InterExchange, Inc.

We’re sorry that the *** family was unable to complete their hosting experience with the InterExchange Au Pair USA Program.The *** family paid fees to host an au pair for monthsBecause the family withdrew from the program early, they were issued a refund for unused weeks (43) in accordance with our refund policy as stated in the agreementIt is the family's final decision to offer a position to an au pair after reviewing the person's qualificationsAs stated in the previous response, our agreement specifies that the family is responsible for verifying an au pair's ability to drive legally in the host family's state of residenceThe *** family was aware of this responsibilityThe family is not eligible for further refunds.We hope that the family finds a child care solution that is appropriate for their circumstances

We have reviewed [redacted]'s complaint. As stated in our original agreement with the [redacted] family, it is a host family's responsibility to determine an au pair's ability to drive legally in the host family's state of residence. [redacted] was reminded of this responsibility in all...

communications.As of 1/*/15, the refund has been issued to the [redacted] family, according to the terms stated in the original agreement.

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID# [redacted], and have determined that my complaint has NOT been resolved because:

[Your Answer Here]
It is insufficient for Interexchange to simply refer to the contract.  That contract is incongruent with the advertisements on its website, in particular,  "Custom matching: We have you review only candidates who would be a good fit for your family based on your specific qualification".  Our family should never have been allowed to interview with, let alone match with, an au pair who was not allowed to legally drive in our state of residence.  It was clearly one of the criteria that we provided to Interexchange as necessary in a care provider.  In fact, one of the reasons we had to let the previous au pair go is that she did not take the time to get her driver's license in Virginia.  In addition, the solutions Interexchange suggested to remedy their mistake of matching us with an inappropriate au pair were illegal; including falsifying residency in New York and putting my family at financial risk by having the au pair drive illegally (without a valid license) in Virginia. To remedy this situation, at a minimum, I would like my entire remaining program fee refunded, not just a portion.  Interexchange only refunds $100 out of every $142/week that I paid.  So for the remaining 34 weeks, Interexchage owes me $1428.  For the suffering caused to my children for having bonded with a care giver and losing her and all the disruptions to our household, I would like the program fees refunded for the 8 weeks that the au pair that should not have been ever matched with our family was with us 8 x $142 = $1136.  For a total of $2564.
 
 
 
In order for the Revdex.com to appropriately process your response, you MUST answer the question above.
Sincerely,
[redacted]

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID# [redacted], and have determined that my complaint has NOT been resolved because:Interexchange has not answered my claim about false advertising, nor have they explained how I could possibly comply with the agreement that they attached in their response:a. Legally Allowed to Drive. Host Family agrees to be responsible for determining whether an Au Pair will be able
to legally drive in the Host Family state of residence. Host Family agrees to conform to any and all state or local
laws regarding the Au Pair's use of Host Family's automobile, including the Au Pair obtaining a local driver's
license and familiarization with local roads and traffic patterns.
b. Vehicle Insurance. Host Family agrees to provide automobile insurance at the Host Family's sole expense if the
Au Pair uses any of the Host Family's vehicles. The insurance coverage must not be less than the minimum
mandatory insurance coverage required by law in the Host Family's state and city of residence.In particular Interexchange was giving the au pair direct advice that she was allowed to legally drive in Virginia in direct contradiction to the law and were even telling her that it was my responsibility to find new auto insurance to somehow cover her to be able to drive illegally in Virginia.   So how can I comply with my end of the contract when Interexchange was actively working against me?I still firmly believe that I deserve compensation.
 
 
In order for the Revdex.com to appropriately process your response, you MUST answer the question above.
Sincerely,
[redacted]

Review: While stationed in Germany my family contracted with Interexchange to find an au pair to help us with our child care needs when we moved to Virginia. We required a child care provider that was a non-smoker that could cook (prepare simple meals) and drive our children to activities). We chose Interexchange based on their website's claim for their individualized service and their matching service to find "the au pair who would be the best fit for your family." We chose our first au pair and she moved in with us in July. She had been disingenuous on her application. I do not know if that is Interexchange's or her fault, but she smoked and she could not cook and continued to be dishonest and untrustworthy. Interexchange did quickly process a transition for a new au pair. Our children were very distraught at the disruption, as they had grown quite attached in the two months she had lived with us. Our second au pair moved in to our house in October. While she could cook and did not smoke, what Interexchange did not bother to determine was whether she would be legally allowed to drive in the state of Virginia. She held a valid license from the county of Germany, but as she was only 18, she was required to get a learner's permit for 9 months and take driver's education prior to being allowed to legally drive in Virginia.

When I brought this issue up with Interexchange, the local coordinator suggested I call the state police to see if she would get a ticket if she was pulled over. She was told to try multiple DMVs to see if she would "get lucky" and one of them would get a license. The corporate office suggested other similarly illegal options such as having her change her residency back to New York for a week and get a NY driver's license. Both the local coordinator and Interexchange corporate were completely oblivious to the financial risk that they were asking my family to undertake. If she were to get into an accident, she would not have been considered to be a licensed driver. My insurance certainly would not have covered any damage she did to our vehicle our anyone else's not to mention bodily harm to our children. At no point did Interexchange accept ANY responsibility in the matter. I was simply referred back to my Host Family agreement form and told it was my responsibility to know the driving regulations in my state.

I did research the VA state code. From what I could ascertain, this age requirement has been on the books since 2002 for international drivers. It just has not been uniformly enforced until this year because of a change in the age for transfer of out of state licenses to VA licenses (with the new 19 year age requirement).

My children are still recovering the loss of a second nanny in 4 months. Given my poor treatment by Interexchange, I have decided not to host an au pair. That is truly disappointing, because two of my kids were fluent German speakers since we were stationed there for four years.Desired Settlement: Interexchange only intends to refund $100/week in program fees for the remaining weeks left in our contract. I would like the full amount refunded to include the 8 weeks that our second au pair was here as she should never have been placed with our family to begin with. The matching process should not just check to see if the au pair has a valid driver's license in their home country. That license should be transferable to the state where she/he will be working. Why else would I be paying Interexchange their part of the program fees. All they would seem to be doing is running a worthless website.

Business

Response:

We have reviewed [redacted]'s complaint. As stated in our original agreement with the [redacted] family, it is a host family's responsibility to determine an au pair's ability to drive legally in the host family's state of residence. [redacted] was reminded of this responsibility in all communications.As of 1/*/15, the refund has been issued to the [redacted] family, according to the terms stated in the original agreement.

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID# [redacted], and have determined that my complaint has NOT been resolved because:

[Your Answer Here]

It is insufficient for Interexchange to simply refer to the contract. That contract is incongruent with the advertisements on its website, in particular, "Custom matching: We have you review only candidates who would be a good fit for your family based on your specific qualification". Our family should never have been allowed to interview with, let alone match with, an au pair who was not allowed to legally drive in our state of residence. It was clearly one of the criteria that we provided to Interexchange as necessary in a care provider. In fact, one of the reasons we had to let the previous au pair go is that she did not take the time to get her driver's license in Virginia. In addition, the solutions Interexchange suggested to remedy their mistake of matching us with an inappropriate au pair were illegal; including falsifying residency in New York and putting my family at financial risk by having the au pair drive illegally (without a valid license) in Virginia. To remedy this situation, at a minimum, I would like my entire remaining program fee refunded, not just a portion. Interexchange only refunds $100 out of every $142/week that I paid. So for the remaining 34 weeks, Interexchage owes me $1428. For the suffering caused to my children for having bonded with a care giver and losing her and all the disruptions to our household, I would like the program fees refunded for the 8 weeks that the au pair that should not have been ever matched with our family was with us 8 x $142 = $1136. For a total of $2564.

In order for the Revdex.com to appropriately process your response, you MUST answer the question above.

Sincerely,

Business

Response:

We’re sorry that the [redacted] family was unable to complete their hosting experience with the InterExchange Au Pair USA Program.The [redacted] family paid fees to host an au pair for 12 months. Because the family withdrew from the program early, they were issued a refund for unused weeks (43) in accordance with our refund policy as stated in the agreement. It is the family's final decision to offer a position to an au pair after reviewing the person's qualifications. As stated in the previous response, our agreement specifies that the family is responsible for verifying an au pair's ability to drive legally in the host family's state of residence. The [redacted] family was aware of this responsibility. The family is not eligible for further refunds.We hope that the family finds a child care solution that is appropriate for their circumstances.

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID# [redacted], and have determined that my complaint has NOT been resolved because:

Review: We had au pair from the Interexchange who could not ensure our kids' safety in driving and supervising pool sides, etc. She was fired after 2 months from us. We had another one to replace the one who supposed to serve us rest of the 10 months (12 months total) contract. But she was just so lazy or depressed herself to take care of our kids. Thus, we had to let her go after her 3 months since she did not improve herself but told us she was depressed. We had to withdraw from the program because the Interexchange did not provide the 3rd person. The company said that their au pair has to be in the U.S. for 6 months before we could get another one. ( we never saw about the rule under our contract). Before we had our second au pair, we discussed over the phone and reached to an agreement that we were not going to be charged until our replacement au pair completed her 10 months of the original contract months. But she was let her go and left us 7 months of non-used program fee. We asked for our refunds but the company charged us the 2 nd au pair fee, kept $2200 to themselves in spite of our continuous refund. The company told us that they don 't remember the conversation, addition to one of the staff who were assigned to us quit the job. The person who talked over the phone who is still there never came forward above the matter. Thus, the company did not provided the original

length of the service but informed other host families that we had a personal mismatch but what were really happened to our kids were not disclosed to their new families and they kept both au pairs but told us that we had high expectation and the company is not responsible for personality conflict or mismatch. The company totally ignored us and did not ensure their au pairs' quality care and the company's contact and responsibilities.Desired Settlement: We exchanged numerous emails but they never wanted to refund $2200 out of $6800 entire program fee even though their second au pair did not fulfill our 12 months program contract. We were supposed not to be charged until receiving 12 months of child care. Last email from one of the staff was disrespectful. Thus, we want our rest of $2200 to be refunded and a letter of apology.

Consumer

Response:

At this time, <st[redacted]g>I have not been contacted by InterExchange, Inc.</st[redacted]g> regarding complaint <st[redacted]g>ID [redacted]</st[redacted]g>.

Sincerely,

Business

Response:

We’re sorry that the [redacted] family was unable to complete their hosting experience with the InterExchange Au Pair USA Program.

Several of the complaints made were the result of the family’s personal preferences which differed from the host family agreement that was signed when joining the program. Our policies were reiterated to the family and a refund that’s consistent with our company policy was provided according to our agreement document.

InterExchange Au Pair USA makes every effort to satisfy our host family clients, while fulfilling the mission of our organization, which is to provide a successful cultural exchange experience to everyone involved.

We hope this satisfies the questions raised. If more information is needed, please contact me directly.

Regards,

--

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID# [redacted], and have determined that my complaint has NOT been resolved because:

The reason we filed the complain against the Interexchange was nothing to do with personal preference/mismatch but unsafe and lazy child care that were provided by their au pair.

[redacted] was not there to witness how his au pairs delivered their child care but many

concerns of our children's safety were raised by neiborghed, lifeguard, and family friends who actually saw their performances.

we realized that we need more than a mediator because it has been taking 6 months to ask for refund but the company has not refund us a part of it. Thus, we decided to move on. We at least accomplished a goal to inform the Revdex.com so that our complains were recorded there, instead of being ignored and extinguished our concerns like minor problems. We did not received the original contract of one year length of childcare service that was prepaid, that's why we filed our complains on the first place. We appreciated the Revdex.com's assistance. Although we rejected the responce from the Interexchange, we decided move on.

Regards,

The [redacted]

In order for the Revdex.com to appropriately process your response, you MUST answer the question above.

Sincerely,