How to Avoid Expensive Mistakes

"Imagine this scenario: Julie's doctor is accustomed to self-pay patients. A large proportion of the practice is made up of patients who don't have traditional insurance. Her doctor wants to order an expensive test. The staff let her know they've negotiated a discount with the test provider. If she pays through the doctor's office, she'll pay only 10 to 20 percent of what the company would bill her directly."

"Jan goes to a different doctor, who has few self-pay patients. Her doctor orders the same test, but Jan gets billed by the test provider. It's several thousand dollars. When Jan calls the test provider, she learns there is a discounted self-pay rate, but it's only available if you select that option before the services are rendered. That's news to her."

"We've all been blindsided by expensive errors where a way to prevent them existed, but we didn't know that. Perhaps you take your first cruise only to end up with a room above the nightclub. Maybe the cost of a kitchen renovation or round of fertility treatment blows out. Perhaps you missed an application deadline for an excellent free preschool and have to pay for an alternative."

Some service providers proactively arrange lower self-pay rates, while others do not, creating large cost disparities for identical services. Cash-paying patients benefit when offices negotiate discounts or choose billing paths that prioritize low out-of-pocket costs. Many expensive mistakes happen because consumers lack information about available options, deadlines, or pre-selection requirements. Preventable financial surprises include bumped cruise rooms, renovation overruns, and missed application deadlines. Complete avoidance of all mistakes is impossible, but selecting partners who share the same priority—such as minimizing cost or maximizing speed—reduces risk. Aligning priorities with providers and asking about self-pay options and deadlines can sidestep foreseeable errors.

Read at Psychology Today