Jon Yates

Problem Solver updates: Water flowing; medical claim still ailing

For the first time in almost a month, the water is flowing in Cassandra Austin's town house. Austin, featured in Sunday's What's Your Problem? column, said service was restored late Friday, meaning she no longer had to pour jugs of water into her toilet...

Tags: Aetna Inc., Health and Medical Professionals, Medicare, Government Health Care

Problem Solver: Eyewear receipt has customer seeing red

Diana Sanchez paid $280.17 for new glasses at J.C. Penney Optical in the Orland Square Mall. Her husband, Paul, paid $445.81 for his. Together, the Tinley Park couple plopped down $725.98 for new specs Jan. 26. It was a lot of money but they weren't...

Tags: JC Penney Company Inc., Insurance, Netherlands

Problem Solver: Care kit for furniture ruins leather, negates warranty

The protection plan Julie Conway bought for her Macy's leather furniture set is called WorryNoMore. Drop the "no" from the middle and, Conway says, you've got a description of the warranty's effect on her. The Deerfield resident bought a sofa,...

Tags: Macy's

Problem Solver: Legal document goes missing, and Northern Trust wasn't looking

Chicagoan Deborah Harrington never had a mortgage. When she bought her apartment in a South Shore co-op building more than two decades ago, she paid in cash. To cover her bases, she took out a home equity line of credit, which she could access in an...

Tags: Northern Trust Corporation

Problem Solver: Updates on parking tickets, insurance refund, model dinosaur

After a sleepy winter during which motorcyclist Loreen Targos received no parking tickets, the Loop resident awoke March 13 to find a new violation envelope affixed to her motorcycle, allegedly for "parking or standing in violation of an erected sign."...

Tags: Aetna Inc., Health and Medical Professionals, Medicare, Office Depot Inc., Government Health Care

Problem Solver: Seat shuffle irks airline passenger

When she planned her family's spring break trip to Phoenix, Lesley Shifrin was meticulous. She logged on to American Airlines' website Nov. 1 and booked four tickets — paying for two with cash, the other two with miles — then selected four...

Tags: American Airlines, Inc., Air Transportation Industry, Trips and Vacations, Travel, Services and Shopping

Problem Solver: Ex-husband dies, but credit debt lives on

It has been almost a decade since Donna Mosier got divorced. At the time, the couple discussed their joint accounts, including credit cards, and took measures to officially sever their ties. Her ex-husband kept the couple's MasterCard and Home Depot...

Tags: Credit and Debt, The Home Depot, Citigroup Incorporated

Problem Solver: Pipe leak halts neighbors' water for weeks

On her kitchen table, Cassandra Austin keeps two milk jugs, a 96-ounce orange juice container, stainless steel pots and an assortment of plastic pitchers. Every evening for the past three weeks, her 32-year-old son has gathered the containers, walked out...

Problem Solver: Medical billing causes patient pain

Before he visited the doctor to get custom orthotics, Gil Harris contacted both Medicare and his supplemental insurance company, Aetna, to see if they would pay for the shoe inserts. Medicare said no but Aetna said yes — as long as the bill was...

Tags: Aetna Inc., Health and Medical Professionals, Medicare, Insurance, Government Health Care

Problem Solver: 2nd charge leads to pain at the pump

It was a glorious fall day and Steve Thompson's in-laws were visiting from California, so he gathered up the family for an afternoon drive. The St. Charles family made it to Lake Geneva, Wis., before the fuel gauge on its Chevy Traverse edged toward...

Tags: Downstream Oil and Gas Activities, Credit and Debt

Problem Solver: UnitedHealthcare's prescription drug plan a real pain

Navigating a prescription drug plan can be difficult, but Barbara Stonewater was sure she had it figured out. Last year the Aurora resident used AARP's Medicare Part D plan, run by UnitedHealthcare. Under the "preferred plan" option, her copays were...

Tags: Prescription Drugs, Pharmaceuticals, Arthritis, Insurance, Chemical Industry

Problem Solver: Ample time passes before kidney stone billing error resolved

The pain in his stomach was almost debilitating. On Nov. 1, 2010, Bill Lepek went to the emergency room at Presence Resurrection Medical Center in Norwood Park. Physicians did some scans and conducted some tests, then zeroed in on the source of his...

Tags: Aetna Inc., Hospitals and Clinics, Medicare, Medical Procedures and Tests, Insurance