ComplaintsforIdeal Concepts, Inc.

• Initial Complaint

  07/05/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Sales and Advertising Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  This company as well as other insurance companies continue to harass and call me non stop. I want to be removed from their call list. I have no idea where they got my number from.

  Business response

  07/11/2023

  Good afternoon,
  
  We had received this consumers phone number from one of our lead vendor partners websites, where it was submitted as part of a request for quotes/information on health insurance.   As a result, our company contacted the consumers phone number.  In accordance with their request, we have now added their number to our internal Do-Not-Contact list, so they should no longer receive calls from our company.
  
  Thank you,
  
  Compliance Department

• Initial Complaint

  04/10/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Customer Service Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  My mom has a critical illness policy through sure med. (I have POA papers sent over) She had a stroke in January. We turned in a claim to sure med and sure med is not doing anything with the claim. They said they have been switching over to met life since Jan. 1, 2023 for the critical illness claims. They said it's taking longer than expected to switch over and met life is not ready for them to send over claims. Sure med won't give a date when met life will start excepting claims. They told me not to reach out to met life, and the 2 times I asked them to reach out to met life for me they have refused. I told them I wanted a copy of my mom's policy. They said there is "no policy" because things are not finalized with met life yet. My mom has been paying this critical illness policy since 2016 so I don't understand why they say there is "no policy". They take money every month from my moms checking account, they dont miss a deduction, and now that she needs them they are not functioning properly and her claim is just sitting there. My mom is not able to work right now because of the stroke and she has bills. I'm being denied a copy of the policy my mom is paying for. I want solid answers and this resolved. I've made numerous calls to sure med. I have also reached out to met life who has stated its not true what sure med is claiming. Sure Med keeps claiming they are closer to being able to send over claims. But that time has never came and things don't seem to be making any progress here. Please help.

  Business response

  04/28/2023

   In response to the complaint filed by *********************** (ID *********, we are currently working on a resolution. 

  Customer response

  04/28/2023

  [A default letter is provided here which indicates your acceptance of the business's response.  If you wish, you may update it before sending it.]
  
  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me. 
  
  Regards,
  
  ***********************
  

• Initial Complaint

  11/07/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Sales and Advertising Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  On 06/08/2022 I spoke to Licensed Broker NPN#******** ***************** "*******" ***** about purchasing health insurance for my kids. She took payment information then emailed me confirmation of coverage with **************************** with a policy number, effective dates, and an attachment regarding my plan details. Over the next few months I provided this information to health care providers, only to eventually be told I never had coverage because *************** never completed the payment and registration on her end. This cost me large sums of money out of pocket to cover medical care due to her failure to process enrollment properly. I eventually got enrolled correctly two days ago, but that does nothing for my expenses that should have been covered if she did her job. No offer of reimbursement was made, only an apology which does nothing to alleviate my financial hardship.

  Business response

  11/14/2022

  To whom it may concern: 
  
  Thank you for reaching out. We have completed the investigation of the complaint from **************. We have determined that independent agent ****** ************************* did not enroll **. ****** children in the plan they discussed during the initial sale on 06/08/2022. Independent agent ****** ************************* did eventually complete the enrollment on 10/21/2022 with **. ****** children being enrolled effective 10/22/2022. However, we recognize that this does not fix the initial issue of **. ****** children not being enrolled when they were supposed to be, resulting in out-of-pocket expenses. 
  
  As such, we will be issuing ************** a copy of the E&O insurance information for independent agent ****** *************************. ************** can file a claim against the agents insurance for the aforementioned out-of-pocket expenses.

  Customer response

  11/14/2022

  [A default letter is provided here which indicates your acceptance of the business's response.  If you wish, you may update it before sending it.]
  
  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me. 
  
  Regards,
  
  *********************
  

• Initial Complaint

  07/16/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I have been charged monthly for the past 4 months by a company called Suremed. The charges are $85 each and i have tried to block them as a payee. They do not answer phone calls or emails and even though i have attempted to find resolution they continue to ignore me and charge me. I have started a merchant dispute with my bank hoping to find a solution. I cannot stress enough how poorly this company is run.

  Business response

  08/05/2022

  To whom it may concern: 
  
  Thank you for reaching out. We have completed our investigation of the complaint from **************. We have determined that **************, though being instructed by licensed agent ***************************** that his ACA health plan and his SureMed  association membership are two separate products, appears to be misunderstanding how this solution was presented to him. 
  
  On June 2, 2022, ************** e-mailed SureMed Member Services in response to his monthly membership bill being generated for the month of June, stating that "[he] got duped into it." When ************** spoke to licensed agent ***************************** on March 1, 2022, licensed agent ***************************** advised ************** that for his enrollment into SureMed there was a $50 membership enrollment fee, that **. ****** monthly fee for the agreed upon membership would be$85/month, and that both charges are non-refundable. When asked if he understood and agreed to this information, ************** stated that he understood and agreed. Licensed agent ***************************** also played the SureMed Verbal Agreement for **************, and ************** once again stated that he agreed to the terms and conditions of SureMed. 
  
  Furthermore, on June 2, June 3, June 15, July 6, and July 18, 2022, ************** was given explicit and clear instructions by SureMed Member Services via email on how to cancel his membership. Despite this, ************** never followed through on those instructions, and instead claimed that he had already cancelled his membership. On July 19, 2022, ************** stated that he cancelled the card (i.e., for payment) that SureMed had on file for his membership. 
  
  We are unable to provide ************** with the refund. ************** was advised that the membership fees were non-refundable, acknowledged his understanding of such, and agreed to the SureMed Verbal Agreement prior to enrollment. 

• Initial Complaint

  07/14/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Order Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  In May of this year I purchased a membership pkg from ABHO( doing business as Sure Med for my husband and I. I was told and have it in writing that the first year of coverage was for $100,000 of accidental and then after a year we get $100,000 of life insurance. Then I received an email stating that due to a rise in underlying benefit cost they are forced to adjust the the membership benefits to prevent an increase in membership cost. That as if July 1st 2022 are benefits are cut in half. That means in a year are benefits will be 50,000 but if your in the age bracket of 55 and 65 then it goes down to $25,000.

  Business response

  08/04/2022

  Hello,

  Upon reviewing our communication records it appears that customer ***************************************** has already spoken with SureMed Members Services to obtain the information she needed. Please note, that the Association Membership Terms & Conditions (which is are listed in the Membership Booklet and publicly available on the SureMed website) clearly state that Benefits are subject to change without notice. In the case of a material change of benefits, a notice may be posted on the website [https://www.suremed.com/memberterms],and if you are impacted, you may be sent an email. In this case, the member was sent an email on 06/30/2022 regarding the benefit change that would take effect on 07/01/2022, so she did receive notice of the change before the change took effect.

  Thank you,

  Alexander ** L**************

  Compliance & Privacy Officer

  Customer response

  08/07/2022

  [To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, you must give us a reason why you are rejecting the response. If no reason is received your complaint will be closed as Answered]
  
   Complaint: ********
  
  I am rejecting this response because:
  
  Regards,
  
  *****************************************
  

• Initial Complaint

  06/03/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  scam scam scam be careful scam scam be careful they are not real insurance company asked them license number to find the facts they not going to pay any premium . they don't even have legal address or headquarter address in their website . all this sign clarify about fishing business. i am ******* ***** this number he give me #: ********* ***** ******* call me and scam me with the fake identity that he calling from life insurance company . he saying he calling from *********** Life Insurance company .that mis leading the identity to sail the insurance . they are nit legal insurance company . he sail me the life insurance plan and told me all documents will be arrive in mail within week. i asked him if he work in life insurance company *********** Life Insurance company and he said yes. after payment i asked him all paper work again and he say wait . i asked him in email to send me the legal information of the his company like license number . he did not send me and told me to wait . today when i receive the document in mail it saying this is not insurance card . so today i find out this is a scam , they don't have legal license or permission to sail insurance in USA they are not *********** Life Insurance company , they are lying to use that company name . i call *********** Life Insurance company to find out if my policy is active with them and they informed me no . so it is very clear this people fail to provide any insurance document . also when i asked them to cancel and refund my money they keep argument with me . that show clear also any legitimate company don't do that . they are not refunding my money . they took $ 50 + $ 70 from my account and did not provide me the real insurance card or document where i can verify my policy . most legitimate insurance company have 30 days time if any reason customer not satisfied they refund full amount . this company is fake and scam people . they using other company name .

  Business response

  06/22/2022

  To whom it may concern:
  
  Thank you for reaching out. We have completed our investigation of the complaint from **************. We have determined that ************* has a general misunderstanding of the product he purchased from licensed agent *************************, which was a ******* association membership that included a $25,000 accident insurance benefit and a $100,000 life insurance benefit.
  
  On 05/20/2022, ************** spoke with licensed agent ************************* about his need for $50,000-$100,000 worth of life insurance. Due to *************** needs, licensed agent ************************* pitched him an association membership through *******. Licensed agent ************************* stated to ************** that life insurance benefit was provided as a part of the ******* membership,and that the life insurance benefit was underwritten by *********** Life Insurance Company. ************** stated that he wanted to enroll, but he had trouble understanding, so licensed agent ************************* sent him the self-service link to allow ************** to enroll with the help of his son.
  
  Later that day, ************** advised licensed agent ************************* that he had received the e-mail and that he will be signing up for the membership that was mentioned prior a $25,000 accident insurance benefit and a $100,000 life insurance benefit. Licensed agent ************************* advised ************** of the $50 enrollment fee due once he enrolled and that the membership will not be active until he makes the first months payment of $70. Licensed agent ************************* also advised that ************** he would receive an e-mail from SureMed once the enrollment was completed. After licensed agent ************************* called in to ******* to fix an error on the application, ************** stated that the application was completed to which licensed agent ************************* advised that he will be receiving the member kit in the mail in **** days.
  
  At no point during their conversation did licensed agent ************************* advise ************** that ******* was an insurance company or that he was calling from *********** Life Insurance Company. In his complaint, ************* advised that he received a membership card that stated, This is not insurance. The card in question is the card for the complimentary discount benefits that came with his membership. There is no card for his accident and life insurance benefits. However, members can access a copy of the policy certificate through their ******* membership.
  
  Regarding his request for a refund, the ******* association memberships Membership Terms, which ************** agreed to upon self-enrolling,which are also publicly available (https://www.*******.com/memberterms), state that all payments are non-refundable, including enrollment fees and periodic payments (i.e. his monthly membership fee).

• Initial Complaint

  06/02/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Product Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  On June 1st late one night I was looking at my bank account and noticed that I had an $80 pending charge from SUREMED-IDEALCONCEPTS. This is something that was originally signed up for me in 2018 if I remember correctly. I do not need or want the coverage. The next day I called the Suremed - Ideal Concepts help number and told them I did not want this pending charge to go through, and to cancel my membership. The lady I talked to, Kate, said that they would cancel my membership, but that I would still be charged regardless. I was not satisfied with this and asked if there was any way to escalate this issue, to which she expressed I would be wasting my time and a supervisor would tell me the same thing. I suspected that she or supervisor may be employed by a call center contracted out and not have the ability to help me in a direct manner, so I asked and she confirmed she was directly employed by the Suremed company. I also inquired if they would simply refund me the money if they couldn't stop the charge from processing. The answer was that they had a no refund policy. I expressed I would pursue other means of resolution and she suggested I do what I need to do. So here I am. I was not asking for a refund of the previous months $80 for coverage, which I ostensibly received. In lieu of stopping the charge outright, to which they said was impossible, refund me for the charge of this current month as I have not actually received anything, and do not want to be 'covered'. This is really a case of a Runaway subscription that has cost me a lot of money, but I am merely seeking this $80 pending charge to be stopped or refunded. The company willfully refusing to stop the pending charge, or refund me the charge, is very harmful to me. In essence saying "we are going to take this money anyway, and you are going to get the 'coverage' whether you like it or not. After all the money they got, at least give me my $80. They are acting in bad faith.

  Business response

  06/08/2022

  To whom it may concern:
  
  Thank you for reaching out. We have completed out investigation of the complaint by ********************. It appears that ******************** is requesting a refund that is not permitted per the SureMed association memberships Membership Terms, which are publicly available (https://www.suremed.com/memberterms).
  
  Independent agent **** ********** enrolled ******************** in a **************Hospital Indemnity plan and a separate SureMed association membership which included Dental and Vision benefits on 01/31/2018. At the time of the sale, independent agent **** ********** read all applicable parts of the Mandatory Verification Script including disclosure of the SureMed association membership enrollment and monthly fees being non-refundable, to which ******************* acknowledged and agreed to.
  
  On 12/21/2021, ******************** called in to SureMed customer service to rectify a payment error as his payments were not automatically drawing from his account. The member services representative advised that his November payment had gone through, but that they would need to update his information for his December payment as well as future payments. ******************** then provided updated payment information.
  
  On 06/02/2022, ******************** called back into SureMed customer service and requested to cancel his "subscription" due to the pending monthly charge he saw on his bank account that he did not want to pay. The member services representative advised ******************** of the non-refundable policy and that they could cancel the policy effective 07/01/2022, and that the payment had fully processed on SureMeds side. ******************** stated that he had not used the plan in a very long time and asks repeatedly on the call for a refund of his June payment. The member services representative not only advised ******************* that no refund was available, but also that this fact is disclosed to him with each processed monthly payment. The member services representative reiterated to ******************** that in order to cancel his membership without being charged for the bill cycle (for him, the next calendar month), he would need to provide notice at least three business days prior to the upcoming billing date. This is specifically reviewed within the SureMed association memberships Membership Terms.

  We understand that on **. ********* end that his bank was showing that the charges were still pending, but on our end the payment had already been charged and there was no way to reverse it. The member services representative did mention to ******************** that he could dispute the charge with his bank.
  
  In conclusion, we understand and recognize **. ********* request for a refund; however, as detailed herein, ******************** was clearly and repeatedly advised of the cancelation and non-refundable policy.

• Initial Complaint

  05/25/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Sales and Advertising Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I CONSTANTLY get phone calls from these annoying people. They never leave a message. When I block any numbers, they call from another number. I have NEVER, EVER contacted anyone but ****/Medicare for any kind of insurance. I want this to stop immediately!

  Business response

  06/08/2022

  To whom it may concern:

  Thank you for bringing this complaint to our attention. We have conducted a review of our records and were unable to identify any calls placed from our organization to ********************. We do not have any call records containing the information ******************** provided. As such, we believe his complaint may be misdirected to our organization.

  Customer response

  06/14/2022

  [To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, you must give us a reason why you are rejecting the response. If no reason is received your complaint will be closed as Answered]
  
   Complaint: ********
  
  I am rejecting this response because:
  
  As I write this, 2 more calls have come in from this "business". ALL of the following numbers are traced back to "Ideal Concepts"

  *****************,*************************************************************************************************************.

  And these are just the ones I recorded. If this is not stopped immediately, I'll report these and any new calls to the FTC. I have times and dates for all these offending numbers which will be provided to them.
  Regards,
  
  *************************
  

  Business response

  08/09/2022

  I wanted to include the fact that it has since been brought to our attention that an unknown third-party has been illegally spoofing our phone numbers, which is the likely cause of the consumers complaint.
  
  Regards,
  
  Alexander *. L*********, JD
  
  Compliance Manager
  
  Ideal Concepts, Inc.

• Initial Complaint

  04/25/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  We bought SureMed coverage and had it for 2 years. I didn't know that it was an accident policy, but when I fell and broke my ankle, I filed a claim. I had to file it twice, since it was supposedly lost the first time. I just got a letter that said the claim wasn't covered.

  Business response

  05/12/2022

  To whom it may concern:

  
  Thank you for reaching out. We completed our investigation of the complaint by **************. There appears to be a misunderstanding by ************* regarding both the products sold to her by independent agent **************************** as well as a what documentation is needed and to whom it should be submitted.

  
  Independent agent **************************** sold ************** an ACA health plan from Ambetter and a separate SureMed association membership. In their call on 05/20/2020, independent agent **************************** reviewed with ************* the details of the SureMed association membership, including that her membership would provide an accident insurance benefit. She was also advised twice that the SureMed association membership was independent from any health insurance products she may currently have or may be purchasing. ************** agreed to and acknowledged her understanding of these statements.

  Regarding the accident claim ************** has submitted, the claim has not been denied. It appears that SureMed and the underwriting carrier for the memberships accident insurance benefit (i.e., ******* ******) are still awaiting the documents required from ************** to process her claim. On 04/28/2022, ************** e-mailed SureMed member services stating that she needed them to provide here with an explanation of benefits, appearing to confuse SureMed with her separate health insurance plan. The next day on 04/29/2022, SureMed member services responded via e-mail advising her that SureMed was separate from her medical insurance provider and that SureMed could not provide the requested explanation of benefits. That same day, ************** called in to SureMed member services who then again advised that SureMed was separate from her health insurance and that she needed to contact her health insurance carrier to obtain the necessary explanation of benefits to file the claim.

  In summary, ************** was advised that her SureMed association membership did include an accident insurance benefit, to which she acknowledged and agreed to prior to enrollment. ************** claim has not been denied and is awaiting the necessary explanation of benefits related to her accident.

• Initial Complaint

  01/18/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  This company, InsureMe, keeps calling me every few minutes for the last two day after being told multiple times to remove me from the call list. I have told multiple people that I am not interested in their product. Have been hung up on multiple times when I asked to speak to a supervisor. They call late at night on the weekends with no apology for bothering me. Unprofessional behavior by calling me names and hanging up on me when asked to stop calling.

  Business response

  02/23/2022

  We completed an investigation of the *** ******’s complaint. Our investigation revealed that although we did contact ###-###-#### several times on 01/15/2022, *** ****** rejected all of our calls on that date and never spoke to one of our independent licensed insurance agents. On 01/17/2022 *** ****** did speak with one of our independent licensed agents and requested that we no longer contact her. The agent immediately added ###-###-#### to our internal Do-not-Contact list to prevent further communication. *** ****** has not received any calls from us since. Our investigation also revealed that the information we had on file associated with the ###-###-#### was associated with an unrelated customer. It appears this other customer entered ###-###-#### in an on-line in a request for insurance quotes, resulting in *** ****** being contacted by our organization. However, please note that it is very likely that she was also contacted by many other organizations as a result of this other consumer (seemingly accidentally) entering *** ******’s phone number in an on-line request for insurance quotes.  Please also note that our investigation did not find anyone from our organization calling *** ****** names or hanging up on her when she asked to stop calling, as she alleges in her complaint.

*Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business. ↩