Medical alert systems are all about protecting your aging loved ones from potential harm. However, the other aspect of protection, namely the security of your privacy and customer rights is a topic rarely touched on, despite being equally as important. When seniors (or their family members) become a client of a medical alert company, they share private medical history data and contact information, which must be handled with the utmost professionalism. Yet many customers pay no attention to the code of ethics or privacy policy while browsing for suitable medical alert solutions. Such irresponsible behavior opens possibilities for scammers and con artists, who would do anything to diddle naive elderly people out of their hard earned money.
Business Standards
Featuring an actual code of ethics on the website is a clear sign that you are dealing with an upfront and transparent medical alert company. It’s a section where they declare certain restrictions on how they conduct the business. In other words, a code of ethics is a corporate handicap in favor of the customer.
Bay Alarm Medical, for example, offers a comprehensive list of pro-consumer practices. They refrain from bothering you with cold calls and high pressure sales pitches, which is reassuring since both the elderly and their family members must provide their phone numbers for the service. Bay Alarm Medical also promises courteous help from trained professionals, with an emphasis on answering potential questions instead of trying to sell the product. Because all employees must abide to the code of ethics, encountering any of these misdemeanors provides you the right to complain to the company.
Privacy & Data Protection
A code of ethics is a rare sight on a medical alert website, unlike the privacy protection segment, which is necessary when dealing with such services. A privacy policy states the company’s approach and duty when it comes to collecting and using your personal information. Customers tend to skip this part, even though they can learn in advance what kind of information is mandatory to be shared. In most cases they also admit the gathering of certain data, mainly to better understand customer behavior and user demographic. Such details include your browser type, operating system, gender, age and the like.
You should investigate whether or not sensitive information (name, address, and credit card details) is protected by encryption. Lastly, always pay attention to the company’s dealings with your data. Most medical alert services share information about you with third party companies, even though they might claim that it’s for the user’s benefit.
Scammers
All companies claim to be upfront and honest. However, small details such as a code of ethics or a detailed privacy policy are what make a difference. Be aware that shady companies or scam artists tend to pressure unsuspecting elderly people into subscribing to their deal right away, without having time to conduct proper research.
Remember that professional medical alert providers such as Bay Alarm Medical are confident enough in their service quality to renounce unwanted marketing tactics. Therefore if you encounter a salesman unwilling to disclose further information, the proper action is to pass on the deal, no matter how promising it sounds.
Best Medical Alert Systems of 2018
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