Last updated on November 28, 2014
I looked at my might-do-list and there it was right on top
‘Call insurance and fight for premium adjustment’
I looked it up a few months ago, some insurance companies declare you a ‘non-smoker’ when you quit for 6 months, others after 12 months.
Alright then, that’s sounds perfect, lets fight for my right. I knew it would take a while so I made a gallon of coffee and dialed the number. The recording came on and I pressed the numbers that I thought might get me a real person on the line; I repeated everything like a broken record and after pressing numbers and stars…there it was a living person on the other end. Yeah….let the games begin!
“Good Morning…how can I help you”
Oh I was so ready for this “My insurance premium needs to be adjusted, I pay the premium for a smoker and I don’t smoke” (Boom…there you have it, this is going to be good, I am glad I made so much coffee).
“I am sorry Mam, it shows you are a smoker, let me take a look, please hold on a second”
Noooooooooo….come back sighhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh (who invented holding lines)
“Mam, thank you for holding (why do they say that, I don’t have a choice I have to hold) it seems that you made a mistake on your application; you checked smoker instead of non-smoker”
“No I didn’t make a mistake, I was a smoker, but I quit and now I am a non-smoker and I would like to have my premium adjusted”.
“Congratulations, that’s wonderful, when did you quit smoking?”
I know the date by heart “I quit the evening on February 2nd, I will be smoke-free for 6 months the coming Monday” (lets see what she has to say, this is going to be so much fun).
“Great, then we adjust your premium as of August the 3rd, please give us a call and let us know if you smoke again”.
(Hold a minute! I made a gallon of coffee, I took time out of my busy schedule and I am bitchy and she just goes ahead and adjusts my premium? That’s no fun!
“Thank you, yes I will” (this is really no fun…party-poop)
“Can I help you with something else”
“No thank you, have a great day” (what am I going to do with all the coffee?)
It was really that easy, I am officially a non-smoker!
That’s HUGE FUN, B ! – and I can easily understand why you’d undertake what was seen to be so difficult a task: pride ! 🙂
I’m unlikely, however, to think for half a second that your nice story reflects the fact that ‘phone help has taken a turn for the good, generally. No way. :-}
It was almost comical, there I was with boxing gloves and coffee willing to fight for my right and they took that away from me lol. Our phone help systems sucks big time, I am so tired of automated phone answering services and I hate if I have to repeat everything over and over like a parrot.
And to someone with an accent so thick it takes ages to translate in your head … :-\
Well, that’s pretty awesome! I hear enough customer service stories that are nightmares, it is nice to hear the good ones too. 😀
I expected it to be a nightmare as well, I was surprised that it was that easy!
Awesome! I look forward to doing the same in three months. Its like getting a small raise.
Not so small, I was surprises. What are we going to do with all the money we are saving 🙂