Complaints

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• Initial Complaint

  Date:03/28/2023

  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.

  My 16 year old daughter had a driving lesson with John's driving school on Saturday March 4th 2023 at 1:30 PM, the instructor was ******* ****** *******. The instructor made my daughter feel very unsafe. **** had my daughter pull over by the river which was a low traffic area and asked her questions about the river and her personal life. His car was messy and he kept reaching in the backseat for "something"? My daughter was scared to death and hysterical when she came home from the lesson. Why would the instructor have her pull over by the river? What does that have to do with driving? There should never be a reason why any instructor let alone an older male instructor would have a 16 year girl pull over by the river. There is no reason to ask her personal questions about where her parents work and where her siblings are? He made her feel extremely uncomfortable. There was also no driving instruction provided, no explanation on how to use the mirror or how to yield even though he did yell at her for not yielding correctly. It is distracting to a seasoned driver to have someone reaching in the backseat while they are driving let alone a brand new driver. After her lesson, I immediately sent an email to John's to cancel my remaining appointments and request a refund. ******* was understanding and said my money would be refunded less the cost of the online driving course. When I checked my bank, I was not refunded for the initial lesson. I sent John's an email asking why I was not refunded for the lesson after the horrible and unsafe experience my daughter had and I was patronized by ******* who said instructors use different techniques with students. For the life of me, I cannot understand what making my daughter pull over by the river when she is a 16 year old girl alone in an unfamiliar area with a grown man has to do with driving. ******* said the owner would call me which never happened.

  Business Response

  Date: 05/08/2023

  Good afternoon. My name is ******** ** ** ******, Operations Manager for the John’s Family of Companies, including John’s Driving School. I am writing in regards to Complaint ID ********; ***** *****.
  
      ***** ***** was refunded $57.50 accurately for the refundable services not rendered. I have provided a breakdown below.
  
     01/30/2023:
        o    ***** ***** called and registered ****** ****** ***** for the New Driver’s Package, the package total is $733.00 and consists of consisting of (3) 2 Hr Behind-the-Wheel Driving Lessons @ $199.00 each, (1) 30 Hr Online Driver’s Education Theory Course @ $37.00, and (1) PA Driver's License Exam @ $99.00.
        o    ***** ***** made a 50% down payment of $366.50 via credit card leaving a remaining balance due of $366.50, with the 2nd installment of 50% or $366.50 due on or before Behind-the-Wheel Lesson #2 as per JDS Policy/Terms and Conditions regarding Payment Plans.
  
  03/06/2023:
        o    ***** ***** called requesting to cancel the remaining lessons and driver’s license exam.
        o    The 2 scheduled Lessons (03/29/2023 and 04/25/2023) and the Driver’s License Exam (05/02/2023) were cancelled and an account adjustment of -$424.00 was processed for the removal of (2) 2 Hr Behind-the-Wheel Lessons and (1) PA Driver’s License Exam
              The account adjustment calculated for services provided and non-refundable services:
                    Service Provided and Completed: (1) 2 Hr Behind-the-Wheel Lesson on 03/04/2023 @ $210.00 (which is the a’ la carte price of the single service/lesson).
                    Non-Refundable Service: (1) 30 Hr Online Driver’s Education Course as access was granted on 01/30/2023 @ $99.00 (which is the a’ la carte price of the single service/theory)
        o    ***** ***** was issued an accurate refund of $57.50
              Total original payment $366.50 less the (1) 2 Hr Behind-the-Wheel Lesson on 03/04/2023 @ $210.00 and the (1) 30 Hr Online Driver’s Education Course as access was granted on 01/30/2023 @ $99.00 = $57.50
  
        Regarding ***** *****’s other concerns, we are a PDE Certified Private Driver Training School and all of our Instructors are PDE Certified. ******* ****** ******* is a Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) Certified Instructor with current background check including a clear PA State Police Background, clear Child Abuse Clearance, and a clear Driver’s License History. Our Instructors attend several Professional Development Training Sessions per year as continuing education and are provided with various methods on not only how to teach/train students the fundamentals of defensive driving but also enable students to become mature, safe, experienced drivers.
        Driver’s Education is a serious business and the safety of not only the Student(s)/New Driver(s) and our Instructor(s) but also, other Driver’s on the road. Lesson #1 is curriculum is Basic Skills and is administered in low traffic areas. Every Student/New Driver starts with a different driving history, experience, and skill level, including nervousness/anxiety. Our Instructors will use every teaching tool available to them to assist them to provide Driver’s Education, including small talk regarding who the student is and their experience and concerns regarding driving. Additionally with safety being the key factor with Behind-the-Wheel Driver’s Education there are instances when a student/new driver reacts to a situation while behind-the-wheel which could potentially cause an accident. Driver’s Education Instructors not only safely avert accidents but review each occurrence in detail and provide additional methods/feedback to assist each student with the progression of their Driver’s Education.
  
       I, personally, spoke with ***** ***** regarding her concerns and expressed all of the above information. We were never given the chance to assign another Instructor as a professional courtesy, additionally she repeatedly advised she did not want anyone to call her back as she didn’t want to discuss it further.
  
     If you need anything else please advise.
  
  Thank you

  Customer Answer

  Date: 05/16/2023

  [To assist us in bringing this matter to a close, you must give us a reason why you are rejecting the response. If no reason is received your complaint will be closed as Answered]
  
   Complaint: ********
  
  I am rejecting this response because:
  My concerns were never addressed, what does having a 16 year old girl pull over by the river in a low traffic area asking her questions about the river and her family have to do with driving? What skill was she being taught besides trusting her instincts that it was highly inappropriate. Now you are saying you are not refunding my money for the lesson you actually charged me more for the one lesson because you are considering it an Al a  carte lesson? I said I didn’t want the owner to call me because I was tired of being talked down to and patronized by ******* over what happened to my daughter. Your instructor did not provide a safe and secure environment for my daughter… ask anyone with a daughter if it was appropriate for a grown man to take a 16 year old to the river and have her pull over. Nothing promoted on your web site for a basic lesson was provided. No instruction, no defensive driving skills to provide her with knowledge and confidence ( this is a direct quote from their website). Just because someone has a background check and clearances doesn’t make it appropriate and had absolutely nothing to do with driving. 
  

  Regards,
  
  *********************