Unclaimed
Alert Usa Emergency Response Systems Reviews
875
CLAIMED LOSSES
7
TOTAL REVIEWS
Alert Usa Emergency Response Systems Reviews
New Reviewer
Deposit Not returned
Six years ago my husband & his siblings obtained Alert USA for their widowed mother who lives alone in another state. Every year the fee was paid by my husband's credit card. Last year, USAA changed from Master cards to Visa cards, and Alert USA sent a letter requesting the new credit card number. I tried to contact them by phone as we wanted to pay monthly (instead annually) because of my mother-in-law's medical diagnosis. Alert USA's phone is no longer in service, so I sent a letter requesting cancellation and all the equipment was returned on DEC 26. To date, we have not received a confirmation that the equipment was received, nor did we receive the $100 deposit. I contacted the NYC Better Business Bureau, the NY State Regulators for Public Service and the NY State Adjutant General's Office, but no one can help us. AVOID any interactions with these Alert USA SCAMMERS who are bilking senior citizens for services not rendered.
ID
Location
New York, New York
Service
Alert Usa Emergency Response Systems Customer Care
Cons
- 100 deposit was not returned your phone is not in service
Reason of review
Return, Exchange or Cancellation Policy
Loss
$100
Preferred solution
Full refund
Equipment Review
They make unauthorized charges to your accounts and they will claim they didn't receive the equipment that you returned. If you had dealings with this sleazy company please contact the Attorney Generals office.
ID
Location
New York, New York
New Reviewer
Return your unit via FedEx - signature required!! Alert USA is ruthless and use scare tactics when concluding service
We got an Alert USA monitor for my mother 5 years ago. It definitely made us feel better knowing she could be 'assisted' with the push of a button. She never needed it, thankfully. We finally moved her into a senior community where she has all of her needs attended to, and lots of people around; so, we contacted Alert USA to return the unit. I was instructed to write a letter to get an 'authorization' to return it. I did this. The 'authorization' was a photocopied letter telling me to send it back, insured to their address in New York. Okaaay...they couldn't have told me that on the phone, or on a website?? I followed their instructions to the T, and thankfully, sent it via FedEx with a signature required. I also included a letter telling them that I expected to receive the $100.00 deposit refunded, as their literature stated would be returned to me, once they had the unit back. A month later, when I hadn't received any communication from them, I called their number was told by the 'receptionist/phone answering person' that I needed to speak to someone specific and that person wasn't available. I left my info for a return call. Shortly after that, I got a voicemail from a very stern man telling me he was "an officer from Alert USA Collections Department". I was surprised and called him back immediately. This 'officer' immediately told me that they hadn't received the unit and were going to charge me $600.00 to replace it. I said that there must be some mistake, because I was looking at the FedEx tracking online and I gave him the name of the person who signed for the package. He said he'd have to do some research and get back to me. A few days later, he called back and said that he did find it (sure...), but that I was missing a piece AND I owed some back charge (total mystery charge) that totalled $250.00. I asked that they deduct the $100.00 from that amount. He said 'That's not the way it works here, our system won't allow that. You must pay us in full and once your file is closed, we can issue the refund." Okaaay. I gave him my credit card for the $250.00. He said I'd receive a check in about 4 weeks. 4 weeks???? 8 weeks later nothing. This company is all about making money on the 'close out'. There are many companies that provide this service...keep looking!
ID
Loss
$350
RIPOFFS AND LIES
I have an enormous problem with AlertUSA. Forfeiture of my deposit without cause, fraudulent use of my credit card, misrepresentation by several customer representatives and almost 3 years of letters ignored. I have filed FTC, NYS Attorney General and BBB complaints and the responses received never addressed any issue I complained about. In my case they denied me the contract provision of 45 days to return their paperwork. After receiving an invoice for an Administrative Late Fee I was made aware that they send the paperwork with the equipment to the Subscriber who in my case is 1500 miles away from me; person who was financially responsible for payments to the contract. After speaking with their representative I was told I would get a copy of the forms, 45 days to return them and the fee was waived. Instead, once getting my signed authorization to charge my credit card they proceeded to charge the fee they invoiced. When I saw it on my credit card I called to inquire and was told the company has no obligation to comply with anything said by any representative and the fee stands no matter what. I reversed the charge with my credit card company and since have received invoices for a $50 charge reversal fee, new contract charges and late fees. All totaled over $900 to date. I maintained one advantage over them however; Since the issue arouse very early in the contract period I informed them no less than 6 times over a 3 month period that unless they honor their statements and reverse all fees, I WILL RETAIN THEIR EQUIPMENT at the end of the contract to secure a return of my deposit, and I have. After almost 1-1/2 years of writing I get a phone call from a Ms. Barbara Miller asking that I pay the bill and return their equipment. I asked her what the status of my deposit is and guess what, in a bit of HONESTY she stated that my deposit is forfeit no matter what action is taken. I told her that my notices included a revocation of the ability to charge my credit card and any attempt will be consider fraud. They have made no attempts to charge my card, but I have now received twenty-five invoices. For each invoice they have received a reply explaining that as my equipment deposit is forfeit, so is their equipment. I have begun billing them for storage of their equipment retroactive to the end of the contract and to date they owe me $1050 including late fees and interest. They receive an invoice each month along with a letter and their invoice returned as not owed. I recommend that anyone who uses their services will at least insure the intent of AlertUSA to return any deposit they hold IN WRITING prior to ending a contract and returning the equipment. Remember; the deposit is not placed with them to secure a fee recovery in the event of a charge to your account which you may not dispute according to their practices, it is placed with them to show good faith that you will return the equipment to them. If you do so you are entitled to your equipment deposit back or they are not entitled to recover their equipment. Make them be the party to first state the deposit is forfeit. After they do so any charge attempts can easily be reversed and the charges contested. If they do not respond, and since your deposit is already lost, just hold the equipment as collateral against the debt and notify them of such. If enough customers stand up for their rights and insist that any charges in dispute have nothing to do with the equipment deposit and then hold the equipment as collateral against the deposit taken they will be out of business in probably one year. HOWEVER; BECAUSE OF THEIR BUSINESS CLIENTELE THEY INTENTIONALLY DENY THE CUSTOMER DUE PROCESS AND COURTESY OF REPLIES AND WILL NEVER REFUND ANY DEPOSIT YOU GIVE THEM. The age over their clientele basically sets their business model. They refuse to speak to you, say anything when you do get a representative, never live up to promises or statements but will make every attempt to throw a contract in your face. Their representatives are rude, judgemental and speak as if their customers are idiots. Sadly I guess we are IDIOTS for doing business with this company. I personally can’t wait for them to start their “collection” actions after almost 3 years of back and forth. Maybe I will finally have a day in court where I can expose the business practices of this legally and morally corrupt company.
ID
Location
Tampa, Florida
Loss
$100
New Reviewer
Alert USA cancellation procedures take advantage of the elderly
My mom signed up for Alert USA several years ago and was fortunate not to have needed the service, but we were comforted knowing it was there. After suffering a stroke, my mom needed additional care and moved to an assisted living facility in May 2011. The facility has their own in-house monitoring system so we contacted Alert USA to cancel service and requested information on how to disable the loud beeping on the unit when it is unplugged, as it can not be shipped back in that state. We were told that that was handled by another dept and that someone would return our call. No call back. We again and then sent a certified letter. We put the unit in the back of the closet and forgot about it, until my mom's credit card was charged 7 months later for $225 for another year of service! By then the unit had stopped beeping so we 1) disputed the charge with the creidt card company and 2) shipped back the unit (certified delivery). Alert USA then contacted us w/ an invoice for $110 for a lost pendant (the unit apparently comes with a neck penant which we returned and a wrist pendant). We found that pendant and shipped it back. Meanwhile, our credit card company resolved the dispute in the company's favor because they received documentation from them that we had not returned all components. So the company is now claiming we need to pay for service for 12 additional months (we do not have the unit so could not receive service at this point even if we wanted to) and $110 for a lost pendant (made of plastic, perhaps $2 to make). I have reopened the dispute with the credit card company and will be terminating that card to stop further charges from Alert USA. Alert USA auto-charges for services even when they are not provided, they are uncooperative when cancellation of service is requested, failing to acknolwedge receipt of notices to cancel and then come after customers with penalties for lost components IN PARALLEL WITH CONTINUING TO CHARGE FOR SERVICE! These practices clearly take advantage of the elderly who are unable to advocate for themselves. I am the daughter here and wonder how long my mom would have continued paying without receiving service. This matter is still not resolved for us and it is extremely frustrating. I plan to file a compaint with BBB (their website indicates that there have been numerous complaints) Alert USA should have 1) returned our calls last May so we could have shipped the unit back at that point), and 2) refunded money for pre-paid service for the 7 months my mom did not use it. Certainly after receiving the primary communication unit in Dec and 1st pendant, they should have dropped the charge for the next year. They have done none of those things. If you have Alert USA, document all communications and use delivery confirmation for all returned components. If you are looking for a life monitoring system, use a more reputable vendor
5 comments
ID
Location
Middletown Township, New Jersey
New Reviewer
Trying double bill and charge adminastrative fees
I signed up paid a year in advance and now they want me to give them my new credit card info and sign giving them authorization to charge my credit card.I just signed up and paid a year in advance why would they need this info except to try to rip me off and now they say if i do not give the info they will charge administrative fees for what i have no idea.The company is Alert USA This company in my opinion is ripping of the elderly I hope this will help someone make the right decision as to what company to use or not to use.
2 comments
ID
Location
Cherry Hill, New Jersey
Loss
$325
New Reviewer
AlertUSA lost my return
AlertUSA, a lifeline company, located in NYC. Dealing with a Joe Garcia. Lifeline company: think "Help, I've fallen and can't get up", lost my return of their equipment. They automatically charged our credit card to continue a service we cancelled. Fortunately, as the card had expired, and they didn't have the new one, payment was stopped. When informed, we were instructed to return the equipment which we did. They LOST the return equipment. They keep sending invoices, none of which agree or even seem to have much to do with each other. Their letters do not even address the issues I have raised with them, but just have become a standard, If you don't pay, your credit rating will be affected. Etc. And of course, the any further correspondence will be used for collection purposes. To say the least, the company is uncooperative and clearly their billing/computer system is pathetic. Anyone else having difficulties dealing with this outfit? TPW
9 comments
ID
Location
Pequannock Township, New Jersey
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I too have been dealing with this AWFUL morally corrupt company for the past two years on behalf of my 87 year old grandmother. Be aware this company is ACTUALLY Companion also.
My grandmother used Companion/Alert USA's services from 2000 until 2009 as a gift from her two daughters. In 2009 she lost her pendant and called up the company to have it replaced. They said they would mail a new one out to her and to pay AFTER the pendant was received and refused to take her credit card to pay the $95 fee for the pendant replacement. After 2 weeks of still not receiving a pendant and being without the life alert services my elderly grandmother called up again to see what was going on with the device and the customer service rep said to "stop bothering us about this and we do not know when we'll be getting anymore in!".
With that said my grandmother told them she would be going to find another company who could provide her with SOME level of customer service, rather then NONE. The customer service rep said and I quote "Do whatever you want" and hung up on her, WHICH might I add, is a COMMON technique done by this fraudulent companies representatives. At that point my Grandmother contacted another company and she received their equipment and services the next day. Since my Grandmother did NOT even set this up herself and was never made aware of any sort of specific way she needed to cancel, nor did she EVER sign any binding paperwork deeming her part of a service contract with Companion/Alert USA she took the last conversation with the rep that told her to "do what she wanted" and hung up on her was the end of this relationship with the company.
She NEVER received a replacement pendant, and therefor NEVER was even ABLE to use their services even if she wanted to. A year later the company contacted my Grandmother asking for the device back and she gladly packaged it and sent it back to them. Now, almost FOUR years later they are sending us bills for THOUSANDS of dollars for an apparent 4 years of service that she DID not receive and WAS NOT EVEN ABLE to receive. NOW, this is not even the WORST part.
We started receiving BORDERLINE harassing phone calls from the SAME representative claiming to be from this company, Mr. Johnson, and I say CLAIMING because never was he able to give me ANY sort of proof he was who he actually claimed to be, this company has no greeting when you try and call in and are listed NOWHERE on the internet aside from their new Alert USA website. Mr. Johnson would speak to my grandmother like a mother or father reprimanding a 6 year old.
How this man sleeps at night knowing his job is to harass elderly people who he is taking advantage of, I will never know. I am SURE you can find a more FULFILLING and morally correct JOB out in the world. Some of the conversations with this man consisted of myself and my grandmother trying to explain to him what happened and with him just yessing us to death and threatening to take this up with my grandmothers attorney (who does NOT exist). After numerous phone calls ending in MR.
JOHNSON hanging up on us I decided to reach out to additional sources and find another way to contact anyone but this man, because MR. JOHNSON informed us each time that he was the TOP of the food chain at life alert and there was no one in a higher position then him for us to speak to. Also, no one in a lower position then him for us to speak to. If this doesn't reek of SCAM and 5 people sitting around in a rented room in some building in NY trying to scare the money out of elderly people then I don't know WHAT does.
After this I reached out and had my PERSONAL attorney do some researching and we were finally able to get into contact with someone else at the company who apologized up and down and tried to help us and get us to an actual manager, but alas this gentlemen hung up on me also and when trying to reach him again he was nowhere to be found. This customer sales rep vanished into thin air and there is no documentation of me ever speaking to him. Now, just today, actually about an hour ago, I receive a phone call from "Pre Litigation", whom I have previously received an answering machine message for, which prompted the above mentioned phone call, and Pre Litigation tells me he is calling about the Companion account with a balance that my grandmother is responsible for and I inform him we have already spoken to someone about this NUMEROUS times and we would NOT be making or submitting any sort of payment for this as it was never authorized and we never HAD the product because the company NEVER sent us one and we were told by the customer service rep to NOT worry about anything and "go with another company". With this "Pre Litigation", who sounds A LOT like Mr.
Johnson, especially after listening back to previous recorded phone calls with him and comparing the tone of voice, "Pre Litigation" ends the call with an abrupt "Well good luck with that Property on Passaic Ave," and hangs up. This infuriated a fire inside of me, to threaten my 87 year old Grandmother over a PIECE OF PLASTIC that she NEVER RECEIVED. I spent a few minutes trying to track down SOME sort of phone number for Companion and finally found their NEW company name and called in to let THEM know that I wanted to wish THEM goodluck with the Passaic Ave property...BECAUSE IT'S A RENTAL. You can gladly go after the APARTMENT owners, because it's NOT my Grandmother.
I also had the pleasure of speaking to a woman customer service rep who informed me that I was indeed, lying to her, and nobody called me a few minutes prior to me reaching out to her. And at the end of the call she AGAIN, wished me luck and HUNG UP ON ME. If you are thinking about using this company for ANYONE you love in your life run FAR FAR away and find a more reputable company that you can find by doing a google search and can actually find some DECENT reviews about. I am absolutely appalled and disgusted.
I beg of anyone considering this company to take another moment and search and use ANY other company. To think about anyone else that might have to go through this makes me sick to my stomach and I wouldn't wish dealing with COMPANION/ALERT USA on my worst enemy, and that is saying a lot. All of you employees who work there should feel TERRIBLE about what you wake up and go to work and do everyday, if this is an ACTUAL company, which I am CONVINCED it is not, and they cannot do ANYTHING to prove that they are.
Companion will REMAIN unpaid and you can GLADLY attempt to take away a property that my Grandmother does not own. I can't imagine all the elderly people who had broken pendants and actually waited to never get a repaired or replacement one that fell or got severely ill and had no help to turn to because COMPANION and ALERT USA are incompetent and morally corrupt.
Unfortunately, they also suck as an employer. If you do not follow their guidelines as a Customer Representative with a complete nasty behavior, then you will be fired.
Employees do not last anymore than 1 year when they are actually entitled for their vacation time. :(
SAMMMMM
I too have had the same problem with AlertUSA. Forfeiture of my deposit without cause, fraudlent use of my credit card, misrepresenation by several customer represenatives and almost 2 years of letters ignored. I have filed FTC, NYS Attorney General and BBB complaints and the response was the exact words written by Barbara (actually Barbara Miller) of AlertUSA.
In my case they denied me the contract provision of 45 days to return their paperwork, Only after receiving an invoice for an Administrative Fee was I made aware that they send the paperwork with the equipment to the user who in my case is 1500 miles away from the person who was financially responsible for payments to the contract. After speaking with their represenative I was told I would get a copy and the fee was waived. Instead once getting my signed authroization to charge my credit card they proceeded to charge the fee. When I saw it on the card I called to inquire and was told the company has no obligation to comply with anything said by any represenative and the fee stands no matter what. I reveresed the charge with my CC company and since have recieved invoices for a $50 charge reversal fee, new contract charges and late fees. All totaled over $500 to date.
I maintained one advantage over them however;
since the issue arouse very early in the contract period I informed them no less than 6 times that unless they honor their statements and reverse all fees, I AM KEEPING THE EQUIPMENT. After almost 1-1/2 years of writing I get a phone call from Barbara Miller asking that I pay the bill. I asked her what is with my deposit and guess what, in a bit of HONESTY she stated that my deposit is forfeit no matter what action is taken. I told her that my notices included a revocation of the ability to charge my credit card and any attempt will be consisder fraud. They have made no attempts to charge my card, but I have now received twenty-five invoices, and they have received a reply to each explaning that as my equipment deposit is forfeit, so is your equipment. I have begun billing them for storage of their equipemnt retoractive to the end of the contract and to date they owe me $617 incudling late fees and interest.
I recommend that every customer insure the intent of AlertUSA to return any deposit they hold IN WRITING prior to ending your contract and returning the equipment.
Remeber; the deposit is not placed with them to secure a fee recovery in the event of a charge to your account, it is placed with them to show good faith that you will return the equipment to them.
Stand up for your rights and insist that any charge you dispute has nothing to do with the equipment deposit and when they finally tell you its forfeit, hold the equipment as collateral against the deposit taken since they ABSOLUTELY WILL DENY YOU PROPER DUE PROCESS AND OR COURTESY OF REPLIES.
Alert USA operates under very strict guidelines and procedures to ensure that errors will not happen. AlertUSA is aware that understood, with clarity, the complete conditions of this Subscription Agreement, Alert USA is only asking that you honor your contract with us.
Failure to return the system in good repair will result in a charge of three hundred and fifty dollars. Fee for lost transmitters/pendants is sixty dollars each; 911 telephone: One hundred and fifty dollars; smoke detector: one hundred dollars.
Any and all equipment and wires remain the property of Alert USA and must be returned to Alert USA at 379 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10016, postage pre-paid in full, upon cancellation or termination of Subscription Agreement. Only then will service be terminated. All cancellations require a thirty-day notice, during which time all monitoring fees will apply.