Banfield Pet Hospital

Banfield overall is a money grab. There are vets and techs that work for Banfield that genuinely care about animals, but they are trapped in the Banfield money machine.

We have had the Banfield wellness plan since 2012 - and 2013-**** was for two dogs.

Last year we discovered the hard way that the wellness plan we had been paying into for 12 years offers no form of emergency care and any end of life care/services are only during business hours. God forbid your senior dog have a medical emergency at night or on the weekends - you are coming out of pocket for that 100% at a place you've never been. It was awful and we lost our girl.

So for our other senior dog, we decide to change vets to somewhere that can accommodate emergency and end of life care - specifically a vet that can come to our home when the time comes. We haven't renewed our wellness plan package in years - there are no signed documents - in fact the only change we made was in 2024 when we lost our girl.

But somehow we are still "under contract" and we have to pay $500 to end our wellness plan.

So the rough math is 11 years of two dogs on wellness plans at roughly $75/month = $9,990 and two years of just one dog at roughly $45/month = $1,080 for a total of $11,070 that we have paid Banfield. No serious incidents, no major surgeries (our girl had a paw surgery in like 2013 that's it) just a visit every year for vaccines - but because we learned the hard way how awful it can be when it's their time and we want to do better this time, Banfield still has to squeeze us for that last $500.

Mia, the office manager of this Banfield, is like a dormant soul. Despite working in one of the most sensitive arenas, she is rude, disrespectful, and ignorant about her practice. She absolutely lacks any sense of client care or customer service. I have never interacted with someone in pet care who seems so incompetent in their position. After 25 years of dedicated allegiance to Banfield, if Mia represents their care and staff, I would never recommend Banfield Lake Mary to anyone. On the contrary, I'd warn others about the horrible customer relations and leadership under Mia.

Good morning. I'm writing this letter with a heavy heart based on 15 years of experience with Banfield. My three dogs have had overall pretty positive experiences, and I've recommended you to many people over various breeds and years. Unfortunately, this letter follows an unforgivable experience at Lake Mary Banfield on Lake Mary Boulevard in Florida. My pet has had routine dental exams with Banfield in various states on many occasions, with generally pleasant experiences through their veterinary care. In the past, I've had experiences where veterinarians videotaped concerns they encountered during a dental visit and shared them with me so I could fully understand the situation. This, however, was not the case at Lake Mary Banfield.

On November 26, I was called by the vet during a routine dental exam where there may be concerns with some teeth that could potentially require extraction. Before, there was no necessity for x-rays. If there was a query, I had the option to continue a procedure with medication or x-rays, or to just proceed with the least costly, yet necessary, procedure. But this time, I was asked if I wanted to proceed with two sets of x-rays and extractions based on what appeared to be loose teeth and a tiny receding gum line. My pet hadn't shown any signs of pain or changes in eating behaviors at home, so I did not see the need for any x-rays.

After expressing my desire to proceed with the extraction but not the x-rays, the dentist insisted on not performing the extraction without the x-rays. I was under the impression that I was given a choice, which, as a paying client, I believed wasn't mandated but merely advised. I chose to decline the x-rays but wished to proceed with the extraction, which my pet had undergone on several occasions in the past without x-rays.

Prior to this, no visit ever cost me more than $400 at the end of any procedure at Banfield. However, on November 26, I was billed $1400 for extractions, a cost I've never paid before. I did inform the vet that I would be speaking to someone superior about the situation and how it was handled.

In the medical field, whether it pertains to humans or pets, customers should always be treated with respect. I believe the doctor still has a responsibility to proceed with what they deem necessary. I would like to discuss this situation further and the $1400 bill I received from this single visit, which I plan to contest after reviewing all the details and subordinates of this transaction.

Banfield canceled my OWP plan citong non- payment. Customers are not aware we are locked in to a 12 month continuous payment plan and no one verbalized this to me.

So they took me to collections for $600, which is the wellness plan for until May 2025, but are refusing to provide my pet services for that time period. He hasn't had services through them since October. So I am paying for services not rendered. They cite that the contract gives them permission to do so.

This is an absolute scam.

I am paying $600 for no more services until May. They claim it's a penalty for canceling early, even though they initiated the cancelation citing non- payment.

I feel so ripped off by the Banfield Wellness Plan. Every visit I made to the Banfield Hospital, I tried to cancel my plan and they kept saying that I will have a balance to pay.

They suggested that I should continue to use the plan for the rest of the period, but they did not inform me that it was automatically renewed. So, when I finally found someone to chat with, they told me my plan was just renewed for another year, and to cancel it, I would have to pay the balance for the rest of the plan duration. When I said I was going to cancel my card on file, they warned me that my name would be sent to a collection agency after 120 days.

I was very disappointed with the Vet's service but I had to stick with them since I was paying.

Terrible plan!

DON'T FALL FOR THAT PLAN!

Banfield is the worst. You think you're receiving the best service until your dog is dead.

I called customer service and told them to terminate my insurance seven months ago because my dog died. They kept taking my money and I kept paying for pet bill insurance for my dog that had been dead for seven months. Yes, I understand it's a payment plan, however, for a person that's still mourning the death of their dog, Banfield should have the decency to inform us that we will get charged again if we don't call for a second termination to cancel our dead dog's insurance. Why do I need to call a second time to terminate my deceased pet's insurance, when I called the first time to terminate the insurance?

My dog has been dead for more than seven months, he's not coming back to life, so why do I need to call for a second termination? Were you hoping for my dog to come back to life? The representative on the phone still charged me and didn't even bother to reimburse me.

They show no remorse; they just want to take your money. I will never use Banfield nor will I ever let any of my family members use Banfield again.

I called to make an appt for my dog only to learn that both of my pets plans are in collections! Not once did Banfield attempt to make me aware the card hooked up to these plans had expired and a new method of payment was needed.

Banfield did nothing no letters sent, no phone calls nothing! They canceled both plans in June yet kept charging me until Dec riding that gray train until the end of the year. They claim it's not their responsibility and I owe them the money because I signed the plan agreement. So Im paying for 2 plans that they cancelled and didnt receive any services for my dogs.

Ive read similar complaints Im not the first and sure wont be the last. I thought I would put my experience out here to at least warn others.

I too my little one in for check up and dental and was charged 330+ which I thought was covered in the wellness plan but wasnt. Before hand, I had other pets taken there for a dental and it was covered, but that was a few years ago, but I guess they are now in the money making business and not pet care.

Some of these so called vets need their licenses revoked for not caring about the wetness of a pet rather than making quotas. Back to my story, when I got her back, she was in pain and noticed hair patch missing. I should of looked deeper but they get into little spats at home with her the other sisters so I thought it was that. I called them the next day and was just told it was probably a reaction to the meds plus I guess scripted response to phone call questions.

To this day, I have tried canceling the plan and just told that I have to continue to pay until the end of that cycle to renew and then I could do so. I still feel so bad putting my little one through that that I still wake up crying at night just thinking of it and this was over 7 months ago. I now feel so afraid of taking them to any vets cause of that experience and I dont think I will ever trust a vet fully. I cant even leave my little one alone with vets cause I am so paranoid.

I know there are great vets out there but my fear and trauma is so deep, I cant imagine how my pet must feel. I see her anxiety and fear of other people so I kinda feel her trauma. I will never forgive myself for taking her there.

Plus the Pets mart was very dirty with the air conditioning vents dirts having dust collected on the vent air intakes. For having a pet surgeries there, very unsanitary and unsafe.

I had a puppy plan with Banfield. I moved and canceled my plan.

A couple of years later, my dog had an issue with his ear, so I took him to the Banfield next to my new home. They said I had a past due balance of around 70 dollars and I had to pay that before receiving service. I thought I must have had a balance still due and paid it. I went to Banfield yesterday and they said I was in collections and gave me the number.

They said I now owed over 600 dollars for a subscription I canceled and never used! I explained the situation and that I never re-signed up or used the services. They basically said, 'too bad.' Banfield is a scam. They will add/reactivate service plans without your knowledge or consent!

Beware, do not ever sign up for their plans.

It's completely unethical. After some research, it looks like there are several lawsuits due to their unethical actions with these plans.