Viva Juridisch Loket!

Juridisch Loket, a free legal advice office,  has advised me a couple of times. This time (mid 2013) it was a real saviour.

In Netherlands one has a medical insurance, and they reimburse or directly pay your medical bills. Many medical institutions don’t have a direct link with insurers (although they had last year), so You receive the bills, and it’s up to you to pass them to your insurer (scanning & uploading is a cool activity for an evening).

I was opting for direct payment by my insurer (www.CZ.nl) to my dentist, www.ACTA.nl . But this year I realized the danger: if the insurer screws the payment,  you’ll notice only when …

• the medical institution sends a debt collector and also
• stops communicating with you in your health matters.

This indeed happened to me: CZ paid my and my son’s bills with one payment, and ACTA did not bother asking explanation.

So, missing one payment (& ignoring the over-payment) they hired www.TKB.nl

So,

1. TKB most likely started to communicate its requests to me. But I moved house, so did not receive those letters.
2. I communicated to ACTA my new address, but ACTA did not to TKB.
3. I received a …. anonymous phone call on a Friday saying that some bill to ACTA  was not paid and was due before Sunday, pending repression on Monday.
4. On my visit to ACTA a couple days after that call, I showed all the bills I knew about, and the receptionist found the one in question. Since I had my communication with CZ with me, things got clear immediately, but still, I was forced to  either leave the premises (without the appointed treatment) or pay the bill second time.
5. So I paid, got a receipt, and a doctor tried to treat me, with computer (& hence X-ray) ignoring me.
6. I call CZ, but they claim all was done correctly — “ACTA should understand, payment was done”, oh well.
7. On next appointment still boycott from the computer system.
8. Another appointment after a month same — doctor cannot do anything.
9. After 2 months I received an invitation to court,  first ever letter from TKB, but this time already from a solicitor representing them.
10. I call TKB, but since all I have is a letter from their solicitor I cannot provide any valid “number” for them. My name etc. does not interest them.

What to do?

Juridisch Loket to my rescue! In my presence they call TKB and, encounter my same problem with missing number, but insisting (in Dutch!) find the documents, and voila’  someone in TKB expects an email. But the lady in JL suggests I should get my 2nd payment reimbursed from ACTA. Sure! But they still don’t provide care to me, considering me officially delinquent.

Well, after a week of emails & phone calls by JL to someone in ACTA, ACTA  cancels the  "kill mission" of TKB, and the court session is cancelled. TKB still wants its salary, but ACTA convinces them in the end (to leave me alone).

After a month I received reimbursement. Thanks Juridisch Loket!.