The fact that DexCom is selling the Seven Plus upgrade for $200 to newer users and forcing those of us who adopted early and have been paying for sensors the whole time four times as much to upgrade makes my blood boil.
I have spent in the neighborhood of $10,000 over the past 3 years with this company, using it continuously starting with the original system in June 2006 and then upgrading to the Seven System as soon as it was released, and apparently for that, I’m deemed less worthy of upgrade pricing than someone who bought the system 6 months ago and only uses it one week a month.
DexCom, this is very poor customer service for the people who have been supporting you from the beginning, and some of us are going to look for other options now. Your decision to charge me an extra $600 for the system now may cost you $1500 in sensor business for the rest of this year and another $3000 next year and annually on into the future.
Maybe you don’t want customers like me, but some of us think we deserve better and will not support businesses that treat their biggest spenders like this.
Jim,
I am not sure how old your current system is. I got a good deal from them the beginning of May. For their loyal customers they will sell you the dexcom 7+ system at the cash price of 814.00. They then also GAVE me a box of sensors. So for me I now have an in warranty dexcom 7+ system for about under 550.00 dollars. About the same as I paid a year and half ago for a new 7 open system.
Wendy
Thanks for the input Wendy. I was not offered the sensors, but in any event, they’ve gotten way more money out of me than they have from someone who bought the system 6 months ago and used it intermittently (or tried it and stopped, as my doc reports most users do), or even full time, so I don’t feel like I should be paying more than those people when I’ve already paid DexCom many times what those people have.
Consider: I’ve spent literally $10k on the system as a full time user for 3 years, where someone who bought it 6 months ago and used it half the time since then has spent 1/8 as much. But that guy will get the new unit from DexCom for 1/4 of what I will (or 1/3, if you assume in an extra box of sensors for the old user and not the new one).
This pricing policy does not make sense to me, and it seems like they’re dissing (to use the vernacular of the kids these days the long time users figuring we’ll upgrade no matter what. But some of us won’t, as a matter of principle - I will not pay 4x what the guy next door to me pays for anything.
Dont look @ me I have just paid FULL Price over 8 Bills in cash for a dex 7+ im new to and have already dropp 1200 and I am getting ready to order my 90 supply of sensors and I use it constantly CGM is Hella Expensive!
Or something like that, yes. (They weren’t clear with me on how long I’d have to have had it to get the $200 price.)
This would make lots of sense if you were only buying the main unit, like buying a PC - if they release a new one right after you buy it, they give you a discount so that people aren’t waiting to buy new ones for a new unit to be released. But this is the exact opposite situation, because here, we are buying sensors every month, some of us on a continuous basis - so the people who have spent the most money with them already are getting worse pricing than people who may not end up staying on the system, etc.
For my part, they’re charging enough for the upgrade to insult me and make me look at other solutions.
Wait they are offering the 200 dollar pricing to upgrade to anyone with a 7 system until June 30, 2009. I believe. They initially saying you had to be within warranty. They changed this.
Wendy
I posted somewhere on TuDiabetes in February about running my Dexcom 7 receiver through the dryer and having to replace it. I was lucky enough to get my insurance to cover 80%, as if it were a new receiver. Now I’ve had more luck.
When the 7 Plus came out I called Dexcom and the rep told me it would cost me about a zillion bucks to buy the upgrade and he didn’t think insurance would cover it because it had so recently paid for the Seven replacement, yadda, yadda, yadda. “Okay. Pass,” I said. I ordered a bunch of sensors instead because they WERE covered by insurance.
Today I got a flyer in the mail from Dexcom about upgrading to the Seven Plus and figured “What the hell?” So I spoke with Guadalupe who told me that since I had purchased the Seven in February I was eligible for an upgrade - for FREE!! Shipping costs only.
“What are the shipping costs?” I asked, dreading the answer.
“Fifteen bucks,” she said.
“Done!” I shouted.
It should arrive by Friday. I’ll get a new sensor and a CD with the software upgrade.
I don’t know if this is due to a change in policy at Dexcom or if its just a case of talking to the right person - but I just thought any current Seven users should know about my experience and possibly take advantage of it. (Hint: When you call, ask for Guadalupe.)
On top of that, but boatload of sensors I already have will work with the Seven Plus. Hooray.
Actually, just FYI, I called back and this was NOT TRUE. I was told that they never changed this, the $200 price was only offered to relatively new Seven System users whose units were still in warranty.
Thus, those of us who had spent the most money with the company to date, buying the first system, and then upgrading to the Seven System when it was first released, were given the worst pricing of all buyers.
This kind of customer service is causing me to seek a new CGMS solution - DexCom, you lost a high margin repeat customer with your offensive upgrade pricing policy.
the long time users figuring we’ll upgrade no matter what. But some of us won’t, as a matter of principle - I will not pay 4x what the guy next door to me pays for anything.