Can't understand my Health Care Insurance company's representatives........

[CathyA]

What should I do? We recently changed over to another health insurance and I've had to call them about 6 times for various things. I could understand maybe half of them, and it still wasn't easy. What do I do if I just can't understand their accents? Do I come out and say "I'm really sorry, but I can't understand you. Could you please get someone on the line who speaks better English?" I'm frustrated. I have a couple problems I really need to resolve with them and it doesn't help at all to struggle to understand them.

[Float On]

I would ask and keep asking and then write a few letters of complaint as well. I had no idea health insurance was outsourcing customer service reps.

[lmerullo]

I would ask if there was someone else you may speak with - and let them know YOU have a hard time understanding them.

My mom is British born, but has been here (USA) for more than 50 years. She is elderly, sight impaired, and to add to it, now is suffering from hearing loss. She refuses to sign a medical proxy. She finds it most frustrating to get someone she can't understand - and worse, she has difficulty with 1) utilizing an automated system, 2) being directed to call another number without someone able to transfer and finally 3) having to read off long strings of nonsensical numbers to get yourself authorized - whether that be policy, group number, medicare id, customer number from a bill, or social security number. We have resorted to me impersonating her when absolutely necessary, since even her stating on the phone that it's ok to talk to me, most providers won't without forms in place.

I did have a small snorting chuckle, though, when I realized dear old mummy might do better with an Indian than a Southern American! We may live in Florida, but it is not the deep south - get her on the phone with an Alabama native, and it's all over!

[SteveinMN]

Another option might be to see if the insurance company offers "chat" on their Web site. My experience on both sides of a conversation when one of the speakers is not speaking his/her native language is that many people do better writing/reading than they do speaking/listening. You also get to keep a transcript of the exchange if there are questions.

[CathyA]

I called back and got a woman who had perfect English! And.......I found out the first guy at the insurance company I talked to gave me totally wrong information.
Steve........I do like to do the chat thing, but I'm discovering that health insurance places don't seem to like using them.........nor do they like to interact through emails.