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:12/06/2023

  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.

  10/30/23 – Contacted Varsity Tutors to obtain one month of tutoring (8 hour package) for my daughter who had college exams in November 2023. Spoke to sales rep named ****, told her very clearly that I needed only one month of tutoring, until the end of November 2023. She very clearly stated that it was fine, and that the charge for 8 hours would be $649, which I paid on October 30 with **** (not disputing this charge). My daughter was able to schedule only 6 hours of tutoring with her assigned tutor, because the tutor was not available at any other times.
  11/30/23 – I noticed that I had another $649 charge on this day from Varsity Tutors on 11/30/23. I called Varsity Tutors on 12/4/23, the next business day after I saw the charge, to correct the mistake. The rep told me that I had been signed up for a recurring membership and that I would be charged yet another time on 12/30/23 because you need to cancel 30 days in advance. ****, the rep that I signed up with, never mentioned any kind of recurring membership nor any 30-day cancellation. It would have been impossible to provide 30 day cancellation in any case, since I only signed up for what I was told was a 1-month package of 8 hours of tutoring. I never received any kind of email confirmation, receipt, or notice that there was a “membership” or recurring billing. This is an unfair and deceptive sales practice. The rep told me they would cancel my service and escalate my refund request for the 11/30/23 charge, and said that I would receive a call within 24-48 hours.
  12/6/23 – I did not receive a call within 48 hours, so I called Varsity Tutors again. The rep named ******* heard the situation, apologized, and said she would cancel the service and put in a request for a refund.
  12/6/23 (a few hours later) – I received an email from the escalation department saying that I was not eligible for a refund of the 11/30/23 charge of $649. I then called again and spoke to a rep named *****, who said he would escalate the request again. I told him I planned to contest the charge and file a BBB (Better Business Bureau) complaint as well as a complaint with the Illinois Attorney General for unfair and deceptive sales practices.

  

  Business Response

  Date: 12/12/2023

  Varsity is in receipt of the Complaint filed by **** *******. Mr. ******* concerns regarding his experience on Varsity’s platform, and the related request for a resolution, were already under review at the time the Complaint was received, and Varsity has provided what it believes to be an amicable resolution. 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 do not hesitate to contact me. 

• Initial Complaint

  Date:12/06/2023

  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 hired Varsity Tutors in August of 2023. The associate I worked with over the phone offered a trial of 4 tutoring hours for the month of end of August till end of September. She assured me that it was a one-time fee of $399 since I am just doing a trial with the tutor. After I finished the 4 hours I decided to not go forward with Varsity Tutors as I was unhappy with my tutor and he was encouraging me to go independently with him for future tutoring. In my account settings it says my "Membership Term: August 2023 - September 2023" so with that too I was still under the impression I would only get billed 4 hours of that 1 month trial I agreed to. Now I see I was billed for 3 months more which means I was billed $1200.00 more and I did not agree to that. I was completely unaware I was even being billed the 12 hours because I was assured that I was only given 4 hours of tutoring and in my account it says only 1 month membership term. And when I check my unused available hours shown in my account it only shows I have 4 hours available to use rather than the 12 unused but billed hours. So basically they have willingly billed me for 12 hours but are only giving me 4 hours to actually use of that 12.

  

  Business Response

  Date: 12/12/2023

  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 her. 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 do not hesitate to contact me. 

  Customer Answer

  Date: 12/12/2023

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.
  
  Thank you

• Initial Complaint

  Date:12/06/2023

  Type:Delivery 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.

  Date of transaction 12/05/23
  I paid for 10 hours of 1-on-1 tutoring sessions in October 2023. I was awarded another month for free after the tutor did not show up for multiple sessions. I quit using the services at the end of October of 2023 and am now getting charged $579 for unwanted services. I have called multiple times to be refunded my money and have not received my refund.

  

  Business Response

  Date: 12/12/2023

  Varsity is in receipt of the Complaint filed by **** *****. Although Varsity’s attempts to make contact with Mr. ***** 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 Mr. ***** should he wish to do so. 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 do not hesitate to contact me. 

• Initial Complaint

  Date:12/05/2023

  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 was charged at the end of the month, around the 27th for the months of August, September, October and November. Multiple occasions occurred where the tutors who were employees of Varsity Tutors were completely unresponsive even after multiple attempts. I was placed with five separate tutors. The sessions I was able to log with one or two of them were a complete waste of time as the tutors were completely unqualified to teach CPA content. I entered ********** class and, after an hour, had to leave as the "tutor" claimed to be a CPA and yet mispronounced several common knowledge "day one" accounting terms like Sarbanes Oxley and the **** model. The tutor multiple times referred to them as the Sirbones **** Act and the ****** model of internal controls. Upon attempting to look up the tutor who claimed to be a CPA, a licensed individual, I came to discover that this individual was not a licensed CPA what-so-ever. It seems that any person can register to be a tutor with Varsity Tutors without any real vetting process and at an exorbitant cost to the consumer each month.

  

  Business Response

  Date: 12/12/2023

  Varsity is in receipt of the Complaint filed by ***************************. ************************** concerns regarding his experience on Varsitys platform, and the related request for a resolution, were already under review at the time the Complaint was received, and Varsity has provided what it believes to be an amicable resolution. 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 do not hesitate to contact me. 

  Customer Answer

  Date: 12/12/2023

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.
  
  Sincerely,
  
  ***************************

• Initial Complaint

  Date:12/04/2023

  Type:Sales and Advertising 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.

  I signed up for tutoring services with this company so my daughter could receive tutoring to prepare for a standardized assessment. Obviously there is a date that the assessment is administered so tutoring services after the test date are absolutely pointless and useless. For the month of November 12 to December 12 I paid for 8 hours of tutoring. Only 2 hours of 8 hours were provided. The tutor canceled one 2 hour session for which she did not offer an opportunity to reschedule despite my direct communication to do so. An additional 2 hour session she did not show up for because in her words ‘I thought the week prior was supposed to be our last session’ despite the fact that I paid for services for another 3 weeks and I had a balance of 6 hours. The company has refused to refund my money-I paid for 8 hours and only 2 hours were provided during this timeframe. I will pay for the 2 hours of services provided but will not pay for an additional 6 hours of services that have not been provided

  

  Business Response

  Date: 12/12/2023

  Varsity is in receipt of the Complaint filed by **** *****. Varsity contacted Ms. ***** upon its receipt of the Complaint and ultimately chose to provide a resolution that was satisfactory to her. Accordingly, it is Varsity’s 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 do not hesitate to contact me. 

• Initial Complaint

  Date:12/04/2023

  Type:Customer Service 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.

  Dates of transaction were 9/26/23, 10/26/23, and 11/26/23.
  
  The amount charged was $489.00 each time for a total of $1,467.00.
  
  Varsity tutors was supposed to tutor my son.
  
  Service was paused after 2022-2023 academic year. I was given to understand I could restart the service at any time. I took no action and received no communication from Varsity tutors, yet I find my credit card was charged for the last three months. We have not used this service at all since June 2023.
  
  I called them up. They offered only to give me a credit for more tutoring hours. This is useless because my son no longer wants to use the service. This is also why I never called back to restart the service.
  
  There is no account number, per se. The service is associated with the name of my son, Taal *********, and his email, taal*********@gmail.com.
  
  The issue does not involve advertising.

  

  Business Response

  Date: 12/21/2023

  Varsity is in receipt of the Complaint filed by *********, ******. Mr. *********'s concerns regarding their experience on Varsity’s platform, and the related request for a resolution, were already under review at the time the Complaint was received, and Varsity has provided what it believes to be an amicable resolution. 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 do not hesitate to contact me. 

  Customer Answer

  Date: 12/22/2023

  Complaint: ********
  
  
  
  I am rejecting this response because: to compensate me for charging me for several months for a service I DON'T USE, they offered me more of the same service I DON'T USE, rather than a refund.
  
  
  
  Sincerely,
  
  
  
  ****** *********

• Initial Complaint

  Date:12/04/2023

  Type:Product 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.

  I paid for a GED Prep class and tutoring online with Varsity Tutors on Friday 12/1. I called back on Saturday 12/2 to request a refund after discovering the course offering was only available to begin on Friday 12/1. The next available class is in January. I cannot participate in either of these session dates. Available dates for the class were not discussed over the phone before my purchase. I was told the following day that I could not receive a refund but must accept an alternative date. The tutoring services are pointless without the classes associated with them. I would like a full refund.

  

  Business Response

  Date: 12/21/2023

  Varsity is in receipt of the Complaint filed by ******* ********. Ms. ********'s concerns regarding her experience on Varsity’s platform, and the related request for a resolution, were already under review at the time the Complaint was received, and Varsity has provided what it believes to be an amicable resolution. 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 do not hesitate to contact us. 

• Initial Complaint

  Date:12/02/2023

  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.

  Dear BBB,
  I signed up with Varsity tutors for specific tutoring for precalculus on Aug 3, 2023 for 8 hours of tutoring in preparation for a precalculus tutoring testing for my son that was to take place the end of August. I was very specific with the company representative that I only wanted tutoring for August 2023 and would not require any further tutoring after this month. My app states membership term is Aug 2023-Sep 2023 not autorenewing. I was assured I would only be billed for the month of tutoring at a rate of $521.10. We were happy with the month of August. I did not receive anymore communication with the company. I noticed in November I was being billed monthly charges of 521.10 by Varsity tutors. We did not access any services and I was unaware of this monthly charge. I promptly called the company Nov 14, 2023 and was informed that the company would cancel this subscription and send an internal memo requesting refund for September-November 2023 as I one did not know I was being billed for a service not provided or used. The refund of 1563.30 was not refunded nor did I receive anymore communication from the company. Today Dec.2 2023 I called the company again requesting a refund and the telephone representative stated she could see notes stating the request was not granted. She stated she would escalate a request for refund. This company is committing fraud billing people for services after detailed discussion about the services being needed for only 1 month time. As a parent this is disturbing to sign up for limited tutoring and be billed continuously and indefinitely with no future notices or communications to make one aware of such billing. I was not informed that I must cancel the tutoring by calling or writing before 30 days. I was ASSURED repeatedly that I would have tutoring only for the month of August for a specified amount of hours.

  

  Business Response

  Date: 12/21/2023

  Varsity is in receipt of the Complaint filed by ****** ********. Ms. ********** concerns regarding her experience on Varsity’s platform, and the related request for a resolution, were already under review at the time the Complaint was received, and Varsity has provided what it believes to be an amicable resolution. 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 do not hesitate to contact me. 

  Customer Answer

  Date: 12/30/2023

  The complaint was resolved with a refund. I am satisfied with the resolution.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:12/02/2023

  Type:Product 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.

  The company has been billing me wrong amount every month for the last four months. I call and complain to apply the right amount. Last month they were unable to issue a refund for unknown reason so they offered me four hours as free to compensate this issue. Now they charged me for those four hour and the call support is denying my refund. I have not used those hours and they were supposed to be for free. They charged me $369 for non used and what is supposed to be free hours.

  

  Business Response

  Date: 12/21/2023

  Varsity is in receipt of the Complaint filed by ****** *****. Ms. *****'s concerns regarding her experience on Varsity’s platform, and the related request for a resolution, were already under review at the time the Complaint was received, and Varsity has provided what it believes to be an amicable resolution. 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 do not hesitate to contact me. 

• Initial Complaint

  Date:12/01/2023

  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.

  On 07/21/2023, we started a 3 month membership plan from Varsity Tutors to be billed $589 on 7/21/2023, 8/21/2023, and 9/21/2023 . I very carefully read the contract paying special attention to the cancellation steps. Numerous calls in August and a call in September where we requested cancellation. Their customer service does in fact admit that the September call was to cancel and that it was requested.
  
  The company claims that while they did get the request to cancel, they offered a free month of tutoring which in their minds meant that we would call back and thus they did not cancel per our request. This was done so that they could avoid actual cancellation (per the contract) and forced us to call again and again to get the cancellation to stick. In no place in the contract do it state that I must call again and again to get a cancellation when they don't accept it.
  
  we verbally confirmed in that call that the membership was cancelled and the customer service person did state clearly that "yes" it had.
  
  On 11/21/2023, we were charged for an additional $589 which when brought to their attention, was claimed to be non-refundable. The customer service department did acknowledge that the cancellation was requested properly but followed up by stating that because they offered a free month, they never cancelled the contract and because we had not called back,
  
  This company engages in high-pressure sales tactics to try to hide and obfuscate the cancellation process. A simple perusal of the BBB complaints section show numerous other clients with a very similar situation indicating that this company acts in this manner as a matter of practice and this was not simply a single incident. Consumers should be aware of this before they attempt to engage their services.
  
  We require the $589 refunded that was charged on 11/21/2023 and for the account to be completely closed and deleted.

  

  Business Response

  Date: 12/12/2023

  Varsity is in receipt of the Complaint filed by ******* ********-*****. Although Varsity’s attempts to make contact with Mr. ********-***** 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 Mr. ********-***** should he wish to do so. 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 do not hesitate to contact me.