Action 9: Man says mentioning Don Griffin helped get his money back

A man said a nursing home only refunded him half of his $6,000 deposit when Medicaid didn't cover it in full, even though he signed a contract that said he wasn't responsible.

So he just relied on Action 9's Don Griffin's name to get his money back.

Chuck Milligan, an ex-Marine and retired firefighter, is not one to easily give up.

“You have to be tenacious and hang in there until the end,” he said.

But last June, he found himself on the losing end of a fight to get a $6,300 deposit refund from an Alamance County nursing home.

Milligan reserved a room at Peak Resources for his ailing son while waiting for his son's Medicaid to take over. When Medicaid didn't cover the full amount, Milligan said Peak refunded only half of his money.

“The rest of it they were going to keep and I said, ‘No, that's not right,’” Milligan said.

Even after reminding Peak he'd signed a contract acknowledging he was not the responsible party, Milligan still couldn't get his money.

That's when he called the company's president in Gastonia and mentioned Griffin’s name.

“‘So, I'll just call Don Griffin and let him handle it,’” Milligan said.

“You just mentioned my name and they came across with the money?” Griffin said.

“Right,” Milligan said.

Within days, FedEx delivered the rest of Milligan’s refund -- nearly $3,000 -- along with a letter of apology.

He said anyone with a lingering complaint should be tenacious like he was and, if need be, rely on Action 9.

WSOC