We live in a very small town so there are not many home care options, unless we get someone who works for herself. Well one agency that we dealt with told me that they sent someone on two days that they did not. When I went to pay a bill for one visit, they told me that we owed for these other visits. The names they mentioned were not names of any workers that had come to the house. I felt I had no choice but to pay them, but we did let the agency go in the next month because of this. We found another agency that ended up being highly unorganized. I told my family the other day that it would not surprise me - with companies losing clients right now - that we end up getting a bill they 'forgot' to send. Well sure enough - it is over $150. This bill is from six months ago, and I asked them 'why would you wait this long to send a bill?' Well we don't know WHY you didn't get it. How can you deal with agencies billing you for times they were not here?
I had asked them to let their employees sign a time sheet for me and they didn't like that idea at all.
I just want to make a further comment (and please know that I'm not lecturing or judging the OP): when people develop their romanticized ideas of retirement locations, they must consider what services are available to them when they need it most: quality medical care, transportation, social groups, other resources (such as care services), etc. A few years ago my SIL was telling me how she and my BIL were thinking about retiring to a country in central America to live on a boat moored in a river, because it was incredibly affordable and in a warm tropical climate. Never mind the language barrier, lack of medical care, accessibility/mobility problems, hurricane season, cost of travel to visit family, crime issues, government instability, etc. They had read about it in a magazine and thought it sounded "cool". Maybe this would work up to a certain age/ability level, but once physical and cognitive issues begin, it's a whole other thing.
My very elderly aunts who live in a poor county in FL don't have many services available to them. If they'd have lived just 1 more mile north, they'd be in a very wealthy county with lots to offer. Also, rural v. urban v. suburban is an issue as well. People must look waaaaaay into their futures when they relocate at retirement, and be realistic about old age.
LivingSouth, I hope you can find the quality help your LO needs!
There was also another sheet kept in the notebook that remained in Dad's home and in his possession.
Unfortunately, these agencies you've deal with don't sound very reliable or honest.
I would demand to see documentation before paying anything more, not only in terms of alleged arrivals and departures but what the employees allegedly did. Keep pressing them for documentation; it might cause them to back off if they realize they can't manipulate or intimidate you, which I think might be part of their tactics.
In the meantime, file a complaint with the Better Business Bureau, and see if you can find franchised agencies that have higher standards, and more offices. Do you know if your state has an agency that regulates home care? If so, that's another source at which to file a complaint.
These kind of tactics really anger me, to be so exploitive of people in need.
I did find the state agency that gives them credentials so I contacted them to see if consumers can look at reports at complaints about the agencies - hopefully there's a way to see ones with ongoing problems. With everything going on now, it's hard to keep up with what you owe when they hold their billing back like this. I keep bills that were paid stapled together and marked paid. I cannot find any of these bills they claim they sent. We are currently on the third agency and so far no problems - but this former agency is now hounding for the money from six months ago. I find it hard to believe that they would let a legitimate bill go that long without being paid - even for agency this disorganized.