This is not a rant, just a breakdown of some shady payment manipulation Citi, and perhaps other banks, are pulling with their system. I caught them trying to sneak interest charges on me and got gaslit by their customer support when I called them out. I used Citi Flex Pay, which is a low interest installment plan that lets you break up large purchases. My last statement balance was \~$1800, with \~$1200 of that being on the Flex plan. This means that my actual non-flex purchases were only \~$550, so to avoid interest, I just needed to pay that amount plus my current Flex installment (which came out to $749.15 total). Here is where they tried to screw me over: Instead of giving me the actual amount needed to avoid interest, they suggested I pay $578.67, labeled as "Remaining Adjusted New Balance + Flex Plan Monthly Payment." Looks reasonable, right? Wrong. That number doesn't actually clear all of my non-Flex charges. It leaves about $200 unpaid, which rolls over and starts accruing interest, exactly what I was trying to avoid. After double checking my math, I called support to see if I was doing the math wrong. This is where they straight-up lied to me. The rep swore up and down that $578.67 would cover everything except future Flex payments (it doesn't). He told me I must have done my math wrong (I didn't). He said I must not have read my statement correctly (I did). When I told him (verbatim), "If I pulled shit like this with a client, I would be fired," he doubled down. Then he offered to take my payment over the phone, as if I would trust them at this point. I just said goodbye and hung up. This is no mistake: Citi is intentionally misleading customers to trick them into paying just slightly less than what's actually needed to avoid interest. If I had not checked the numbers, I would have unknowingly left a balance that would have started accruing interest. They know most people won't do the math and will just trust the suggested payment amount. **This is how banks squeeze money out of people who think they are paying their balance in full.** The takeaway from this: If you use Citi Flex Pay (or any structured payment plan), do your own math. Don't just trust their suggested payment. To avoid interest, you must pay: (Non-Flex Portion of your last statement) + (This month's Flex installment). If you are unsure, manually check your statement and confirm where every charge is coming from. If Citi (or any other bank) tells you a different number, ask them to put it in writing. (Spoiler alert: they won’t, because they know they’re misleading you). The only way to avoid getting screwed is to double-check their math and never assume they have your best interest in mind. I’m sharing this because most people assume their bank is doing the right calculations for them, but they’re not. If you have a Citi Costco Visa or any card with Flex Pay, always verify before paying.

Location: Virginia I use Choice Home Warranty (I didn’t realize how scammy home warranty companies were until recently, so please don’t comment about that). They are requiring I pay a portion of a repair because it’s considered a “modification.” I pointed out that my particular policy covers up to $250 of modifications, and they are saying that that $250 was applied to a previous repair and no longer available. However they will not provide me any written documentation or the recording of the phone call where they stated this. Do I essentially just have to trust them, or are they required to provide proof?

This is for a puppy that will be enrolled at 8 weeks old. All unlimited options: Pets Best - doesn’t cover alternative therapies such as shockwave, PRP, stem cells, PEMF - $50.87 month - 90% with $500 deductible Healthy Paws - my current insurance provider - no longer offers 90% coverage - policy states it doesn’t cover diseases preventable via vaccine which is concerning since vaccines don’t always cover all strains - $47.71 month - 80% with $250 deductible Pumpkin - sample policy says “we may decide not to renew your policy at the end of any policy period” which is concerning if you start having a lot of claims - $74.99 month - 90% with $500 deductible Figo - $51.99 month - no exams covered (or $62 with exams covered) - 90% with $500 deductible Any thoughts? I’m happy with Healthy Paws but the 80% is disappointing so considering other options

I have United Health Care’s high deductible plan, which I chose vs the lower deductible when I started my job 3 months ago for the HSA and because I have no medical conditions and rarely see a doctor. I’ve developed neurological issues the last month that have required a doctor visit, MRI, and now a follow up and likely more testing with a specialist. The doctor visit was $177 after a discount and MRI was $621 after discount. Does insurance even with that plan really not pay anything more? My old plan through my old job was high deductible with HSA, but bills were still only $70. At the rate I’m going, my old and new HSAs will be drained well before I hit my deductible, so I won’t have money to pay the bills. I guess the short answer is the doctor offices won’t get paid until I have the money, but is there anything more I can do? I can’t imagine how expensive seeing a neurologist will be plus whatever tests they want even if in Network.

I made my first claim through Figo and wanted to describe the process for those that might find it helpful. **Overall Thoughts** Overall, I was pleased with my Figo experience and intend to renew my policy. Figo covered approximately what I expected it to cover based on my understanding of the policy document. I submitted three claims in total, one for each of the invoices I received from my vet. My claims were processed and paid in less than 1 week. The process of submitting my claims was straightforward and involved uploading invoices to the PetCloud mobile app. I was slightly surprised by the fact that out of pocket expenses reduced my deductible only up to my policy's reimbursement rate. For example, the first $100 in covered costs reduced my deductible by $90. This is different from my experience with human health insurance where 100% of out of pocket expenses count towards to the deductible, regardless of what your coinsurance rate is. **Policy** I pay a $477 annual premium with the Costco discount. My deductible is $1,500 with a 90% reimbursement rate and unlimited annual coverage. My dog is 3 years old and unspayed. The policy includes rehabilitation but not Vet Exam Fees, Extra Care Pack and Wellness - Plus. My policy has been active for just under 2 years. **Illness** My dog had bloody diarrhea, loss of appetite and lethargy on and off over the course of 2 weeks. Total treatment costs, including vet prescribed food totaled $2,540.35 of which Figo covered $317.82. The cause of her illness was never identified. **First vet visit** At my dog's initial vet visit, our vet did an exam ($130), prescribed my dog Metronidazole ($26) and tested my dog's stool for parasites ($86). Our vet also prescribed Trazodone ($20) to help with my dog's anxiety at subsequent vet visits. The Figo policy covered the Metronidazole and the Trazodone, but not the vet exam or the parasite test. I was slightly surprised that parasite test was not covered. The denial reason was "Costs or fees for treatments or preventative treatments for parasites or conditions related to parasites unless there is no preventive medication for the parasite..." Total charges: $262.10 Covered by policy: $46.10 Remaining deductible: $1,500 - (.9 \* 46.1) = $1,458.51 **Second vet visit** At my dog's second vet visit, our vet did another exam ($130), ordered blood work ($570) and recommended that my dog be hospitalized overnight for IV fluids and observation ($1,388). The vet also prescribed a 5 day course of Metronidazole ($20) and Pepcid ($20). Again, Figo did not cover the vet exam, but did cover everything else, save a $24 "medical waste" charge that was part of the hospital stay. Total charges: $2,128 Covered by policy: $1,973.70 Remaining deductible: $0 Paid by Figo: Covered costs - Remaining deductible = (.9 \* $1,973.70) - $1,458.51 = $317.82 **Prescription Food** The vet prescribed specialized GI food for my dog to eat after her release from the hospital ($150). I did not expect for Figo to cover this expense, as the policy document states that food is not covered. I submitted the claim anyway, on the off chance that it might be considered treatment for her illness. Figo denied the claim with the reason reason: "The policy does not provide coverage for food unless included in the Office Visit and Exam Fees Rider prescribed as the sole Treatment for an Illness"

My 2-year-old husky/rottie mix, Raymond, is insured through HealthyPaws. They have been wonderful- it's $57/month for 90% reimbursement with a $250 deductible. As I'm sure you can guess from his breed, he has had several expensive accidents, especially when he was little. HealthyPaws has covered all of them and saved me thousands. There's also no annual limit. My boyfriend and I live together now, and we want to insure his 8-year-old greyhound/lab mix, Tucker. He's healthy and has no pre-existing conditions. I called HealthyPaws to add him, but they said the only option is $69/month for 50% reimbursement with a $1000 deductible. While looking into other options, I found tons of reviews saying that HealthyPaws significantly increases premiums each year. Now, I'm considering moving Ray too and putting both dogs on a new plan. Despite competitive pricing, it looks like Lemonade is bad about premium hikes too. Trupanion would triple Ray's premium and make Tucker's absolutely ridiculous. Nationwide only offered Tucker a dirt cheap plan that doesn't cover illness. PetsBest gave me a great quote for both dogs, but has mixed reviews about coverage and price hikes. I'd appreciate any recommendations/advice. I'm looking for a company that is able to do 90% reimbursement and a lower deductible for Tucker despite his age, doesn't increase premiums much each year, has no annual limit (or a very high one), and doesn't deny claims for stupid reasons. Add-on riders for routine wellness are a plus as long as the limits are reasonable- we spend $400+ each on Simparica Trio each year, and their annual exams are pricey.

So I've had Embrace for a year now, and just discovered my monthly rate went up a whopping 40%. So I called them, and they said they raise rates for ALL policy holders on average 25-35% every single year. Ive had no claims. No changes in anything whatsoever. My dog is only 1 year older, now years old. There have been no changes in my state, and they can't attribute it to inflation. So screw that. I don't see how thats even legal to raise that much each year. That means in 4 years, I'd be paying more for mediocre pet insurance on 1 dog, than I pay for all of my insurances combined.

I've known for a while that ManyPets was merging with Odie but I (wrongly) assumed that the policies would be largely the same. Odie emailed me yesterday with the new policy and billing summary and my jaw hit the floor. My plan on ManyPets was an annual deductible of $750 and unlimited coverage with 10% co-insurance. The annual premium was $377.04. According to the renewal notice with Odie, there is an annual max payout limit of $20k, deductible of $250 and 10% co-insurance (so an inferior plan) and the annual premium is **$1799.42?!** There is also a billing statement for a Wellness Plan, which I never had on ManyPets. I emailed customer support immediately on Friday and they haven't gotten back. My credit card will be billed on Monday. I'm going to call them first thing Monday morning but I'm pretty concerned. Others who were on ManyPets - are you sticking with Odie? People who have had Odie and used them for claims, what has been your experience? I'm certainly not willing to pay $1800. I have a 7 year old pug and he's healthy/never had any pre-existing issues. But I'm concerned that due to his age, I'll have a hard time getting a decent premium on a new plan.

Location: South Texas Hello! I recently purchased my first home here in a coastal city in the state of Texas. As all of us on the gulf coast know, I am required by my mortgage lender to carry a windstorm policy for protection during hurricane season. This policy was set up by my home insurance company, and therein lies my issue. The home insurance company filed incorrect paperwork which inaccurately qualified my home for windstorm coverage and additionally inaccurately qualified my home for the mortgage company to lend to me. Can I (or the mortgage lender) file suit against the insurance company for this error? Edit: apologies for leaving out important context. The Texas windstorm agency has informed me that my policy will be discontinued in April if I do not provide the original paperwork for the property from 1988. (The paperwork was not completed in 88 despite insurance claiming it was) And if I cannot provide the paperwork I will be charged a 15% addendum to the premium in order to maintain my coverage.

Location: Toronto, Ontario CANADA 🇨🇦 A representative from Scoitabank assured me that I could extend the interest rate deduction program on my credit card for another six months, pending approval when the initial period ended. Unfortunately, when the six months were up, I called again and was informed by a different representative that the previous one had provided incorrect information. They explained that Scoitabank only offers this assistance every two years and that I was not eligible for help at this time. I was completely unaware of this policy, and the unexpected return of regular interest charges on my account has caused me significant emotional and financial distress. Upon research I found that Scoitabank has violated the Consumer Protection Act (CPA) established in 2002, c. 30, Sched. A, s. 14 (1). The calls are all recorded. Scoitabank conducted an investigation and determined that they would offer me $368.00 for my distress, along with the closure of the case. My question is, can I pursue additional compensation for my suffering? Am I entitled to request more than what they have proposed? Thank you for your time to respond! 🙏