£101.67?!?!?!?!

[ChristmasisRuined]

A year ago, DD's Hamster had to sadly be put to sleep. I agreed to let them 'handle' disposal of him due to DD's special needs. She certainly wouldn't have been able to cope with a little burial.
The cost of this, including 'disposal', came to £39 which I thought was reasonable.

Fast forward a year and DD's 1yr old Hamster (who really helped her grieve for the loss of her last little friend) has unfortunately had to be put to sleep this evening as she was really suffering. This was at a different Veterinary practice. They too asked if I'd like to take her home or have them dispose of her. As last time was a reasonable cost which included this, I just agreed to them disposing of her.

So imagine my surprise when I got to the counter after was presented with a bill for £101.27!?!

I paid and when I got home, I called to double check it was correct and yep! Same price for a Hamster as it is for a Cat! Apparently, £30 of it is for them to dispose of her. Now, had I been told this I would've taken her home and buried her myself without DD knowing, as I'm a disabled, widowed parent on a very low income (as I have no choice but to claim disability benefits now). At NO point did anyone tell me that disposal would cost £30 extra. Yes I should've asked but given the other, also independent Veterinary surgery charged just £39 TOTAL last year, I never imagined disposal could cost so much so it didn't seem relevant to ask. Surely if something costs extra, then the morally decent thing to do is to point it out?
Anyway, even without the £30 disposal fee, £71 to put a Hamster to sleep???

I then looked on the website of the Vets I used last year, and their price is now £42 inc disposal for all animals smaller than Rabbits.

Christmas is now pretty much ruined. Due to my circumstances and the COL crisis etc, like many people, I only had £150 budget for DD's presents and the food. Now £101.67 of it has gone when it could've been just £42 down had I used the other practice....

I'm up sh** creek now and could cry. DD is crying because she's lost her little friend and I'm nearly crying because of the cost of it!!

Should I complain? Or is this roughly what others have paid??

Thanks

You received a rebate by cheque? Do companies even send cheques any more,

Yes.

Received one myself earlier this year.

This doesn't make sense. You say you doubt the hamster has gone anywhere yet and might ask for the body back, but in your previous post when asked why you paid at reception without questioning it, you said it was too late as it has already been done. The euthanasia had already been done but by the time you went to the desk to pay, the hamster was unlikely to have been disposed of - whatever that happens to mean.

They're well within their rights not to refund or reduce the bull you've already paid after consenting to euthanasia and asking for disposal. They did what you asked and charged you for it. You agreed to pay, and did. You should have questioned the charge there and then, as is YOUR right. You can also ask at reception for a breakdown of charges and that is the time to ask questions and ask if there's a cheaper alternative.

The fact that they charged so much more is very annoying and inconvenient for you - but YOU allowed this situation by not challenging it at the time, before paying.

@MNHQ can you try to let me have access to the message the OP sent me please. At first it said something like it had been withdrew at posters request, now it says deleted by Admin. OP says she hasn’t asked for it to be deleted. Thank you.

Bloody TV licence do, I had one last week. Don't know why they can't just pay it back into the bank

Health insurance companies do too, have to wait 3 weeks for it to arrive and then more time for it to clear.

@Squiff70 What on earth are you talking about?! Please RTFT before posting. I already have the cremation refund and the body has been buried. The Euthanasia was done after I left the vet's consultation room. I had to wait 5 mins to pay the bill as a customer was at the front desk. When I called the next morning, they confirmed her body hadn't left for the pet crematorium yet. That's what I meant by "Not gone anywhere yet"
Is this satisfactory for you Detective Squiff?

@BadNomad Luckily we're not in a courtroom so I don't have to explain my logic to you at all!

@Sarahzxcvb It's not totally odd at all, it's called being a decent person and wanting to turn a negative into a positive. Perhaps that's not how you live your life. I guess some people have better morals than others!

Final Update - I have the refund from the Vets and it's going to be paid to PDSA shortly. All the wannabe detectives are demanding to know why I'm 'giving away' money when I'm clearly on such a low income but as I said above, I simply want to turn a negative into a positive, given that I received a similar amount of money back from the energy company so I'm no worse off than I was to begin with, the hamster's suffering was only short and an animal charity got £30.
Genuinely gobsmacked I'm still being picked apart when I thought I was doing the right thing 🤷🏼‍♀️

That’s a great update @ChristmasisRuined

I am glad things worked out in the end, and donating the £30 is such a lovely thing to do 💖

That's a good update, even if they still had your eyes out for the rest of it.

DH recently got a cheque from the share(s) company. No big last spender here, it seems his £30 is in good company.

Thank you @WhiteFire & @UserNameNameNameUser

So pleased to come back to positive messages :) I was expecting another pile on.

Is there not a PDSA near you? You can get cheaper or even free pet care if you are on benefits, especially disability. All you have to do is phone them to register and/or go online and send copy’s of your entitlements.