WSVN — It’s pretty common; getting braces to make those teeth look better. One South Florida woman did it, but didn’t get them adjusted for a year, and when she tried to go back to her orthodontist’s office, she got a surprise, which is why she called Help Me Howard with Patrick Fraser.
When Karra was a teenager, it was clear she was going to need braces.
Karra Rodriguez: “I had a really bad underbite, and it was terrible.”
While she was in high school, her mother encouraged her to get them.
Karra Rodriguez: “‘You have to get braces.’ Going through high school, I didn’t want to get braces ’cause I would be made fun of.”
Now Karra is an adult, old enough to realize no one cares about your braces, and so she went to see an orthodontist about braces.
Karra Rodriguez: “He took some X-rays of my mouth, and he gave me a little run-through of what was going to happen.”
Her father paid the $2,350 for the braces and signed the contract, which says the expected treatment time is 12 months, that during that time, Karra needed to make an appointment with the orthodontist every four weeks. But Karra only made three appointments and stopped going.
Karra Rodriguez: “I didn’t have a car. I was trying to get through school. I even had to leave school. It was just a really bad time in my life.”
After going a year without getting her braces adjusted, as expected, she started having problems.
Karra Rodriguez: “My top teeth are separating. Cannot eat properly. It’s affecting my life; it’s affecting my work life. I’m losing confidence.”
By then she had a car, and so she called the office to make an appointment. The call didn’t go well.
Karra Rodriguez: “And they just told me, ‘Well, our prices went up. You have not been here for a while, so you have to pay $650 or else we won’t service you.'”
Karra countered her father had already paid for the 12 appointments, and she had only used three of them.
Karra Rodriguez: “I paid for services to be done, and they do not want to do it. I had a contract and the contract was completely paid off, so basically they don’t want to give me services I already paid for.”
Karra says the orthodontist’s office countered, “You had to make your 12 appointments within that year. You didn’t, so you have to pay $650.”
Karra Rodriguez: “They did not warn me; nothing. They didn’t warn me that if I didn’t come, the prices would be raised on me. They didn’t warn me I would be penalized. They did not tell me anything.”
Well Howard, the contract with the orthodontist says you have to come in 12 times during the year to get your braces adjusted. Karra only went in three times. Can they charge her more for her appointments?
Howard Finkelstein: “It’s implied by the orthodontist’s office that you would make those monthly appointments during that year, but because it does not specifically say you have to make 12 appointments within that year, you can go beyond that year to make an appointment, and you are not required to pay more for it.”
We contacted the orthodontist’s office and explained the loophole in their contract. The manager told us they drew up the contract in house. They were now revising their documents to explain to patients the time frame they have to make their appointments. They agreed to adjust Karra’s braces for the appointments her father paid for and will drop the requirement that she pay extra, but she had to agree to make those eight appointments she still owed during the next eight months.
Howard Finkelstein: “This is a good for both sides. Karra gets what she wanted, 12 appointments, and doesn’t have to pay extra, and the orthodontist can now rewrite his contracts so patients who don’t make the monthly appointments in contracted time frame will pay extra to complete the treatment.”
Karra went to her appointment and got her braces adjusted, and there is another reason she wants to get them finished and removed: She’s engaged to be married.
Karra Rodriguez: “Get everything stable and get my braces fixed, especially before my wedding. We haven’t picked a date because it’s based on this. I don’t want my wedding pictures with my gums bleeding and my braces in my mouth still.”
Patrick Fraser: “Now, if you as a customer are in a dispute with a business, don’t accept what they say. Read the contract again. There may be a phrase that can save you, or a phrase that is not there, like in Karra’s case.”
Bracing for a problem you want to straighten out? Want us to take a bite out of it? Contact us. There is no time limit on our work. We just want to leave you with a bright, happy smile.
With this Help Me Howard, I’m Patrick Fraser, 7News.
CONTACT HELP ME HOWARD:
E-mail: helpmeHoward@wsvn.com (please include your contact phone number when e-mailing)
Reporter: Patrick Fraser at pfraser@wsvn.com
Miami-Dade: 305-953-WSVN
Broward: 954-761-WSVN