Is my DS’s tutor being unreasonable

[PWPmum]

My DS 11 who is in year 6 has a weekly tutor to help him prepare for his SATs and support his spelling. He is dyslexic. She insists on being paid at the beginning of the month with the sessions she will teach agreed in advance.
My DS is not well today. So I contacted the tutor to let her know he can’t do the lesson today and asked if we could roll the lesson over
she has replied saying as the cancellation is on the day and her time is booked out, there is no rolling over or refund.
But there will be no lesson today so part of me feels why should I pay?
She’s offered to teach him at the weekend but we’re busy then.
I’m not sure if I’m being unreasonable or not to push for the credit to go towards next month or not.

Do you or your partner have a salary? Is it paid if you are ill? If someone cancels a meeting, are you still paid that day?

Do you understand that if there is a flu bug and several pupils cancel, by your reasoning, the tutor would just have no money for a couple of weeks? She could work to that rule, but the hourly rate might have to double. Or triple, if people decided it's okay to cancel on the day whenever they felt like it.

OP have you nothing to say about whether you have reflected on your behaviour and accepted that you are unreasonable? You have to be one of the most entitled people ever.

Hopefully you've realised why it's fair to pay for short cancellations.

You are being unreasonable. I tutor has to earn a steady living and can’t do that if students cancel lessons at short notice. Respect her time regard her expertise. And you’ll get the best out of her teaching.

I don't think she paid for it, it was the "rescheduled" lesson from the missed class?

Private tutor here. One of the biggest headaches in this business are parents who think the entire universe revolves around and could conform to their personal arrangements.

From the way I was often treated, as in the OP's original message, I concluded that I was considered a kind of lackey or menial, and had to dance to the parent's tune because they were paying me. It's a modern version of a throwback to Victorian attitudes to hired helps and servants. 'Oh darling it's such an awful bore that tiffin is double booked with Clara's tutor. Please tell her that her services are not required today.'

'But there will be no lesson today so part of me feels why should I pay?'

Because their time has been pre-booked and it's too late to find another source of income from the one they were expecting. This is standard practice.

'She’s offered to teach him at the weekend but we’re busy then.' This is MORE than fair, but it doesn't work for you. So your time is valuable, but the tutor's isn't?

'But there will be no lesson today so part of me feels why should I pay?'

You have cancelled on the day and feel you should not have to pay, even though the tutor offered an alternative time at the weekend.

The tutor had to ask you to pay a month in advance because she was tired of chasing you for payment after each lesson.

The tutor would be well advised to seek more reasonable customers.

Don't be thick.

Just pay.

You do realise this is her livelihood and not just doing you a favour

You have got to be kidding OP? If not, entitlement on a whole new level. I fear for the future of humanity when I read about such insular thinking.

Since the pandemic there has been a huge surge of totally entitled children and parents.

And parents should not only be conscious of the fact that time is key, but also that whilst their child is not attending lessons that yes, they should pay for, but that there are probably children waiting for a place.

Contracts. Stick to them.

This.

Has @PWPmum come back yet to say she realises she was wrong? And has she apologised to the tutor for being difficult and entitled?

Please tell me you paid for the session

The lessons are paid for in advance at the beginning of the month. I was going to ask for the lesson to be credited against next month but in the end I didn’t.

It usual to charge for a cancellation with less than 48 hours notice, she has offered an alternative, what more can she do? Are you this difficult with your son

I can’t believe I’m even reading this.

So now you've messed up her weekend too instead of just excepting you had to pay for the session 🙄

Good! I hope you can now see how outrageous this all is.
If your tutor cancels then she would have to credit. Not if you cancel.

I don’t know why you’re boasting about not ripping off an expert tutor.

I can see we’re OP is coming from, but yes they are being unreasonable. If you are wondered why the tutor demanded being paid up front, I think you’ve answered your own question, lol.

This is completely normal. She can’t book in someone else at that time at such short notice. I see a PT once a week and pay in blocks for 10 sessions in advance. If I have to cancel on the day, that is charged. If I cancel with 24 hours’ notice, it can roll over. Perfectly reasonable.

My mother is a retired primary school teacher and dyslexia specialist. She is too soft to insist people pay in advance and is therefore constantly chasing parents for payment for sessions they’ve had, and gets cancelled on last minute as there is no consequence for doing so. It’s disrespectful of people’s time. I would never do this to someone whose time I was paying for.

Wow! Let’s hope your double rearrangements haven’t led her to cancelling plans and you still pay her. You’ll be lucky if she/he doesn’t drop you.

Well, of course she did. It works both ways. She cancels at short notice, she rolls the session over. You cancel at short notice, you pay. It's standard with any system like this, and I'm struggling to understand why you think she is being unreasonable.