A Late Bill For The Late Resident

(I am an accountant for a retirement community. Some of our residents and their families can be easily confused by the volume of bills related to twilight years of life. As a result, I receive the following call way too often to count.)

Me: “Thank you for calling the accounting department at [Business]. How can I help you today?”

Caller: “I received a bill for [Resident], but he died six months ago, and we paid off the balance! Why are you billing us?”

Me: “One moment, please, while I check his account.”

(I bring up the late resident’s file on my computer, and indeed, it shows no balance due. I check the most recent months’ invoices, and confirm that we did not send them an invoice anytime in the past few months. I relay this information to the caller.)

Caller: “But it’s for services on [date when the deceased was a resident]! It has to be from you. What is this for?”

Me: “At the top of the invoice, does it say [Business]?”

Caller: “No…”

Me: “Is there a different company name?”

Caller: “Yes! It says it’s from [Medical Insurance Company]. Why are they sending me a bill?”

Me: “Is there a phone number on the bill?”

Caller: “Yes…”

Me: “I would suggest that you call that number, and ask their accounting department. I’m afraid I don’t have access to their system.”

Caller: “Oh… Can you transfer me?”

Me: “…”