointment. After that appointment one of our receptionists has spoken to ***** wife directly and explained in detail why there was a no show fee charge. ***** wife has willingly paid the $100 fee and further expressed that she wished **** notified her of the appointments as she would have driven the kids to their appointments. We explained the reason for the fees.  We did not silently collect the two $50 missed appointment fees. She also requested the dates of the kids next scheduled appointments and requested for future appointment reminders to be sent to her instead. **** then contacted us and did not want his wife to receive reminders. We also offered to send him text message reminders moving forward, but **** declined. 
  After numerous correspondences with ****, we have offered a 50% discount on the fee, to which **** declined.  
  **** has left us a ****** review of his experience, to which we have responded to publicly. **** gave us a 1 star review and there are false statements against our business in that review. 

  Customer response

  09/08/2024

   
  Complaint: 22005402
  
  I am rejecting this response because:

  I attached the list of all recent emails from Green Apple Dental to my email (just filtered by the "Green Apple Dental"). They said, "Our reminder software program shows that **** has received reminders of the childrens appointments for June 18th on both June 12th and June 15th, 2024.". Sorry, but it's impossible because I would at least see their emails. I had pressed the link they were supposed to send me via email and I did it every single time way before the actual appointment. The last link with confirmation about my appointment on June 5th was sent on June 3, 2024, and I clicked on it and confirmed it. I came on June 5th for my appointment as usual. After my treatment, there was an attempt to find another appointment for me for extraction but I said that I would be 99% out of ****** for a week or longer from June 16th. I asked them to email me when the doctor would be available for this treatment. No single word was said about the kids' appointment that day.

  The next day I asked our travel agent to find the itinerary for my trip to *********** for business travel (attached the screenshot). I flew there on the 16th of June and came back as planned on June 21st. I was working offshore on the dredging barge with very poor cellular reception. Every morning I must sail offshore and come back after work. I was able to receive phone calls and text messages in the city. I have a bunch of receipts from my trip (hotel, meals, baggage) if needed.

  My wife is a very trustful and soft person, especially after a good dose of anesthetic and a long time spent in the dental chair after a long working day. She never complains and believes in what people tell her. She is the ideal target for a scam.

  I'm a very organized person and never missed a single appointment in my life. Keeping all of my 4 kids (one is much older, but still) on schedule for their activities is my strong part. I always set a bunch of reminders in our family calendar and everyone (3 kids, me, and my wife) receives an alarm multiple times before events.

  I understand that emails, software, local networks for expensive dental equipment for making crowns, or just the human factors might fail at some point but simple care of the people, especially the customers, should be above os these things. I was available most of the time. It was very easy to follow up if I didn't click the link by simple phone call or just email. I've been in several dental clinics and I was always cared very well, especially for the scheduling. Not sure why it failed here.

  
  Sincerely,
  
  *************************

  Business response

  13/08/2024

  Tell us why here...

   We understand that **** is rejecting our response.

  The new information that **** has provided is not relevant to his complaint.  As we understand he is saying he never booked the June 18th appointments.  He is saying his proof is that he didnt receive an email.
  Reminders from our office are a courtesy and not a requirement.  It is not our responsibility to ensure these emails and text messages are received. 
  

  We clearly state on our Health Questionnaire that we need 24 hours notification to cancel an appointment.  This statement reads:
  A specific amount of time is reserved especially for you and we strongly encourage all patients to keep their appointments.  If you must change your appointment, we require at least 24 hour notice to avoid a $50/hour cancellation fee (emergencies and sickness are an exception).
  This statement has been initialed by **** on our online health questionnaire.
  

  The appointments were scheduled on May 28th when **** was in the office.  He had brought two of his sons in that day.  The June 18th appointments were made that day. 
  We have provided proof of that.  The appointments were not scheduled without permission or consent.  He has slandered our reputation online saying that the appointments were scheduled without consent. 
  ***** wife is a lovely woman, we agree to that.  It is unfair for him to say we scammed her when he wasnt even in the office when the conversation took place between our staff and her.  She was very understanding.  She had dental anesthetic which works to freeze the area the dentist is working on, it does not affect cognitive abilities.She was not sedated. 

  
  I dont see the need for **** to prove his travels to us. What our patients do or where they go in their own time does not affect us.  Im not sure why he is sending us his itinerary. 
  

  We offered him a refund of $50 as a courtesy, but he refused it. 

  
  We are not speaking towards the June 5th appointment, so we are not sure how that is relevant.

  
  He is spreading lies about our office online.  He has given us a 1 star review, ending his lengthy review with the following threat: If you take it seriously, you wont see my feedback or you might see it with more stars. 
  Sorry we wont negotiate with bullies. 
  Our position is that **** booked these appointments for June 18th on May 28th when he was in the office with his two sons. How could we operate a successful business randomly assigning patients appointments without their consent?  He is saying we scammed his wife.  We do not earn our revenue through missed appointment fees.  It is in our interest to find appointment times for patients that fit with their schedules.  We want patients to show up! 

  Customer response

  13/08/2024

   
  Complaint: 22005402
  
  I am rejecting this response because:

  Interesting statement - "Reminders from our office are a courtesy and not a requirement.  It is not our responsibility to ensure these emails and text messages are received." I don't recall ever hearing about it as I would take preliminary measures to not be caught in this trap.

  Going back to our conversation after my two kids' treatment on May 28th.
  
  Every time I book an appointment I say that I have no idea where I will be that day as my job requires me to be in different parts of the World on short notice. Since I didn't have any issues with receiving emails from Green Apple in the past, I asked them to email me the dates and times. And I rush away with the kid to their swimming lessons that day. If I had known earlier that ***** Apple is not responsible for ensuring that emails and text messages are received I would put these dates and times into my calendar right away and even skipped kids' lessons that day for this purpose. 

  Honestly, I don't even recall that I received any paper notes about the appointment, probably some verbal unclear message that I didn't even picked up, I don't remember that.

  Going forwad to my appointment on June 5th.

  I said that the week under the question I would not be around. Obviously, If I knew about appointments, I would just cancel them on June 5. What could be easier just to tell me about appointments for the kids that day? Are there more responsibility clauses that the customers must be aware of? Or if I knew about an appointment, I would deal with my wife or older kid to bring minors on exact days and times.

  As I said, I used to be in different dental clinics in various cities and countries. All of them always make sure that the customers receive the correct information on time. I don't understand why it failed in Green Apple, especially about my kids.

  After so many emails with confirmation links that I was supposed to confirm an appointment, how could I guess that this was not the responsibility of the business anymore? Did I miss an announcement about it? I truly believe that clicking the confirmation link is the only legal approval of the appointment by the customer. If this changed at some point then it must be delivered to the customers to not rely anymore on this.

  What is the point of missing an appointment? The business doesn't make good money on the customers, disappointed customers, as treatment wasn't done in time, and finally ridiculous no-show fees. Why is this all needed?

  
  Sincerely,
  
  *************************

  Business response

  20/08/2024

  Hello,

  I am not sure why this is continuing.

  **** said he did not book the appointments on May 28th. 
  We have shown he was in the office on May 28th and that was the day the appointments were created. We would never schedule an appointment without the patient or guardians consent. That doesnt make sense.

  We did not scam his wife out of $100. Our receptionist clearly explained the charges. 
  

  He has told lies and slandered our name online.  He has done more than $100 in damage. 
  

  We can not prove what emails he received. We have our outgoing emails and texts.

  In any way the texts and emails are a courtesy.

  He has wasted so much of our time repeatedly calling the office. 
  

  He has initialed our Health Questionnaire acknowledging the no-show/missed appointment charge.

  Out of goodwill we offered to meet him halfway and return $50 out of the $100. He refused. 

  I dont understand what is unclear and what needs further justification from our business. 
  

  It is sad that this harassment is allowed to continue. 
  

   

   

   

   

  Customer response

  23/08/2024

  
  Complaint: 22005402
  
  I am rejecting this response because:
  
  I made a short video to explain my point better. Please use the link below if the attachment doesn't work.
  
  *************************************************************************************
  
  When I booked all of my appointments, I always received emails with special links to the ************************* website. In the emails clearly said: "Please click on the link below to send us your confirmation". After clicking the link I got a message that my appointment was confirmed and soon after that I normally have another email about the confirmation (the courtesy, thanks for that). Since these emails are from Green Apple Dental, they contain my name or the names of my kids, are addressed to me, and have a special confirmation link then it's the official and the only confirmation from me about an appointment. If I do not click the link, I would expect follow-ups from the front desk at least 72 hours before an appointment. If nothing of the above has happened, the appointment is not confirmed and canceled. It was always like this, at least 10 times in the raw (check the video), it is the great must-have procedure. It's a clear and normal path of communication between the business and the customer. There was no single word from the front desk in person, by phone or email, or even on the questionnaire where I put my initials that this means of communication using special confirmation link is just a courtesy. Email/text reminders - ok, the courtesy, the email with a confirmation link - is the deal and my obligations to come or bring my kids or do other actions for rescheduling appointments if needed.
  
  
  Now the facts.
  My fault - I didn't write down what was possibly said on May 28th solely relying on the courtesy of the personnel who were being politely asked to email me the dates and times of the appointment. I clearly told that any day the pick might not work due to my unpredictable work, so, once I receive the confirmation link, I will confirm it or decline closer to the date of the appointments. I got firm confirmation that they will do it as they did it 10 times before.
  
  The front desk fault:
  1. No one from Green Apple emailed me the dates and times of the appointments on May 28th or any day after.
  2. I was on my scheduled appointment on June 5th, no one mentioned about kids appointments either.
  3. It was said that reminders were sent by "reminder software program" and shows that I has received reminders of the childrens appointments for June 18th on both June 12th and June 15th, 2024. This is not true as I didn't received it either. And how the software can know that I RECEIVED these reminders if I didn't clicked any links or even confirmation requests of the emails?
  4. My wife paid for the lack of communication from the front desk with me. She didn't even know about appointments same as me.
  5. I tried to communicate with the business several times over the phone to understand why this happened, how to fix it, and prevent such issues in the future. First few calls I was bounced to the person who wasn't there and I had to call the other day several times. Ok, I got it, people are busy, it's fine. In one of the last conversations, I asked the *** to email me both confirmations that the business received that they were supposed to receive after I clicked the confirmation links. It seems like the person sent the email during our phone conversation. I was driving at that time and couldn't check my emails. I checked my emails later and didn't find anything from Green Apple that day and the next day. Was it sent? Is the business facing email problems? I got a bunch of emails that day and every day. Nothing from Green Apple in the spam or junk either. No issues from my side and Gmail is a very reliable service.
  6. Once finally I reached the right person, I got enormous pressure from that person that they were sticking to their policies and not willing to do root cause analysis and offered me a discount for the fine. I was accused of lying that I did confirm an appointment once again.
  7. I asked "the right person" if I could discuss this issue with their manager since we were stuck in the endless loop of non-productive phone conversations and I received a decline. Same time "the right person," said that I could email my complaint and they would forward it to the manager for clarification. So I emailed my complaints.
  8. I called several times in a few days in a row to enquire with the front desk if my email reached the manager and what is the ***ly, as I didn't receive any more emails from the business for many days. Most of the time I was bounced off with no answer and in the last conservation I received a decline of the solution.
  
  I'm a very calm and peaceful person and it's super difficult to shake my balance. I always try to fix stuff that is fixable and help others on this. I truly believe that I did everything right before sharing my experience with Green Apple and changed the 5 stars that I set after my very first appointment to 1.
  
  I still believe that we can solve this little issue with zero balance, a clean review, and a long and productive relationship. If this is acceptable, I'm more than welcome for the conversation.
  
  Sincerely,
  
  *************************

  Business response

  23/08/2024

  We have lost all faith in the Better Business Bureau in being fair to businesses.  

  These emails with the same information being repeated each time and going in circles with requests to respond (to ****'s responses) are harassment.  

  If **** agrees to remove the 1 star review and also agrees to not to spread misinformation about our office moving forward, we will return his $100.  We will mail a cheque.  We request that he signs a statement saying he will not spread misinformation about our office online.  

  We acknowledge that before this incident **** and his family were good patients.  We wish them the best moving forward.  We no longer feel comfortable seeing **** at our office.  

   

   

  Customer response

  23/08/2024

   
  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.

  However, I expected a slightly different happy end. I like Green Apple even though it's a little further from my home than the other places, it looks like it is very well equipped with modern high-tech equipment and knowledgeable staff. I do not have preferences on where 5x($2k+2k) dental insurance funds per year will be used either there or elsewhere. I will clean my review once I see the letter in my mailbox.
  
  Sincerely,
  
  *************************

*Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business. ↩