Complaints

This profile includes complaints for Varsity Tutors LLC's headquarters and its corporate-owned locations. To view all corporate locations, see Find Local Branches.

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  Varsity Tutors LLC

  8001 Forsyth Blvd Ste 1050 Clayton, MO 63105

  
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  Varsity Tutors LLC

  4525 Oak St Kansas City, MO 64111-1818

The complaint text that is displayed might not represent all complaints filed with BBB. Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:12/31/2024

  Type:Product Issues
  Status:

  ResolvedMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  In the evening of December 2nd 2024 (Cyber-Monday), I spoke on the phone at length with a Senior Consultant who identified themselves as ******** She began telling me her story that prior to working for Varsity Tutors she was a middle school teacher for five years. She went on to give me explicit information in great detail as to the outline and capabilities of their program:7-days pr/wk availability, beginning 6am-11pm Matched with a tutor that fits your needs and schedule Tutor has access to Schoology (my son's school platform)At the end of the 45min conversation, and because it was "Cyber Monday" I was offered a deal that would expire that day (12/2) - that included 8-hrs per month of tutoring for a reduced price of $399 (each session $49.88). Normally this would be $499 but TODAY ONLY that price is reduced by 20%. I let her know that I would have to talk to my husband about it, but it sounded promising. She reiterated that this "deal" would only be good through midnight but that I could call back to confirm. I called back, confirmed the offer I had written down that I was told, ******* confirmed this was true and I accepted the offer. I was able to set-up a login and a tutor was in the works to be placed. It wasn't until I was scheduling availability with the assigned tutor "******" that my account was only set-up with 4 sessions, one-hour per/wk option ONLY. The assigned tutor's availability time was not at all conducive to my son's schedule, like previously explained and ensured by ******* that it would be. Bottom line, I was sold an 8-hr service 2 per/wk, to assist my son with his current workload through Schoology. At no point during the four sessions in December, did the tutor inquire to Schoology or reference ANY of my son's current statement of work. As I just explained on the phone to *********, another Varsity Tutors consultant, the refund that I am entitled to is for the remaining 4hrs that were falsely sold to me and never accessible.

  

  Business Response

  Date: 01/07/2025

  Varsity is in receipt of the Complaint filed by ***** *****. Varsity contacted ***** upon its receipt of the Complaint and ultimately chose to provide a resolution that was satisfactory to them. Accordingly, it is Varsitys understanding that the matter has been resolved amicably. Varsity is proud to be an affiliate of the BBB and values the relationship. If you have any questions or comments, or would like to further discuss, please feel welcome to contact us.

  Customer Answer

  Date: 01/08/2025

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the business' response regarding complaint ID ******** and am satisfied with this resolution. 
   
  Sincerely,
  
  ***** *****

• Initial Complaint

  Date:12/29/2024

  Type:Service or Repair Issues
  Status:

  ResolvedMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  My daughter signed up last month for 8 tutoring sessions. She told them that was all she needed, she was finishing her fall semester at school. It was $425. NOBODY bothered to explain that unless she cancelled it would automatically renew the next month. Her last session was Dec 8, it is now Dec 29 and they have taken another $425 out of my account. There was no email warning of upcoming renewal or anything. I called to cancel & get a refund. She told me she would put a request/review in but they have a no refund policy. I feel that is a VERY deceptive way to handle business, not to bother explaining there is an automatic renewal or sending an email to remind you of upcoming renewal. I feel its just an underhanded way to take peoples money!

  

  Business Response

  Date: 01/03/2025

  Varsity is in receipt of the Complaint filed by ****** ********. Varsity contacted Ms. ********** daughter, *******, who is the owner of the account, and ultimately chose to provide a resolution that was satisfactory to the McLaurins. Accordingly, it is Varsitys understanding that the matter has been resolved amicably. Varsity is proud to be an affiliate of the BBB and values the relationship. If you have any questions or comments, or would like to further discuss, please feel welcome to contact us.

  Customer Answer

  Date: 01/03/2025

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the business' response regarding complaint ID ******** and am satisfied with this resolution. 
   
  Sincerely,
  
  ****** ********

• Initial Complaint

  Date:12/26/2024

  Type:Service or Repair Issues
  Status:

  ResolvedMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I signed up for varsity tutors to help me with a class that I had fallen behind on because I was seeking medical treatment. I was assigned an amazing tutor, who explained the material very clearly. In addition, their AI feature was also helpful. Regardless, I had to take an incomplete in my class because I was too far behind to finish everything. My teacher and I agreed that I would Finish everything up by February 13, 2025. My father and I are struggling with finances, but he dished out the money for two months to help me. We were under the impression that if we didn't use all our hours for one month we would still have them left over to use the next month and we just wouldn't get more unless we paid for more by renewing our subscription. I plan to take Christmas week off and resume tutoring the first week of January, and get as much studying in before the new semester started so I didn't have all of the studying build up on me when I'm starting new classes. We didn't have money to continue in December, so dad called to cancel any renewal of subscription. We then found out on Christmas Eve that if we don't renew our subscription then the hours we already paid for don't carry over and we lose them. I had 2 1/2 hours left. Finding out on Christmas Eve is not enough time to use them up without ruining Christmas plans. This detail was not made clear to us when we signed up.We both feel deceived by the company. We paid for that time, we should not lose what we paid for because we can't afford to add more. Also, not explaining that detail at the beginning seems like false advertising.

  

  Business Response

  Date: 01/02/2025

  Varsity is in receipt of the Complaint filed by Kassonsdra **** Although Varsitys attempts to make contact with Ms. *** in response to the Complaint have gone unanswered, Varsity has effectuated what it believes to be an amicable resolution, and remains willing to discuss the Complaint with ****** should she wish to do so. Ms. *** may contact Varsity's customer experience manager at the phone number that was provided to her in the email dated December 26, 2024, to further discuss her concerns. Varsity is proud to be an affiliate of the BBB and values the relationship. If you have any questions or comments, or would like to further discuss, please feel welcome to contact us. 

  Customer Answer

  Date: 01/10/2025

  The issue has been satisfactorily resolved. 

• Initial Complaint

  Date:12/19/2024

  Type:Product Issues
  Status:

  ResolvedMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I have been using Varsity Tutors for my semester while I have been taking calculus at university. My term has ended and I have been trying to cancel my membership. On my login there is no where to cancel membership, they have no email, I have tried numerous times to cancel over phone but have not been able to get through to anyone. I also have left messages and have not had a return call. Payment went through on Dec 19. My father during his working hours finally got through on Dec 19 also to cancel membership. They will not refund the amount even though we tried numerous time to cancel. They make it very hard to get a hold of anyone to cancel a membership.

  Customer Answer

  Date: 12/24/2024

  It has been settled thank you

• Initial Complaint

  Date:12/17/2024

  Type:Billing Issues
  Status:

  ResolvedMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I signed up for a membership for $369/mo. This would provide not only four tutoring hours per month, but also, and more importantly, on-demand tutoring when my kids needed help. We had multiple attempts with tutors who did not connect. Sometimes we would log in, and the tutor would not be there. Many times, Varsity Tutors simply would not provide a tutor. Out of the hundreds of tutoring companies available, we chose Varsity Tutors specifically because they had an on-demand service. In reality, they do NOT have this service. I tried to cancel our membership, but they tell you this cannot be done online through your account - you must call.When I called them last spring to cancel because we hadn't been able to use it for months, they said i could not have a refund. However, they said they would credit one month of tutoring hours going forward.I thought the membership would cancel after that month; after all, I had called to ********* did not. I discovered last month that they have continued to take $369 out of my bank account every month since I made that call to cancel.I called again to cancel. Their response was textbook repeat of the first time. They started by saying they can't do a refund. When I expressed frustration at this, they moved on to step 2, which was again, to offer me one month of tutoring hours going forward. I said absolutely not. I explained again, clearly, that I felt their service was terrible, in fact a scam because they did NOT provide the tutoring they claimed to provide, and I want nothing to do with this company. I told them I would like a refund for all those months since I first called to cancel (10 months ago) and I want my membership cancelled. He again tried to get me to stay on, saying I would lose those four hours. I told him he didn't seem to understand, their service had been awful and I don't want it. He agreed to cancel it.Nothing has changed. They have again deducted $369 from my account. They are stealing from me!

  

  Business Response

  Date: 12/23/2024

  Varsity is in receipt of the Complaint filed by ********* *******. Although Varsitys attempts to make contact with Ms. ******* in response to the Complaint have gone unanswered, Varsity has effectuated what it believes to be an amicable resolution, and remains willing to discuss the Complaint with Ms. ******* should she  wish to do so. Ms. ******* may contact Varsity's customer experience manager at the phone number that was provided to her in the email dated Wednesday, December 18, 2024, to further discuss her concerns. Varsity is proud to be an affiliate of the BBB and values the relationship. If you have any questions or comments, or would like to further discuss, please feel welcome to contact us. 
  
  
  

  Customer Answer

  Date: 12/24/2024

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the business' response regarding complaint ID ******** and am satisfied with this resolution, which involved VT refunding the 12 months of payment I did not authorize.  Please note that the reason I did not reply to their email on 12/18 was because the refund had not yet appeared in my bank; I did not trust that it would. In my previous experiences with this company, I learned that I could not trust them to follow through on what they said they would do. 
  
   
  Sincerely,
  
  ********* *******

• Initial Complaint

  Date:12/17/2024

  Type:Billing Issues
  Status:

  ResolvedMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  An account was created on November 23rd, under the belief that I was paying for 8 hours of tutoring to use between then and my final exam. I was charged full price for 30 days starting Nov 27th 2023 - scheduled my first session that week for December. Only used 3 sessions of the total 8 hours paid for in November 27th 2023. On Dec 23rd I was led to believe Id paused/cancelled my account, something reinforced by the heading of the next email I received reading Continue your membership for just $9.99/month, which is usually what most services send you when youve cancelled a subscription. Unbeknownst to myself (since the charges were going to my fathers credit card), the account was continuously charged for 8 hours a month all the way to December, when the problem was noticed and the subscription cancelled again. The hours expire at the end of each month, and requests for refunds have been denied. Even for this December, where we caught the issue and put in a request for cancelling and a refund, Varsity tutors only offered to extend those hours or to have someone else in the family use the remaining ones as they cannot be *********** feels as though the subscription model this business operates on is almost deliberately predatory to those who were unaware they had a continued subscription. Receiving a monthly set of hours that expire if not used and cannot be refunded feels like its set up in a way that ensures the most money can be wrung out from anyone who was under the impression that theyd cancelled their subscription.

  

  Business Response

  Date: 12/23/2024

  Varsity is in receipt of the Complaint filed by ******** *****. Varsity contacted Mr. ***** upon its receipt of the Complaint and ultimately chose to provide a resolution that was satisfactory to him. Accordingly, it is Varsitys understanding that the matter has been resolved amicably. Varsity is proud to be an affiliate of the BBB and values the relationship. If you have any questions or comments, or would like to further discuss, please feel welcome to contact us. 
  
  

  Customer Answer

  Date: 12/24/2024

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the business' response regarding complaint ID ******** and am satisfied with this resolution. 
   
  Sincerely,
  
  ******** *****

• Initial Complaint

  Date:12/13/2024

  Type:Billing Issues
  Status:

  ResolvedMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I signed up for tutoring services back in February 2023 over the phone. I then added another month in March 2023. The phone *** asked me if I wanted to pay month to month or go on a subscription. I told the *** I wanted to go 1 month at a time to see if I would continue with tutoring. I called in March 2023 to say I wanted to cancel my tutoring services and did not want to pay for another month. I never signed up for any type of membership program or auto-payments. I just discovered today that Varsity Tutors has been charging me $579 every month since April 2023 for nothing. I never received any tutoring services past February and March of 2023. I want a full refund of $12,159 for the 21 months of Varsity Tutors charged my credit card without my knowledge or permission.

  

  Business Response

  Date: 01/02/2025

  Varsity is in receipt of the Complaint filed by ****** ******. Varsity contacted Mr. ****** upon its receipt of the Complaint and ultimately chose to provide a resolution that was satisfactory to him. Accordingly, it is Varsitys understanding that the matter has been resolved amicably. Varsity is proud to be an affiliate of the BBB and values the relationship. If you have any questions or comments, or would like to further discuss, please feel welcome to contact us.

  Customer Answer

  Date: 01/04/2025

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the business' response regarding complaint ID ******** and am satisfied with this resolution. 
   
  Sincerely,
  
  ****** ******

• Initial Complaint

  Date:12/12/2024

  Type:Service or Repair Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  So i signed up with this company the first week of December. I requested i have a tutor for math/reading on Wednesdays and Fridays for foreign language. At first everything went pretty smoothly except the time slots I requested. The foreign language tutor was awesome and very accommodating. I explained that the app wouldn't allow me to change the time , which she ended up changing it for me. The reading and math tutor originally agreed to the slot time then backed out because we were in a different time zone. I've called this organization 4 times and explained I needed a new tutor and explained that I can only do a specific day and time. Each time they apologized said someone would get ahold of me. So they then changed the time for my foreign language class to a different day and time that I couldn't have done. Then they offered me another tutor for the math and reading at again a time I stated many times I couldn't do. I called today and requested a refund. This has been an ongoing awful situation, and someone who doesn't have much time to begin with has to keep calling and stating the same thing. This company isn't for us !!

  

  Business Response

  Date: 12/27/2024

  Varsity is in receipt of the Complaint filed by ****** *******. Although Varsitys attempts to make contact with Ms. ******* in response to the Complaint have gone unanswered, Varsity has effectuated what it believes to be an amicable resolution, and remains willing to discuss the Complaint with Ms. ******* should she wish to do so. Ms. ******* may contact Varsity's customer experience manager at the phone number that was provided to her in the email dated December 13, 2024, to further discuss her concerns should she have any. Varsity is proud to be an affiliate of the BBB and values the relationship. If you have any questions or comments, or would like to further discuss, please feel welcome to contact us.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:12/11/2024

  Type:Billing Issues
  Status:

  ResolvedMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I contacted Varsity Tutors in May of this year for tutoring services for my son's final exams. I told them upfront I wanted services to be paused at the end of June for the summer months to likely resume in September, depending on his timetable. I was told that this would not be a problem. Varsity Tutors website states "No long term commitment" and "Cancel Anytime". I cancelled services personally with ******* tutor and emailed Varsity Tutors directly with my request. I had signed up for tutoring services and had no idea I had signed up for a subscription.Not only did they not honour my request, they billed for the month they said they would pause and continued to bill for four months after this, even though I received no services from them at all. I did not recieve any invoices from them so I did not know I was being charged. When I found out in early December that they had been charging me for no services for several months, they refunded two months ($720) and offered credits for the rest that I do not want. Varsity Tutors employs very deceptive tactics in not informing clients about the subscription commitment, which is opposite of their advertising that clients can cancel anytime. Apparently they require clients to call can cancel, saying they will pause for one month as a courtesy, but do not honour this pause and then continue to bill, without any sign to the client that they are being billed, such as an invoice. Reading several complaints, it seems this is a common occurence which they have not rectified, likely because they are making a good profit with this 'mistake'. People do not have time to spend on hold, only to argue with a customer service *** to cancel a commitment they did not know they were signing up for. I am looking for a refund for the 3 months that I received no services that are still outstanding $1080.

  

  Business Response

  Date: 12/17/2024

  Varsity is in receipt of the Complaint filed by ****** *********. Although Varsitys attempt to make contact with Ms. ********* in response to the Complaint has gone unanswered, Varsity has effectuated what it believes to be an amicable resolution, and remains willing to discuss the Complaint with Ms. ********************* she wish to do so. Ms. ********* may contact Varsity's customer experience manager at the phone number that was provided to her in the email dated December 16, 2024, to further discuss her concerns. Varsity is proud to be an affiliate of the BBB and values the relationship. If you have any questions or comments, or would like to further discuss, please feel welcome to contact us. 

  Customer Answer

  Date: 12/18/2024

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the business' response regarding complaint ID ******** and am satisfied with this resolution. 
   
  Sincerely,
  
  ****** *********

• Initial Complaint

  Date:12/05/2024

  Type:Order Issues
  Status:

  ResolvedMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  We found Varsity Tutors to be unreliable in preparing my 11 year-old daughter for the ***** On 11/14, they made big claims on the front end about the quality of their SSAT tutors and their ability to match a tutor with my daughter's availability in the evenings on ****** time. They then assigned us to a tutor who had a nice personality, but who was unreliable. The tutor was a no-show twice without notice for our 2-hour sessions, which was very frustrating and stressful for my 11-year old who waited online to no avail. The tutor also spent too much time seemingly uncertain about what to cover. She was not adept at assessing the particular SSAT areas my daughter needed help with. After the first no-show on 11/25, we asked for another tutor, but the process of getting Varsity Tutors to assign her a new tutor and to set up a tutoring session took too long and we felt like we had no choice but to stick with the original tutor. After the second time our tutor was a no-show for a 2-hour session on 12/2, we gave up and asked for a partial refund on 12/4. Varsity Tutors refused to refund any of my money. Thanks to Varsity Tutors, my 11 year-old daughter is not properly prepared for the 12/7 SSAT test, is more stressed out than ever about taking the exam, and probably won't score high enough to be admitted to the schools to which we applied. Using Varsity Tutors and dealing with their poor customer service was a very bad experience for us.

  

  Business Response

  Date: 12/11/2024

  Varsity is in receipt of the Complaint filed by ****** ******. Varsity contacted Mr. ****** upon its receipt of the Complaint and ultimately chose to provide a resolution that was satisfactory to him. Accordingly, it is Varsitys understanding that the matter has been resolved amicably. Varsity is proud to be an affiliate of the BBB and values the relationship. If you have any questions or comments, or would like to further discuss, please feel welcome to contact us.

  Customer Answer

  Date: 12/12/2024

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the business' response regarding complaint ID ******** and am satisfied with this resolution. 
   
  Sincerely,
  
  ****** ******