Martina Distributors

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2016/11/22) */
We do our best to make our registration process as fair as possible. Our current members get a specific length of time to register before we open registration to new members. This is greatly appreciated by all of our 1200+ current members and...

will be appreciated by all of our new members who are able to get into our program in the future.
At the top of the recreational registration information page on our website (where you need to go to log in and register), it reads, "*IMPORTANT - Please read ALL of the information on this page BEFORE registering" If you follow the directions and read the information, it very clearly states our registration schedule, cancellation policies, important tips, etc. ([redacted]). If someone chooses not to read it, when you log in or create an account, you still have to agree to the policies. One of the policies states: "If anyone registers before their specified date or into an incorrect age group, they will be charged a $[redacted] administration fee and removed from the class." We have also placed the registration information on our [redacted] page and our voicemail clearly states the dates when current members and new members are allowed to register.
As a non-profit organization, we are happy to have a reasonably priced system that offers online registration to our members. We do have to rely on families to wait until their specific registration time. Although charging an administration fee for registration that is received too early is not something we like to do, it is something that we have found is necessary in order to avoid new members from registering too soon and avoid extra costs to the club . Without a penalty, new members would have no reason to wait and we would spend most of our time removing new members from classes during the early stages of registration and would incur extra costs for each transaction.
When we receive new member registration too early (so far we have only had 3 out 815 registrations), we make the effort to contact the families who registered in error and offer 2 choices. They can either get a refund, minus the $** administration fee (what our policy actually states), or they can keep the full payment (no administrative fees) on their account to use as a credit for when registration opens up to new members. This credit can be used any time in the future and if at any time they would prefer a refund, that is provided, minus the administrative fee of $**. When I spoke to this person on the phone, she understood her options and opted to keep her credit in, in hopes that she would be able to get into a class on December2nd. I also asked her to call in the morning before registration and I could let her know how many spaces were left in each of the classes so that she would know what class would be her best chance of getting in. Later on that day, another family member called and was extremely unhappy that they weren't offered a full refund immediately, since they had registered by accident and believed it was the fault of the registration system. I explained our reasoning behind our policy and the fact that we were offering a second option for people who register too early to avoid any loss of money. He understood but was still unhappy. [redacted]
Our website information states the following:
PLEASE NOTE: THE ONLINE REGISTRATION SYSTEM WILL NOT STOP YOU FROM REGISTERING BEFORE YOUR SPECIFIED DATE. IT IS YOUR RESPONSIBILITY TO MAKE SURE THAT YOU WAIT UNTIL THE SPECIFIC REGISTRATION DATE, PERTAINING TO YOU.
With such a large number of participants, we get requests daily to make exceptions to our policies. Although we would love to help out each individual with their requests, we need to have clear policies and procedures in order for our program to run smoothly and fairly. Hopefully we will be able to get them registered on December 2nd. This will mean that they will be in a class, incur no administration fee for registering early, and get the perks of registering as a current member for the Fall.
Thanks,
[redacted]
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (3000, 7, 2016/11/26) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
There was no service render and they are charging $[redacted]. They should get a new registration system that does not require a $[redacted] administrative fee and prevents non-members from registering early. [redacted]