Care Hospitals Fined Rs. 3.5 Lakh For Service Deficiency
- Care Hospitals fined by Hyderabad Consumer Commission
- Care Hospitals case highlights refund delay and insurance issue
Hyderabad: Care Hospitals has been fined Rs. 3.5 lakh by the Hyderabad District Consumer Commission III for deficiency in service. The Commission directed the hospital to refund the amount with 12 percent annual interest to the patient. It also ordered Care Hospitals to pay Rs. 1 lakh as compensation and Rs. 10,000 towards litigation costs. The order followed a complaint over failure to return an advance payment despite insurance settlement.
The case was filed by Muraleedhar Rao, aged 74, a resident of Himayatnagar. He was admitted to Care Hospital, Banjara Hills, on March 1, 2025, for a minimally invasive cardiac surgery. Rao was covered under a group mediclaim policy issued by New India Assurance Company. Therefore, he applied for cashless treatment at the hospital.
According to the complaint, hospital staff informed Rao that there would be a delay in insurance approval. They assured him that any advance paid would be refunded once the claim was settled. Trusting this assurance, Rao paid an advance of Rs. 3.5 lakh. However, he also alleged that the hospital did not issue proper receipts for the payment at that time.
The surgery was performed on March 3, and Rao was discharged on March 10. Later, he learned that the insurance company had already settled the entire bill with the hospital during his treatment period. However, despite repeated requests, the hospital allegedly failed to return the advance amount. This delay, therefore, became the core issue before the Consumer Commission.
Rao stated that he sent a legal notice on April 9. He also followed it up with emails on April 18 and May 1. However, he received no response from the hospital. With no other option, he approached the Consumer Commission seeking relief for the alleged service deficiency.
During the hearings, no representative from Care Hospitals appeared before the Commission. The hospital also did not file any written reply. Therefore, the Commission proceeded ex parte. It examined the evidence submitted by the complainant, including discharge summaries, payment records, screenshots, and email correspondence.
After reviewing the material, the Commission concluded that the actions of Care Hospitals amounted to a clear deficiency in service. It directed the hospital to refund Rs. 3.5 lakh with interest, pay compensation, and cover litigation costs. The Commission also ordered that all payments be completed within 45 days.
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