Cancelled classes and 'make up tokens'

[wejammin]

I have 2 primary age children who attend weekly swimming lessons. Their original swim school stopped operating during the first lockdown so they started with a new school in June 2021 when the first lockdown ended.

Their lessons are booked via an app called iclasspro. When a class is cancelled by the swim school, the app gives a 'make up token'. This can be redeemed by booking onto a different class for the child's grade.

Due to the second lockdown, and then teachers having to isolate, plus a couple of occasions when the pool was closed for maintenance, DC1 has accrued 12 makeup tokens and DC2 has accrued 14. At £10 per lesson that's £260 spent of lessons that have not taken place.

DC1 now wants to stop lessons and just go swimming with his dad after school. When I have contacted the swim school they say all makeup tokens accrued are void after the 4 week notice period and this is what I agreed in the t&c.

I did accept t&c but now feel this must be in breach of consumer rights - there were very limited alternative classes available to book when ours was cancelled and none when it was convenient to us. One time I did try to use a makeup token the alternative classes were fully booked as all the parents from my child's class also needed to rebook.

AIBU in trying to pursue the swim school for a refund?

I'd definitely pursue it - I'd say something about the exceptional circumstances of the Covid-19 pandemic, and the cost of living crisis, then ask them if they'd be willing to accept the tokens given the context.

If DC2 is planning to continue can you see if DC1's tokens can be moved across?

You’re not in Yorkshire are you? I have the same dilemma with mine. She wants to go back to her old swimming but we have so many tokens I can’t justify letting her go back until we’re done.

The make up options were impossible for us, we need to swim on one day due to work.

I would definitely pursue, this seems very harsh. For the activities my children have done, classes cancelled by the organisers were always credited or refunded. That is such a lot of money to lose.

@HipposHaveNipples

If DC2 is planning to continue can you see if DC1's tokens can be moved across?

Yes DC2 is carrying on, I could ask if they can be used in part payment. Given the attitude so far I can’t see them letting her have half a year of free lessons, but it’s worth a try!

@Rosser

You’re not in Yorkshire are you? I have the same dilemma with mine. She wants to go back to her old swimming but we have so many tokens I can’t justify letting her go back until we’re done.

The make up options were impossible for us, we need to swim on one day due to work.

No, not in Yorkshire. Are they letting you use up the makeup tokens for the scheduled lessons?

I imagine the owner is too scared to agree it for one parent because if he gives the refund to me he will be accepting he owes it to everyone. I don’t want to put the guy out of business but equally I’ve got 3 kids to feed!

They're not free lessons though are they?! You have paid for them, you just want to be able to redeem them!

But you agreed to the t&c's and you admit that some times aren't suitable for you to rebook. That's not the swimming clubs fault. It's frustrating but I think you are being a little unreasonable buy they are also being a bit short sighted with customer service.

@wejammin I did know about the t&cs so I haven’t asked. I will now. I’m sure it will be the same response. They’re not a very friendly bunch generally.

@ForensicFlossy

But you agreed to the t&c's and you admit that some times aren't suitable for you to rebook. That's not the swimming clubs fault. It's frustrating but I think you are being a little unreasonable buy they are also being a bit short sighted with customer service.

For full disclosure I’m a lawyer, but not a contract lawyer (children lawyer) and I have a recollection from uni 1000 years ago that if a contract term is unfair it’s unenforceable. I need to do some research.

Update - the school said they would not refund, so I did some research and went back to explain that the terms were unenforceable as they are in breach of the consumer rights act. The owner lost his shit, told me I was despicable and acting in poor taste to 'have consumer rights laws thrown at us'. He's terminated the children's lessons with immediate effect and, thankfully, is going to give us a full refund of what we're owed.
I feel a bit upset to be honest, I only wanted what we were entitled to and didn't want to fall out with anyone. We were happy to leave DC2 swimming there.
Anyway, if anyone else has the same issue and wants a copy of the email I sent, please DM me, but you might get a very stroppy response!

Oh no, that's a shame. It would have been better to have a resolution that both sides were happy with.

It's a bit rich of them to talk about you throwing consumer rights in their face though, when you are, in fact, the consumer.

That's a shockingly unprofessional response from them but at least you're getting your refund. Your consumer rights exist for a reason and i can't believe a proper (professional) business owner would be so short sighted to react in this way, it's stupid... it sounds like a hobby approach they've taken.. at least they've severed the relationship now so you can funnel your £££s to more professionally run hobbies and groups for your DC...