Retriever Medical/Dental Payments Review
Updated 1/29/2019: In September 2018, Retriever Medical/Dental Payments, Inc. rebranded its corporate identity and business name to Rectangle Health. We will no longer update this review. Please refer to our Rectangle Health review for more up-to-date information.
Retriever Medical/Dental Payments, Inc. (retrievermed.com) is a merchant account provider headquartered in Valhalla, New York. The company takes the “Retriever” portion of its name from a former subsidiary of National Processing Company (NPC) called Retriever Payment Systems. Founded in 1993, the original Retriever Payment Systems was purchased by Iron Triangle Payment Systems in 2006 and subsequently converted into a subsidiary of National Processing Company (NPC). Although the original Retriever Payment Systems is no longer active, there are multiple independent sales offices across the country that still use the Retriever name and logo. Retriever Medical/Dental Payments is one of these locations. A few of the other independent Retriever offices are listed below:
- Retriever of Waterville, Ohio (goretriever.com)
- Retriever Merchant Solutions of South Holland, Illinois (rmsnpc.com)
- Retriever of Orlando, Florida, and of Memphis, Tennessee (localccprocessing.com)
- Retriever Payment Chicago of Geneva, Illinois (retrieverpaymentchicago.com), now known as Payroc
- Retriever of Jackson, Mississippi (retrievernpc.com)
Retriever Medical/Dental Payments is not affiliated with any of the locations listed above, and it does not report to a larger corporate entity called Retriever Payment Systems. It is a fully independent merchant account provider and this review will treat it as such. Retriever Medical/Dental Payments is a registered ISO/MSP of Fifth Third Bank and is headquartered at 115 E. Stevens Ave, Valhalla, New York 10595. Frank Shiner is the president and CEO of Retriever Medical/Dental Payments.
Key Points
- Sales & Marketing: Retriever Medical/Dental Payments hires independent sales representatives and has received a low number of complaints about its sales practices.
- Costs & Contract: Retriever Medical/Dental Payments offers a multi-year contract with a conditional early termination fee.
- Complaints & Service: Retriever Medical/Dental Payments has received fewer than 10 public complaints.
- BBB Rating: Retriever Medical/Dental Payments has an “A+” rating with the Better Business Bureau and has received 10 complaints in the last three years.
- Rates & Fees: How Merchants Got The Best Rates With Retriever Medical/Dental Payments
Retriever Medical/Dental Payments Customer Reviews
Here's What Their Clients Say
| Total Online Complaints | <10 |
|---|---|
| Live Customer Support | Yes |
| Most Common Complaint | Termination Policy |
We are currently able to locate only a few negative Retriever Medical/Dental Payments reviews, some of which accuse the company of being a ripoff or a scam. Common issues include nondisclosure of the company’s early termination policy, difficulty cancelling service, telephone sales complaints, and poor customer service. A Retriever representative has responded to the majority of the company’s public complaints, but this representative usually insists that merchants are bound to the terms of their contract regardless of whether they feel they were deceived.
It also appears that Retriever Medical/Dental Payments has paid Ripoff Report to join the Ripoff Report Corporate Advocacy program. This program enables business owners to post marketing materials and testimonials above the complaints that have been filed against their businesses. As a result, all of the complaints posted to Ripoff Report regarding Retriever Medical/Dental Payments are buried beneath a large promotional post by Retriever Medical/Dental Payments. Retriever’s participation in this program appears to be a concerted effort to make it harder to find negative reviews about the company without directly addressing the content of any of the complaints filed. In general, it appears that the company’s standard policy is to enforce its contract terms in most cases, regardless of whether merchants feel they were appropriately informed of the company’s policies. However, the recent revisions to the company’s early termination policy suggest that it is willing to adjust its practices after hearing from enough dissatisfied merchants.
Retriever Medical/Dental Payments’s score has been negatively impacted by the tone of the company’s responses to older complaints as well as the consistent content found within these complaints. However, the company’s recent adjustments to its policies and positive engagement with public complainants have improved its standing in this section.
Retriever Medical/Dental Payments Online Ratings
Here's How They Rate Online
| Product & Service Complaints | 4 |
|---|---|
| Billing & Collection Complaints | 4 |
| Advertising & Sales Complaints | 0 |
| Guarantee & Warranty Complaints | 1 |
| Delivery Complaints | 1 |
Note: We have adjusted this company’s BBB rating according to our own standards. To better understand why we adjust BBB ratings, please see our Rating Criteria.
Retriever Medical/Dental Payments, Inc. has been accredited with the Better Business Bureau since 2010 and currently has an “A+” rating. The company has received 10 complaints through the BBB in the last 36 months, with four related to product or service issues, four due to a billing or collection dispute, one related to a guarantee or warranty, and one having to do with a delivery issue. Retriever has successfully resolved three of the complaints, while the remaining seven either were resolved to the dissatisfaction of the merchant or did not receive a final response from the merchant. We have adjusted the BBB’s rating to a “B” based on how our criteria would score the company.
Retriever Medical/Dental Payments Fees, Rates & Costs
A Closer Look at The Contract
| Swiped Rate | Variable |
|---|---|
| Keyed-in Rate | Variable |
| Early Termination Fee | Variable |
| PCI Compliance Fee | None |
| Equipment Lease Terms | Variable |
According to a company representative, the standard Retriever Medical/Dental Payments contract is a multiyear agreement through National Processing Company with a conditional termination fee, no annual fees, no PCI compliance fees, and no monthly minimum fees. Multiple merchant complaints state that the company charges a monthly fee of about $30, but this may actually be a monthly equipment lease payment through a third-party provider. It does appear that some Retriever Medical/Dental Payments agents package long-term equipment leases with their contracts, so merchants should be sure to watch out for unfavorable or excessively long lease terms.
Retriever recently revised the conditions of its early termination fee. According to a company representative, the Retriever Medical/Dental Payments early termination fee now comes with the following terms:
OUR GUARANTEE:
We have no early termination fee. Our processing agreement may be cancelled at any time, upon written notice with NO CANCELLATION FEE TO_______________________(Client).
ADDED SERVICES GOOD FAITH GUARANTEE:
As a good faith courtesy, if you have a cancellation fee for your existing processing agreement, we will pay it for you or assist you to avoid one. We will also provide you with any necessary custom installations and staff training seminars and special account set up services.
IF YOU ACCEPT THESE ADDED SERVICES, WE HOLD A REASONABLE EXPECTATION THAT YOU WILL HONOR THE TERMS OF YOUR PROCESSING AGREEMENT ACCORDING TO THE FOLLOWING PROVISIONS. (Failure to follow the provisions below may result in the client’s obligation to pay the cost of these added services when applicable):
If Retriever Medical Dental Payments cannot beat any valid written offer or if our program should fail to reduce accounts receivable balances and our processing services may be cancelled at any time and at no cost.
In other words, if merchants do not receive custom installation or training from Retriever and do not ask Retriever to pay their prior cancellation fees with a different processor, then they may exit their contracts at no cost whenever they wish. However, if Retriever Medical/Dental Payments pays a merchant’s termination fee with their previous processor or provides custom installation, training, or account setup services, then the merchant may be responsible for reimbursing Retriever for the costs of those services unless they allow a representative from Retriever Medical/Dental Payments to perform a rate review and attempt to beat a competitor’s valid written offer. This policy appears to have resulted in a number of disputes between merchants and Retriever Medical/Dental over whether the early termination fee was appropriately charged. Multiple merchants claim that they were not informed of the company’s early termination fee (which was previously $700) or this rate match guarantee at the point of signing. When these merchants cancelled their service with Retriever, they were hit with the full $700 early termination fee. Retriever insists that this fee was appropriately charged because the merchants did not first allow the company to perform a rate review. In some cases, merchants complain about the inconvenience of scheduling an in-person rate review with a Retriever representative and obtaining a valid third-party offer that Retriever cannot beat.
We feel that this guarantee would be a reasonable way to recover acquisition costs on expensive accounts if it did not apply in perpetuity. However, in its current verbiage, it holds merchants to excessive obligations long after the life of the initial processing agreement. For instance, under the policy’s current language, it’s possible that a merchant could cancel with Retriever Medical/Dental Payments after 15 years and still have to reimburse Retriever for large setup costs or early termination fees—long after Retriever has likely recovered the cost of acquiring the account. On one hand, this new policy represents an improvement over the company’s previous policy due to the fact that some merchants can cancel without facing a $700 penalty or the need for a rate review. On the other hand, the only way some merchants can avoid an undefined, uncapped cancellation penalty is by obtaining a competing quote that Retriever cannot beat. Since Retriever is free to lower its prices to whatever amount is necessary to retain the account, this policy essentially functions as a retention ETF.
Retriever Medical/Dental Payments Employee Reviews & Sales Tacitcs
Should You Work For Them?
| Employs Independent Resellers | Yes |
|---|---|
| Advertises Deceptive Rates | No |
| Discloses All Important Terms | No |
Retriever Medical/Dental Payments appears to utilize a combination of in-house sales agents, appointment setting by telephone, and independent sales agents to market its services. We are currently able to locate a handful of Retriever Medical complaints that accuse the company’s sales reps of misrepresentation or nondisclosure of fees and terms (specifically with regard to the company’s early termination fee). Multiple merchants state that Retriever’s early termination fee is listed in fine print on the company’s contract rather than clearly displayed alongside other rates and fees. These complainants also state that their sales representatives did not clearly explain this fee at the point of signing.
The company, however, maintains that its cancellation policy is clearly disclosed at multiple points during the sales process. It therefore appears that disclosure and explanation of this policy is largely dependent upon the sales agent servicing the account. Merchants are encouraged to request and review all documentation, and to only work with agents they know and trust. To the company’s credit, its website does not list any misleading rate quotes or guarantees.
Our Retriever Medical/Dental Payments Review Summary
Our Final Thoughts
Retriever Medical/Dental Payments rates as an average merchant account provider according to our rating criteria. The company specifically serves merchants in the healthcare industry and has received a low-to-moderate number of complaints for a provider of its size. Its score is most negatively impacted by its conditional early termination fee and the lack of flexibility the company has previously shown with regard to this fee. Retriever can improve its rating by further modifying its termination policy and by continuing to maintain a low complaint total.
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Axel Irene
Wow, Retriever Medical/Dental Payments is an absolute game-changer for our practice! As a busy dental clinic, handling payments was always a hassle, but this service has made everything so smooth and efficient. The ease of processing payments and the security features they provide give us total peace of mind. Our patients love the various payment options, and it has significantly reduced payment delays.
The customer support team is top-notch too! They were incredibly helpful during the setup process and were always there to address any queries we had. It’s evident they genuinely care about their clients’ success. Since partnering with Retriever, our revenue has seen a positive impact, and we can now focus more on providing excellent patient care. I can’t recommend Retriever Medical/Dental Payments enough. They truly know how to make payment processing hassle-free for healthcare professionals. Thumbs up!