Book is closed on missing order

By NANCY PARADIS

© St. Petersburg Times, published June 7, 2000

I ordered the book Pride and Prejudice in large print from the Gale Group, Thorndike Press. I sent a check for $23.95 on Feb. 27. I did not receive the book within two weeks as had been promised. When I called to check on it, I was told this particular book was not available in large print. I did not want any substitute, so I requested a refund. A few days later I received a thin package which seemed like a catalog, not a book. I returned it unopened and the company acknowledges receiving it.

I have called several times and each time am told I should receive the refund within 10 to 12 business days. So far I have received nothing. Please help me get my money back. Sheila Dean

Response: We're glad you got your refund.

One is better than none

This is another letter concerning a free 30-minute phone card that Arm & Hammer offered with the purchase of two boxes of its baking soda. There was no limit to how many free phone cards one could get, so I mailed off my request and two $1.50 checks to cover postage and handling on Dec. 11. The offer expired on Feb. 1; I think I should have received the cards by now. I think I have been patient long enough. Carmela Cellamare

Response: One 30-minute phone card was mailed to us and we are forwarding it to you. You did not include a copy of the mail-in certificate with your letter to us, but another reader did, and we note that the certificate states "Offer good in the USA only while supplies last." We suspect you're going to have to settle for one card.

Insurance pays for tests

On April 3, 1999, I had a complete physical, including blood work. One of the blood tests was for helicobacter pylori, a bacterium that causes stomach ulcers. I had been having stomach problems and was concerned that it had to do with an ulcer I was diagnosed as having in 1993. I paid my $12 co-pay and the rest was to be paid by my insurance company.

A year later, I am still receiving bills for $129.95 from LabCorp, the lab that ran the blood tests. My insurance company refused to pay for the helicobacter pylori test because a diagnosis code for middle ear infection was used. I have contacted Dr. Wisniewski's office to have the code changed several times over the past year. I was always told the code couldn't be changed. Finally, on March 6, the office manager said she resubmitted the necessary paperwork one last time, using a different, correct code.

Well, after receiving yet another bill from LabCorp, I can see that the code has not been changed. I am sending you a copy of the bill for my husband's lab work, done at the same time. The same test for helicobacter pylori was done and paid for by the insurance because the correct code was used. My insurance company tells me it will pay if the correct code is used. I have tried to get this changed and gotten nowhere. Can you please help? Melissa Dusold

Response: We did not hear from the doctor's office, but Beth Frazier, billing supervisor for LabCorp in Tampa, said that this claim has now been paid by your insurance carrier, after being reduced by the preferred provider discount. Your LabCorp account is now paid in full and the balance is zero. Frazier apologizes for the inconvenience and frustration this caused you.

Refund arrives

As you can see by my money order, dated Feb. 2, made out to U.S. Quarters c/o Bill Gale, it has been more than three months since I ordered three U.S. quarter maps. I called several times, only to be put on hold before being disconnected. I've written four times and received nothing back.

I don't need the maps anymore; they were to be birthday presents and the birthdays have come and gone by now. I would like to have my $60.90 back and need your help. Pierce Hilbert

Response: Anthony Gale, chief financial officer of the New York Mint in Edina, Minn., said your order was shipped out, but by non-traceable mail. A refund check has been mailed to you and according to your recent note, it has arrived.

Action solves problems and gets answers for you. If you have a question, or your own attempts to resolve a consumer complaint have failed, write Times Action, P.O. Box 1121, St. Petersburg, FL 33731, or call (727) 893-8171, or, outside of Pinellas, (800) 333-7505, ext. 8171, to leave a recorded request. Requests will be accepted only by mail or voice mail; calls cannot be returned. We will not be responsible for personal documents, so please send only photocopies. If your complaint concerns merchandise ordered by mail, we need copies of both sides of your canceled check. We may require additional information or prefer to reply by mail; therefore, readers must provide a full mailing address, including ZIP code. Names of letter writers will not be omitted except in unusual circumstances. Letters may be edited.

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