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Sreekanth (SR ID)     28 August 2011

Harassment from a financial institution

Dear experts

I will try to give a complete background of the issue here.

In 2009, I took some membership with a private company which provided health insurance (which includes some health check up plans) by paying x amount. In December 2010 they called me for renewal and again I paid some amount to them. Then, I told them that I want to cancel the membership. But they said there is no such provision. However, after repeated requests, one of their executives whom I was interacting with, said that he will push for cancellation by telling that I am his close relative and I am facing some financial issues. I agreed to this as I just wanted to get rid of this. However, he informed me that I had to pay some amount to the company as a cancellation fee.

For the next three months they kept calling me almost on a weekly basis charging me for the some or the other service which is a part of cancellation. And they were issuing me some discount coupons throughout this period. They used to threaten me that if I don't pay, they are authorised by RBI to directly charge my credit card 300% of the amount I have to pay. I, foolishly, believed them and continued to pay till I ran out of my savings and all other resources.

After repeated insistence, they even sent one email that I have completed the payments of all the products. Now, they have come up with some other service which they say is a part of my membership and I MUST pay.

Over the last three months, I have stopped paying them even a single rupee. However, I still receive calls from them (from various numbers), which I promptly disconnect. Meanwhile, I have been looking for a change in job and there is every possibility that I might have lost certain opportunities as I might have disconnected a call from a prospective employer assuming that it is a call from the company harassing me.

Now, they are telling me that they will visit my family to explain the benefits of the plan I have taken. But, I am sure this is their plan to extract money from my family since they are not able to reach me.

What action should I take against them? Which court should I approach? I am seriously down on my finances (so much that I have stopped paying my family for the last 5-6 months). So, what are my options here? On the best case scenario, I want to get money back. Or, I will be glad even if I can manage to stop harassing me and my family.

Most of my transactions (almost 97%) were done through cheques or cards. I believe this will be some kind of proof of the amount I have paid them.

Please guide.



Learning

 2 Replies

Gundlapallis (Advocate)     29 August 2011

Membership in company for health insurance? why should you have a membership of a company just for health Insurance? 

 

What are the terms and conditions of the membership?  if those details are made available here you will get right guidance. 

 

However you can make a complaint against this company to IRDA. 

Sreekanth (SR ID)     29 August 2011

I took the insurance because they provided 2-3 free master health checkups and other minor facilities like dental checkups, etc,  for free.

The discussion was over the phone. At the time of registration, the only condition they said was that I have to use their services atleast once a year (which I could not, as there was no need for it). The executivies visited me and I paid them. That is it.

After that, they only called me when it was time for renewal. I have narrated the renewal story in the first post.

Yesterday, while I was searching for info on this, I found that there are many other members who have been cheated by lack of service, or unauthorised swiping of credit card by this company.

Hope this helps.


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