Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2015/08/13) */
We are sorry to hear that the customer was dissatisfied with the services of AuPairCare. We always strive to provide the best possible services and we would like to respond to the concerns stated.
We take our obligation to carefully screen...
and prepare au pairs very seriously and make every effort to ensure that every au pair sponsored by AuPairCare is qualified and prepared for the program. All families are required to review all information provided and interview potential candidates in English a minimum of two times via phone (traditional phone or Skype) prior to requesting a match. The customer confirmed this to be the case upon matching with each au pair.
Unfortunately, we are unable to make an exception as requested. We thank the family for their program participation and wish them the best in their future childcare endeavors.
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (3000, 7, 2015/08/14) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
Au Pair Care prominently markets its Au Pairs as "safe and reliable." Reliability is one of their primary selling points to customers, but in our experience their services were anything but reliable. We matched with two separate au pairs who quit within two months, neither of which cited problems with our family or any failure on our part to follow the program rules. We held up our side of the bargain, the au pairs did not, and Au Pair Care wants to punish us for their failure to provide "reliable" care as promised.
According to federal regulations for the au pair program, it is clearly the responsibility of the agency to screen candidates and ensure that they are proficient in English. However, Au Pair Care's response to our compliant demonstrates that they are in effect offloading this responsibility to families. I have explained how we learned from our second au pair that she was coached by the local agency to fake her way through an interview. It is concerning that Au Pair Care is more interested in withholding money from families who were failed by their program, than they are in fixing the problems in their company and dealing with noncompliance by their contractor agencies.
I recently learned that our second au pair never in fact left the country, like she was required to do (within two weeks under her visa rules) when she decided to break her match with us without requesting a rematch. Instead, she is working illegally at a restaurant. When I contacted the Area Director and Regional Director about this situation a week ago, and asked what they were doing to follow up and ensure that the immigration rules were being followed, I received no response. I should not have been surprised, given that they allowed our first au pair to rematch, when she too expressed a desire to secure non au pair work, which is not permitted under her visa, and would put any family matching with her at risk of being abandoned by this young woman who was clearly not committed to the program. It appears that Au Pair Care, at least with au pairs from this country, is facilitating duplicitous and illegal immigration. The victims in this are the families who pay thousands of dollars in program fees upfront, are given a selection of poorly screened au pairs to choose from, au pairs who intend to come to this country under the program and then abandon the families that hosted them.
As a result of the poor service of Au Pair Care, we suffered eight weeks of childcare gaps, which caused us significant stress, financial loss, and work challenges. We received no support from Au Pair Care during these gaps. Rather than trying to help us after two of their Au Pairs turned out to be unsuited for the program, and clearly NOT "reliable," they chose to punish us by withholding 30% of our upfront program fees and making us start a new program year in order to match with a third au pair in less than six months. At that point we decided to leave and seek other childcare options that we could rely on. Au Pair Care failed us as customers, and should provide us with a full refund of program fees for our unused months.
Final Business Response /* (4000, 9, 2015/08/26) */
It is unfortunate to learn that the customer continues to be dissatisfied with her experience. We understand her frustration with her au pair's dishonesty and the emotional and financial impact it had on her family. However, we would like to assure the customer that AuPairCare has inserted itself as much as possible with regards to her remaining within the U.S. illegally. It is our responsibility to report to the Department of State her last known whereabouts and to terminate her within SEVIS, the government database, once it has been brought to our attention. However beyond this we must defer to the Department of State.
With regards to AuPairCare's refund policy, the terms and conditions are provided to each customer to review and accept or not accept before the customer requests a match and submits payment details for the selected au pair. Section 40 of the Agreement provides as follows:
40. HOST IS HEREBY ADVISED AND ACKNOWLEDGES AND AGREES THAT BECAUSE THE MAJORITY OF AUPAIRCARE'S OPERATION COSTS ARE INCURRED IN THE PROCESS OF RECRUITMENT, INTERVIEWING, ORIENTATION, AND PLACEMENT OF AU PAIRS, AUPAIRCARE'S REFUND POLICY IS LIMITED TO NO MORE THAN $450 PER MONTH FOR EACH REMAINING MONTH UNUSED SERVICE TIME, REGARDLESS OF THE LENGTH OF THE AU PAIR(S)' STAY.
The request made by the customer is beyond our contractual obligation as agreed to by the customer in our Host Family Agreement.
Final Consumer Response /* (4200, 11, 2015/08/27) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
As a program sponsor, AuPair Care failed to fulfill its obligations because it failed to produce outcomes in accordance with the US Federal Regulations governing the au pair program, namely, Title 22, Chapter I, Subchapter G, Part 62. Particularly, §62.31(d) clearly states, ''sponsors shall 'ensure' that all participants in a designated au pair exchange program are proficient in spoken English.''
This Federal Regulation overrules any contractual terms because the parties understand that the sponsor will operate within the rules of set by the Federal regulations. Any excuse based on the process of ensuring proficiency is not acceptable. The outcomes are not consistent with the requirements set by the Federal Regulation.
It also turns out that by being flexible on the Federal Requirements, Au Pair Care makes itself susceptible to exploitation by those who want to come to the US, even without speaking the language, for the main purpose of staying here illegally.
Even after numerous complaints and repeated inquiries, the insensitivity and irresponsibility shown by this business is regrettable. The harm created goes beyond their customers and it impacts the society.
Please provide us with a clear action plan about how you will compensate these damages.
Sincerely
Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2015/11/06) */
We are sorry to hear that the customer was dissatisfied with the services of AuPairCare. We always strive to provide the best possible services and we would like to respond to the concerns stated.
The customer has been with AuPairCare since...
February 2013 and had one Area Director until January 2015. It is unfortunate that they have had to experience multiple staff changes until recently. They now have a wonderful staff support who is excited about assisting them throughout the remainder of their program.
The customer has expressed interest in extending their program with the current au pair; however, AuPairCare has been unsuccessful in receiving a response to its attempts resolving the outstanding complaints. We will continue to work with the customer to reach an amicable agreement.
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (2000, 7, 2015/11/16) */
(The consumer indicated he/she ACCEPTED the response from the business.)
Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2015/05/08) */
We are sorry to hear that the customer was dissatisfied with the services of AuPairCare. We always strive to provide the best possible services and we would like to respond to the concerns stated.
In an effort to reach an amicable agreement,...
AuPairCare has refunded the customer beyond the contractual terms and conditions of the signed Host Family Agreement. Unfortunately, we are unable to offer any greater refund as the vast majority of our program fees cover upfront operational costs.
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (3000, 7, 2015/05/13) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
Aupair Care is not transparent in the contract they mention about these fees and operational costs. In addition it was their sponsored employee who broke the contract not us so why should we be liable? If they have lost money due to their employee then AuPair Care should penalize them not the host family who has fully complied is all facets with our contractual obligations. We payed upfont fees to AuPair Care and only are asking for a refund for services paid and never received.
Final Business Response /* (4000, 9, 2015/05/20) */
AuPairCare's fees are available on its website along with the services/items included. As per the attached contract, agreed to and electronically signed by the customer prior to matching with his au pair, sections 8 and 11 thereof provides as follows:
8. Host is hereby advised and acknowledges that AuPairCare's function is to locate and present au pair candidates who meet AuPairCare selection criteria, but that final selection of an au pair is the sole responsibility of Host. Host understands and agrees that AuPairCare does not guarantee that any particular au pair will be compatible in Host's home, or meet Host's expectations.
11. Host is hereby advised, acknowledges and agrees that AuPairCare shall not be liable for and does not guarantee acceptable performance by the au pair. Host agrees that the au pair is not an employee, agent or independent contractor of AuPairCare, and that AuPairCare does not exercise dominion or control over the actions of the au pair. AuPairCare is not responsible for any act or omission on the part of the au pair.
Unfortunately, we are unable to make an additional exception as requested. We thank the customer for their program participation and wish them the best in their future childcare endeavors.
Final Consumer Response /* (4200, 11, 2015/05/29) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
The company's response does not provide any clarity on how they calculated the so-called expenses as to how they arrived at their figures. How did you arrive that from the $2662.52 we paid $637.52 covered Au Pair expenses. In addition this is a flawed business plan as the company has NO support for the host families who are a vital part of this program. Please provide the details in your calculation.
Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2015/06/24) */
We are sorry to hear that the customer was dissatisfied with the services of AuPairCare. We always strive to provide the best possible services and we would like to respond to the concerns stated.
AuPairCare offers its customers with an...
infant the option to choose an au pair who has been pre-selected to attend the Infant Specialized training at Academy. Our website states the following: All au pairs caring for children under the age of two are required to have a minimum of 200 hours experience with that age group. AuPairCare also offers an infant specialized group of au pairs who, in addition to meeting special under two childcare requirements, have a separate curriculum at au pair academy and an additional day of training. It is stated on our website, checkout [redacted] and Host Family Agreement (signed by the customer on 12/30/14 and attached for reference) that the Infant Specialized Fee is non-refundable.
The customer states she was unware of the Academy Travel Service fee for her au pair's transportation from Academy to her local airport. Our website states the following: Not included in our pricing are variable and optional costs, such as our Academy Travel Service from Au Pair Academy to your home city, automobile insurance (should you choose to let your au pair drive), and up to $500 for educational reimbursement for your au pair. In addition, this fee is listed on the checkout [redacted] and Host Family Agreement.
The customer states AuPairCare has no idea of the process of obtaining a Driver's License or SSN. In Family Room (online account) under family resources is a document entitled 'You've matched, what's next?' that covers these topics. In addition, our staff at headquarters is also available to assist with the process; however, our records show they were not contacted for further assistance.
The customer states she did not receive any matching assistance for her replacement au pair. Our records show she was contacted by her matching expert on April 2, 2015 who reviewed her preferences provided recommendations.
The customer states the Host Family Agreement does not state responsibility for the Additional Months Fee. Section 38a provides as follows: 38. IN THE EVENT OF AU PAIR REPLACEMENT, HOST AGREES TO ALL OF THE FOLLOWING: a) Host shall be responsible for paying AuPairCare $650 for each additional month of replacement au pair service beyond Host's original twelve (12) month program. Such payment is due no later than sixty days (60) after the arrival of the replacement au pair, and will be automatically charged to the credit card on file.
The customer states her au pair does not have the appropriate documentation and that she has not received a call back from AuPairCare. Our records do not show a call from the au pair; however, the manager has spoken with the customer about the I-94 form and stated there are no issues reported on the website and the form is current and correct.
The customer states she would like confirmation we are actively working with Immigration Services to report and deport her previous au pair. Please note AuPairCare is sponsoring agency and does not assume the role of immigration officials when an au pair's program ends early. We have ended her program in SEVIS per regulation requirements and the appropriate officials will take the necessary steps moving forward.
We thank the customer for her feedback and hope she continues to have a successful placement with her current au pair.
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (3000, 12, 2015/07/10) */
I know this request technically closed yesterday, but I wanted to comment that we have not accepted the responses to this complaint.
1) Our records show we were contacted on April 2 by APC. I am sure we were - that was AFTER we spent the week prior searching and interviewing our own candidates and had a MATCH with our replacement Au Pair. Look at your records, our replacement Au Pair started just days later. The recruiting and contact with us, as the paying host family was almost non-existent.
2) We understand the contract and section 38a. However, you've opted to leave out the contract sections that actually do apply to our complaint related to if the Au Pair breaks the contract. That part of the contract is extremely gray, and we have discussed and received agreement from a contract attorney. We also received a call from APC to pay the remaining ~$1400 (our credit card on file expired so they needed the new card info to push the payment through). We were told by APC that if we should end this engagement early (in February since these were our original contract terms) with our replacement Au Pair, we will be fully refunded the ~$1400. Point in case, this clause is extremely gray and not enforceable.
3) We have figured out the issues with the 1-94 and it has been resolved. Thank you to the APC representative with whom I escalated to for helping get quick resolution.
4) This is absolutely pathetic. The situation with our previous Au Pair was observed by many current Au Pairs in our area. It painted a nice picture that there is no enforcement by APC and Au Pairs are welcome to stay in the US for as long as they wish. Although her program in SEVIS was ended, she is still living in [redacted], communicating via text and SnapChat almost daily and working as an illegal immigrant. It's disgusting to see APC washes their hands of reporting her to immigration services. Unfortunately, we cannot because we don't have her SSN because APC has this information and could easily report.
For next steps, we have escalated with our Area Director and our Regional Director outside of this complaint. We are dealing with these matters at a higher level. However, I'd like to raise awareness to other host families. We understand it possibly boils down to "luck of the draw", but we sure did receive two bad draws and the expense of our family and most importantly, our children.
Final Consumer Response /* (4200, 16, 2015/07/28) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
The second replacement Au Pair was remover on our home last week and forced out of the program due to the behavior we caught on hidden camera. We finally have proof now to solidify our concerns. We shared with the Area Director, and she thankfully, responded to our concerns by removing the Au Pair. We have requested a program refund and we are awaiting response from the academy.
Final Business Response /* (4000, 19, 2015/08/18) */
We have been in contact with this customer and have reached an amicable solution. We thank the customer for her program participation and wish her the best in her future childcare endeavors.
Initial Business Response /* (1000, 10, 2015/12/22) */
We are sorry to hear that the customer was dissatisfied with the services of AuPairCare. We always strive to provide the best possible services and we would like to respond to the concerns stated.
Our client services team has been in close...
contact with this customer. In an effort to part ways amicably we provided the customer with an exception to the refund policy as stated in the signed Host Family Agreement. We are currently awaiting a response on how they wish to proceed.
Complaint Response Date bumped because: Holiday
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (3000, 16, 2016/02/25) */
HI,
We would like to request a total of 5700 dollars back for this case. We used 4.5 months of the service and were expecting a full years worth of service from them. However, our Au Pair had some family issues she needed to fix and so we let her go on her vacation for 2 weeks, and was expecting her to return back to the United States after that. The day after she left, we got a phone call from our Au Pair letting us know that the Au Pair Agency had fired her and that she was NOT going to return to us after two weeks. The Agency never notified us that they were firing her, and never gave us proper notice to make other arrangements for childcare after the two week leave. What makes it worse is after we found a different Au Pair they hired they other Au Pair that they fired back. We are requesting the funds to be credited back to our credit card. We made total payments of over 8000 to this agency, and we figured with the 6 weeks that we had to piece childcare together this is the minimum they should return to us.
The fired Au Pair can also tell you the nightmare that she went through as well (from this agency). We are still in regular communication and good friends.
If you have any other questions feel free to contact us at XXX-XXX-XXXX.
[redacted]
Final Business Response /* (4000, 19, 2016/03/11) */
We are sorry to learn the customer continues to be frustrated with their program experience. Unfortunately, we are unable to provide any additional financial consideration beyond the original offer. AuPairCare will accept their response as a formal request for a refund and will process the refund according to the financial exception provided.
Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2015/06/22) */
We are sorry to hear that the customer is dissatisfied with the services of AuPairCare. A representative has contacted this customer to offer an amicable resolution to her request. We are currently awaiting a response.
Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2015/08/13) */
We are sorry to hear that the customer was dissatisfied with the services of AuPairCare. We always strive to provide the best possible services and we would like to respond to the concerns stated.
We take our obligation to carefully screen...
and prepare au pairs very seriously and make every effort to ensure that every au pair sponsored by AuPairCare is qualified and prepared for the program. All families are required to review all information provided and interview potential candidates in English a minimum of two times via phone (traditional phone or Skype) prior to requesting a match. The customer confirmed this to be the case upon matching with each au pair.
Unfortunately, we are unable to make an exception as requested. We thank the family for their program participation and wish them the best in their future childcare endeavors.
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (3000, 7, 2015/08/14) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
Au Pair Care prominently markets its Au Pairs as "safe and reliable." Reliability is one of their primary selling points to customers, but in our experience their services were anything but reliable. We matched with two separate au pairs who quit within two months, neither of which cited problems with our family or any failure on our part to follow the program rules. We held up our side of the bargain, the au pairs did not, and Au Pair Care wants to punish us for their failure to provide "reliable" care as promised.
According to federal regulations for the au pair program, it is clearly the responsibility of the agency to screen candidates and ensure that they are proficient in English. However, Au Pair Care's response to our compliant demonstrates that they are in effect offloading this responsibility to families. I have explained how we learned from our second au pair that she was coached by the local agency to fake her way through an interview. It is concerning that Au Pair Care is more interested in withholding money from families who were failed by their program, than they are in fixing the problems in their company and dealing with noncompliance by their contractor agencies.
I recently learned that our second au pair never in fact left the country, like she was required to do (within two weeks under her visa rules) when she decided to break her match with us without requesting a rematch. Instead, she is working illegally at a restaurant. When I contacted the Area Director and Regional Director about this situation a week ago, and asked what they were doing to follow up and ensure that the immigration rules were being followed, I received no response. I should not have been surprised, given that they allowed our first au pair to rematch, when she too expressed a desire to secure non au pair work, which is not permitted under her visa, and would put any family matching with her at risk of being abandoned by this young woman who was clearly not committed to the program. It appears that Au Pair Care, at least with au pairs from this country, is facilitating duplicitous and illegal immigration. The victims in this are the families who pay thousands of dollars in program fees upfront, are given a selection of poorly screened au pairs to choose from, au pairs who intend to come to this country under the program and then abandon the families that hosted them.
As a result of the poor service of Au Pair Care, we suffered eight weeks of childcare gaps, which caused us significant stress, financial loss, and work challenges. We received no support from Au Pair Care during these gaps. Rather than trying to help us after two of their Au Pairs turned out to be unsuited for the program, and clearly NOT "reliable," they chose to punish us by withholding 30% of our upfront program fees and making us start a new program year in order to match with a third au pair in less than six months. At that point we decided to leave and seek other childcare options that we could rely on. Au Pair Care failed us as customers, and should provide us with a full refund of program fees for our unused months.
Final Business Response /* (4000, 9, 2015/08/26) */
It is unfortunate to learn that the customer continues to be dissatisfied with her experience. We understand her frustration with her au pair's dishonesty and the emotional and financial impact it had on her family. However, we would like to assure the customer that AuPairCare has inserted itself as much as possible with regards to her remaining within the U.S. illegally. It is our responsibility to report to the Department of State her last known whereabouts and to terminate her within SEVIS, the government database, once it has been brought to our attention. However beyond this we must defer to the Department of State.
With regards to AuPairCare's refund policy, the terms and conditions are provided to each customer to review and accept or not accept before the customer requests a match and submits payment details for the selected au pair. Section 40 of the Agreement provides as follows:
40. HOST IS HEREBY ADVISED AND ACKNOWLEDGES AND AGREES THAT BECAUSE THE MAJORITY OF AUPAIRCARE'S OPERATION COSTS ARE INCURRED IN THE PROCESS OF RECRUITMENT, INTERVIEWING, ORIENTATION, AND PLACEMENT OF AU PAIRS, AUPAIRCARE'S REFUND POLICY IS LIMITED TO NO MORE THAN $450 PER MONTH FOR EACH REMAINING MONTH UNUSED SERVICE TIME, REGARDLESS OF THE LENGTH OF THE AU PAIR(S)' STAY.
The request made by the customer is beyond our contractual obligation as agreed to by the customer in our Host Family Agreement.
Final Consumer Response /* (4200, 11, 2015/08/27) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
As a program sponsor, AuPair Care failed to fulfill its obligations because it failed to produce outcomes in accordance with the US Federal Regulations governing the au pair program, namely, Title 22, Chapter I, Subchapter G, Part 62. Particularly, §62.31(d) clearly states, ''sponsors shall 'ensure' that all participants in a designated au pair exchange program are proficient in spoken English.''
This Federal Regulation overrules any contractual terms because the parties understand that the sponsor will operate within the rules of set by the Federal regulations. Any excuse based on the process of ensuring proficiency is not acceptable. The outcomes are not consistent with the requirements set by the Federal Regulation.
It also turns out that by being flexible on the Federal Requirements, Au Pair Care makes itself susceptible to exploitation by those who want to come to the US, even without speaking the language, for the main purpose of staying here illegally.
Even after numerous complaints and repeated inquiries, the insensitivity and irresponsibility shown by this business is regrettable. The harm created goes beyond their customers and it impacts the society.
Please provide us with a clear action plan about how you will compensate these damages.
Sincerely
Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2015/11/06) */
We are sorry to hear that the customer was dissatisfied with the services of AuPairCare. We always strive to provide the best possible services and we would like to respond to the concerns stated.
The customer has been with AuPairCare since...
February 2013 and had one Area Director until January 2015. It is unfortunate that they have had to experience multiple staff changes until recently. They now have a wonderful staff support who is excited about assisting them throughout the remainder of their program.
The customer has expressed interest in extending their program with the current au pair; however, AuPairCare has been unsuccessful in receiving a response to its attempts resolving the outstanding complaints. We will continue to work with the customer to reach an amicable agreement.
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (2000, 7, 2015/11/16) */
(The consumer indicated he/she ACCEPTED the response from the business.)
Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2015/05/08) */
We are sorry to hear that the customer was dissatisfied with the services of AuPairCare. We always strive to provide the best possible services and we would like to respond to the concerns stated.
In an effort to reach an amicable agreement,...
AuPairCare has refunded the customer beyond the contractual terms and conditions of the signed Host Family Agreement. Unfortunately, we are unable to offer any greater refund as the vast majority of our program fees cover upfront operational costs.
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (3000, 7, 2015/05/13) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
Aupair Care is not transparent in the contract they mention about these fees and operational costs. In addition it was their sponsored employee who broke the contract not us so why should we be liable? If they have lost money due to their employee then AuPair Care should penalize them not the host family who has fully complied is all facets with our contractual obligations. We payed upfont fees to AuPair Care and only are asking for a refund for services paid and never received.
Final Business Response /* (4000, 9, 2015/05/20) */
AuPairCare's fees are available on its website along with the services/items included. As per the attached contract, agreed to and electronically signed by the customer prior to matching with his au pair, sections 8 and 11 thereof provides as follows:
8. Host is hereby advised and acknowledges that AuPairCare's function is to locate and present au pair candidates who meet AuPairCare selection criteria, but that final selection of an au pair is the sole responsibility of Host. Host understands and agrees that AuPairCare does not guarantee that any particular au pair will be compatible in Host's home, or meet Host's expectations.
11. Host is hereby advised, acknowledges and agrees that AuPairCare shall not be liable for and does not guarantee acceptable performance by the au pair. Host agrees that the au pair is not an employee, agent or independent contractor of AuPairCare, and that AuPairCare does not exercise dominion or control over the actions of the au pair. AuPairCare is not responsible for any act or omission on the part of the au pair.
Unfortunately, we are unable to make an additional exception as requested. We thank the customer for their program participation and wish them the best in their future childcare endeavors.
Final Consumer Response /* (4200, 11, 2015/05/29) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
The company's response does not provide any clarity on how they calculated the so-called expenses as to how they arrived at their figures. How did you arrive that from the $2662.52 we paid $637.52 covered Au Pair expenses. In addition this is a flawed business plan as the company has NO support for the host families who are a vital part of this program. Please provide the details in your calculation.
Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2015/06/24) */
We are sorry to hear that the customer was dissatisfied with the services of AuPairCare. We always strive to provide the best possible services and we would like to respond to the concerns stated.
AuPairCare offers its customers with an...
infant the option to choose an au pair who has been pre-selected to attend the Infant Specialized training at Academy. Our website states the following: All au pairs caring for children under the age of two are required to have a minimum of 200 hours experience with that age group. AuPairCare also offers an infant specialized group of au pairs who, in addition to meeting special under two childcare requirements, have a separate curriculum at au pair academy and an additional day of training. It is stated on our website, checkout [redacted] and Host Family Agreement (signed by the customer on 12/30/14 and attached for reference) that the Infant Specialized Fee is non-refundable.
The customer states she was unware of the Academy Travel Service fee for her au pair's transportation from Academy to her local airport. Our website states the following: Not included in our pricing are variable and optional costs, such as our Academy Travel Service from Au Pair Academy to your home city, automobile insurance (should you choose to let your au pair drive), and up to $500 for educational reimbursement for your au pair. In addition, this fee is listed on the checkout [redacted] and Host Family Agreement.
The customer states AuPairCare has no idea of the process of obtaining a Driver's License or SSN. In Family Room (online account) under family resources is a document entitled 'You've matched, what's next?' that covers these topics. In addition, our staff at headquarters is also available to assist with the process; however, our records show they were not contacted for further assistance.
The customer states she did not receive any matching assistance for her replacement au pair. Our records show she was contacted by her matching expert on April 2, 2015 who reviewed her preferences provided recommendations.
The customer states the Host Family Agreement does not state responsibility for the Additional Months Fee. Section 38a provides as follows: 38. IN THE EVENT OF AU PAIR REPLACEMENT, HOST AGREES TO ALL OF THE FOLLOWING: a) Host shall be responsible for paying AuPairCare $650 for each additional month of replacement au pair service beyond Host's original twelve (12) month program. Such payment is due no later than sixty days (60) after the arrival of the replacement au pair, and will be automatically charged to the credit card on file.
The customer states her au pair does not have the appropriate documentation and that she has not received a call back from AuPairCare. Our records do not show a call from the au pair; however, the manager has spoken with the customer about the I-94 form and stated there are no issues reported on the website and the form is current and correct.
The customer states she would like confirmation we are actively working with Immigration Services to report and deport her previous au pair. Please note AuPairCare is sponsoring agency and does not assume the role of immigration officials when an au pair's program ends early. We have ended her program in SEVIS per regulation requirements and the appropriate officials will take the necessary steps moving forward.
We thank the customer for her feedback and hope she continues to have a successful placement with her current au pair.
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (3000, 12, 2015/07/10) */
I know this request technically closed yesterday, but I wanted to comment that we have not accepted the responses to this complaint.
1) Our records show we were contacted on April 2 by APC. I am sure we were - that was AFTER we spent the week prior searching and interviewing our own candidates and had a MATCH with our replacement Au Pair. Look at your records, our replacement Au Pair started just days later. The recruiting and contact with us, as the paying host family was almost non-existent.
2) We understand the contract and section 38a. However, you've opted to leave out the contract sections that actually do apply to our complaint related to if the Au Pair breaks the contract. That part of the contract is extremely gray, and we have discussed and received agreement from a contract attorney. We also received a call from APC to pay the remaining ~$1400 (our credit card on file expired so they needed the new card info to push the payment through). We were told by APC that if we should end this engagement early (in February since these were our original contract terms) with our replacement Au Pair, we will be fully refunded the ~$1400. Point in case, this clause is extremely gray and not enforceable.
3) We have figured out the issues with the 1-94 and it has been resolved. Thank you to the APC representative with whom I escalated to for helping get quick resolution.
4) This is absolutely pathetic. The situation with our previous Au Pair was observed by many current Au Pairs in our area. It painted a nice picture that there is no enforcement by APC and Au Pairs are welcome to stay in the US for as long as they wish. Although her program in SEVIS was ended, she is still living in [redacted], communicating via text and SnapChat almost daily and working as an illegal immigrant. It's disgusting to see APC washes their hands of reporting her to immigration services. Unfortunately, we cannot because we don't have her SSN because APC has this information and could easily report.
For next steps, we have escalated with our Area Director and our Regional Director outside of this complaint. We are dealing with these matters at a higher level. However, I'd like to raise awareness to other host families. We understand it possibly boils down to "luck of the draw", but we sure did receive two bad draws and the expense of our family and most importantly, our children.
Final Consumer Response /* (4200, 16, 2015/07/28) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
The second replacement Au Pair was remover on our home last week and forced out of the program due to the behavior we caught on hidden camera. We finally have proof now to solidify our concerns. We shared with the Area Director, and she thankfully, responded to our concerns by removing the Au Pair. We have requested a program refund and we are awaiting response from the academy.
Final Business Response /* (4000, 19, 2015/08/18) */
We have been in contact with this customer and have reached an amicable solution. We thank the customer for her program participation and wish her the best in her future childcare endeavors.
Initial Business Response /* (1000, 10, 2015/12/22) */
We are sorry to hear that the customer was dissatisfied with the services of AuPairCare. We always strive to provide the best possible services and we would like to respond to the concerns stated.
Our client services team has been in close...
contact with this customer. In an effort to part ways amicably we provided the customer with an exception to the refund policy as stated in the signed Host Family Agreement. We are currently awaiting a response on how they wish to proceed.
Complaint Response Date bumped because: Holiday
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (3000, 16, 2016/02/25) */
HI,
We would like to request a total of 5700 dollars back for this case. We used 4.5 months of the service and were expecting a full years worth of service from them. However, our Au Pair had some family issues she needed to fix and so we let her go on her vacation for 2 weeks, and was expecting her to return back to the United States after that. The day after she left, we got a phone call from our Au Pair letting us know that the Au Pair Agency had fired her and that she was NOT going to return to us after two weeks. The Agency never notified us that they were firing her, and never gave us proper notice to make other arrangements for childcare after the two week leave. What makes it worse is after we found a different Au Pair they hired they other Au Pair that they fired back. We are requesting the funds to be credited back to our credit card. We made total payments of over 8000 to this agency, and we figured with the 6 weeks that we had to piece childcare together this is the minimum they should return to us.
The fired Au Pair can also tell you the nightmare that she went through as well (from this agency). We are still in regular communication and good friends.
If you have any other questions feel free to contact us at XXX-XXX-XXXX.
[redacted]
Final Business Response /* (4000, 19, 2016/03/11) */
We are sorry to learn the customer continues to be frustrated with their program experience. Unfortunately, we are unable to provide any additional financial consideration beyond the original offer. AuPairCare will accept their response as a formal request for a refund and will process the refund according to the financial exception provided.
Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2015/06/22) */
We are sorry to hear that the customer is dissatisfied with the services of AuPairCare. A representative has contacted this customer to offer an amicable resolution to her request. We are currently awaiting a response.