Getting out of a contract if the standard of service has changed??

luby4604

Hi

My 6 yr old son has been attending taekwondo lessons for over a year now. We initially signed a year contract with a company called united professionals who were responsible for the subscriptions etc and when that year was up we signed a 2 year contract with the same company. The manager of the taekwondo academy approached us a month or so later and told us that United Professionals had gone bust and asked us to sign a new contract with a company called Debit Finance and that it would be on the same terms. However since signing that contract the main instructor has left the academy leaving the students being taught by an 18 year old, they have also increased the numbers of the children in a class and are constantly trying to recruit more meaning that 1 18yr old teacher is teaching 20-30 children.

There are a number of other things that have changed but these are the main points that have left us feeling unsatisfied with the service we are now getting from there. We have cancelled our direct debit and contacted Debit finance but they have basically said that we are tied into the contract for a minimum of 2 years (it does say this on the contract) and that we have to either keep going or pay the full 2 yr amount to be released.

Is there any argument I can put forward that I should be released from it due to the standard of service changing for the worse since we signed the contract. Also as the contract relates to a child and children can obviously change their mind about wanting to do things like this does that affect it in any way?

Sorry for the long post....any help would be very gratefully received

4743hudsonj

Is he passing his gradings? if so how long between gradings.

MY class was 50 kids (when i was a kid) with one instructer and i did very well when i got older.

Ended up teaching a few classes around 16 (with others at the sidelines to step in)

I dont think it should affect the quality of the lessons too much. All depends really.

McKneff

Is there much difference between teaching 10 kids all at once than 20,
is he doing okay and keeping up his grades.

Dont see anything wrong with an 18 year old teaching as long as he has the
ability and the diplomas etc to teach.
I really think you could be flogging a dead horse.

Cancelling the direct debit is the worst thing you can do, they will still chase you for the money because you still owe it.

DVardysShadow

Have a look at what your contract is. It looks to me like you have a finance contract and the money has gone to the provider up front. Never a good idea to have a contract with a 3rd party.

luby4604

Thanks for the replies...
Everyone there passes their gradings there is a 100% pass rate everytime because they pass all the kids regardless of ability, there have been occasions when a child has walked off halfway through in tears and refused to go back on and they still pass!

I don't know if he has any diplomas to teach there are no certificates displayed anywhere for him or the one who has left.

My argument with the class size is the amount of contact the teacher has with each child, the lesson is 45 minutes long and at most he interacts personally with my child for 2 mins, also he puts the lowest grades at the back which are usually the youngest kids.

With regard to the contract should the 'finance contract' have been explained to us as I know that the contract we had before wasn't one of these, there was a 30 day notice period on it with a £30 cancellation fee if you wanted to leave before the end of the contract. I understood that the new contract was the same as we were never told any different. We had no choice but to have a contract with the 3rd party as this is the way they do it there.

drsquirrel

If you really want to "get out" of it, you might be able to negotiate a single part settlement rather than the 2 years, though I am sure this is at their discretion.

Otherwise, keep taking advantage of it, the "18yr old teacher" might be the next world champion for all you know... what level are they? Otherwise I feel you are just being ageist in this respect.

*Dusty*

This is something i can help with, i'm a qualified !!!!!! Taekwondo instructor and have taught classes for many years.

First of all the ratio of instructor to student should be no more than 1:10 for health and safety reasons.
Secondly, a GOOD taekwondo club won't be asking anyone to sign direct debit instructions. 45 minutes is nowhere near long enough for a class, it needs to be at least 90 minutes for there to be any actual learning taking place.

I would check that the insurance adequately covers an 18 year old to teach, and that all the relevant CRB checks and child protection training has taken place, if not contact the CAB or your solicitor who should run rings around the club.

Sound too much like a money racket to me, there's been a few of them local to me too. Ask if they are BTCB registered and don't be afraid to check, they are the governing body for Taekwondo in the UK.

*Dusty*

in fact thinking about it, i would say the insurance policy could also stipulate that the instructor be fully first aid qualified as well, just trying to think of all angles. It's worth checking that he is firstly trained in first aid, and also up to date, the training i believe needs to be refreshed every 3rd year.

luby4604

Thats really helpful Dusty thanks...it definately does seem to be more about the money there than anything else, we pay a monthly £40 direct debit plus £25 every 3 months for grading to them directly and £70 a year to them directly for our sons insurance, its a lot of money to pay out and not be fully satisfied that our son is getting the best service

*Dusty*

luby4604 wrote: »

Thats really helpful Dusty thanks...it definately does seem to be more about the money there than anything else, we pay a monthly £40 direct debit plus £25 every 3 months for grading to them directly and £70 a year to them directly for our sons insurance, its a lot of money to pay out and not be fully satisfied that our son is getting the best service

Jesus wept.

Our annual insurance AND membership fees to a worldwide recognised governing body are £25. Per year. Total.

£3 ish per lesson depending on club, sometimes less sometimes more.

Gradings were £15 and you could train as much or as little as you liked, we as instructors did not enter students who wouldn't pass. Minimum 3 months continuous training to qualify for a grading.

*Dusty*

I've tried to post the link for you but it won't let me so here's the best i can do

www(dot)britishtaekwondo.org(dot)uk

Maybe one of the mods could edit please?