Texas Rowing Center

My name is [redacted] and I am the owner of Texas Rowing Center This customer initially contacted us on 4/wanting to schedule her three rowing lessons She purchased those lessons through our website for $ I responded to her immediately on 4/letting her know that we offer lessons at 7AM and 9AM every day of the week and asking her what day/time works for her On 4/28, she called Texas Rowing Center and spoke with one of my managers, [redacted] Shepherd [redacted] told the complaintant about her options for taking the lessons, including a group lesson option that we also offer The complaintant emailed me the next day demanding a refund because our options did not work for her She also seemed upset because she said she had not gotten a response to her initial email on 4/ In fact, we had responded to her initial email the same day it was received (she must have not read it)As with all customers, we told the complaintant that we would be happy to schedule her lessons at any time during the day and on any day with a special individual instructor, which we are still willing to do All we asked was that she provide the time and day she would like to get started with the lessons We even offered to do the same for her friends, who she said also were interested in lessons The complaintant, with an increasingly threatening tone, continued to demand a monetary refund by email She demanded that I call her to discuss the matter I called her on 4/29, but she did not answer and did not return my call In an email, I explained to her that we do not offer monetary refunds, which is standard in the health and fitness business For example, if you join a gym and pay for a membership, you typically can't get a refund if you decide not to go to the gym However, unlike most gyms, we will give customers a gift certificate for the full value of their purchase that can be used on any of the many other TRC services, including kayaking, canoeing, and standup paddling That way the customer still gets the value of their purchase even though they decide not to row (which is a different service from paddling) The gift certificate is still available for the complaintant, and of course, we are also willing to deliver on the lessons that she purchased on a schedule tailored to her availability Thank you

Complaint: [redacted] I am rejecting this response because:? When you join a gym you are presented with a contract that you can read before submitting payment.? The Texas Rowing Center website does not offer such contractual informationIt does not say all sales are final, offer a schedule for when classes are offered, or offer a good description of the classesThese details are only given after payment has been received.? I signed up for classes in good faith after a friend described what a wonderful experience she has had with the TRCShe started with the three individual lessons (what I signed up for) and is now doing competitive rowingIn fact, a group of our friends also wanted to sign up and begin rowing togetherI was the first to sign up.When I called to schedule my lessons, the person who answered immediately told me that individual lessons did not mean private lessons and that the three individual lessons were not a good value for me because the instructor would not be in the water with me, rather they would be multi-tasking, answering phone calls, helping walk ups, while giving me instruction from the dockA review on Yelp describes exactly that:? https://www[redacted] When I asked to speak with an instructor, she told me she was one of the instructorsShe tried to sell me on a six week course instead of what I had signed up and paid forAfter I told her I could not do a six week course she told me the only days/times I could have my individual lessons where on Tuesdays and Thursdays at either 7am or 9amI told her I could not make those classes and would not have signed up for lessons had I known thatI then asked for a refundShe said no and that I would have to speak to the ownerIt was a surprising and disappointing conversation.? I checked back in with my friend who had told me about the rowing classes and she said what was described to me was not at all what she had experienced and that she would no longer promote the rowing program if this was what people could expect.? Speaking with the owner has not been fruitfulWhile he did eventually offer to set me and my friends up with actual private lessons with a dedicated instructor, the? idea of doing business with this company had souredMy friends were no longer interested in signing upWhat had been a fun idea had turned into a stressful experience.? None of my friends or family are interested in his offer of gift coupons, which he offered in lieu of a refund.? I am still hopeful the owner will issue me a refundIt would be easy for him to avoid this kind of issue in the future just by updating his website so a potential customer could be well informed of the class details before submitting payment.? I guess he could also just credit my friend’s account and maybe she would give me my money back for getting me into this situation.? Regards, [redacted] ***? ? ? ? Regards, Suvi Aika

Complaint: ***
I am rejecting this response because: When you join a gym you are presented with a contract that you can read before submitting payment. The Texas Rowing Center website does not offer such contractual informationIt does not say all sales are final, offer a schedule for when classes are offered, or offer a good description of the classesThese details are only given after payment has been received. I signed up for classes in good faith after a friend described what a wonderful experience she has had with the TRCShe started with the three individual lessons (what I signed up for) and is now doing competitive rowingIn fact, a group of our friends also wanted to sign up and begin rowing togetherI was the first to sign up.When I called to schedule my lessons, the person who answered immediately told me that individual lessons did not mean private lessons and that the three individual lessons were not a good value for me because the instructor would not be in the water with me, rather they would be multi-tasking, answering phone calls, helping walk ups, while giving me instruction from the dockA review on Yelp describes exactly that: https://www.***When I asked to speak with an instructor, she told me she was one of the instructorsShe tried to sell me on a six week course instead of what I had signed up and paid forAfter I told her I could not do a six week course she told me the only days/times I could have my individual lessons where on Tuesdays and Thursdays at either 7am or 9amI told her I could not make those classes and would not have signed up for lessons had I known thatI then asked for a refundShe said no and that I would have to speak to the ownerIt was a surprising and disappointing conversation. I checked back in with my friend who had told me about the rowing classes and she said what was described to me was not at all what she had experienced and that she would no longer promote the rowing program if this was what people could expect. Speaking with the owner has not been fruitfulWhile he did eventually offer to set me and my friends up with actual private lessons with a dedicated instructor, the idea of doing business with this company had souredMy friends were no longer interested in signing upWhat had been a fun idea had turned into a stressful experience. None of my friends or family are interested in his offer of gift coupons, which he offered in lieu of a refund. I am still hopeful the owner will issue me a refundIt would be easy for him to avoid this kind of issue in the future just by updating his website so a potential customer could be well informed of the class details before submitting payment. I guess he could also just credit my friend’s account and maybe she would give me my money back for getting me into this situation. Regards,*** ***
Regards,
Suvi Aika

My name is [redacted] and I am the owner of Texas Rowing Center.? This customer initially contacted us on 4/wanting to schedule her three rowing lessons.? She purchased those lessons through our website for $199.? I responded to her immediately on 4/letting her know that we
offer lessons at 7AM and 9AM every day of the week and asking her what day/time works for her.? On 4/28, she called Texas Rowing Center and spoke with one of my managers, [redacted] Shepherd.? [redacted] told the complaintant about her options for taking the lessons, including a group lesson option that we also offer.? The complaintant emailed me the next day demanding a refund because our options did not work for her.? She also seemed upset because she said she had not gotten a response to her initial email on 4/24.? In fact, we had responded to her initial email the same day it was received (she must have not read it)As with all customers, we told the complaintant that we would be happy to schedule her lessons at any time during the day and on any day with a special individual instructor, which we are still willing to do.? All we asked was that she provide the time and day she would like to get started with the lessons.? We even offered to do the same for her friends, who she said also were interested in lessons.? ? The complaintant, with an increasingly threatening tone, continued to demand a monetary refund by email.? She demanded that I call her to discuss the matter.? I called her on 4/29, but she did not answer and did not return my call.? In an email, I explained to her that we do not offer monetary refunds, which is standard in the health and fitness business.? For example, if you join a gym and pay for a membership, you typically can't get a refund if you decide not to go to the gym.? However, unlike most gyms, we will give customers a gift certificate for the full value of their purchase that can be used on any of the many other TRC services, including kayaking, canoeing, and standup paddling.? That way the customer still gets the value of their purchase even though they decide not to row (which is a different service from paddling).? The gift certificate is still available for the complaintant, and of course, we are also willing to deliver on the lessons that she purchased on a schedule tailored to her availability.? Thank you?

Complaint: [redacted]
I am rejecting this response because:? When you join a gym you are presented with a contract that you can read before submitting payment.? The Texas Rowing Center website does not offer such contractual informationIt does not say all sales are final, offer a schedule for when classes are offered, or offer a good description of the classesThese details are only given after payment has been received.? I signed up for classes in good faith after a friend described what a wonderful experience she has had with the TRCShe started with the three individual lessons (what I signed up for) and is now doing competitive rowingIn fact, a group of our friends also wanted to sign up and begin rowing togetherI was the first to sign up.When I called to schedule my lessons, the person who answered immediately told me that individual lessons did not mean private lessons and that the three individual lessons were not a good value for me because the instructor would not be in the water with me, rather they would be multi-tasking, answering phone calls, helping walk ups, while giving me instruction from the dockA review on Yelp describes exactly that:? https://www.[redacted]When I asked to speak with an instructor, she told me she was one of the instructorsShe tried to sell me on a six week course instead of what I had signed up and paid forAfter I told her I could not do a six week course she told me the only days/times I could have my individual lessons where on Tuesdays and Thursdays at either 7am or 9amI told her I could not make those classes and would not have signed up for lessons had I known thatI then asked for a refundShe said no and that I would have to speak to the ownerIt was a surprising and disappointing conversation.? I checked back in with my friend who had told me about the rowing classes and she said what was described to me was not at all what she had experienced and that she would no longer promote the rowing program if this was what people could expect.? Speaking with the owner has not been fruitfulWhile he did eventually offer to set me and my friends up with actual private lessons with a dedicated instructor, the? idea of doing business with this company had souredMy friends were no longer interested in signing upWhat had been a fun idea had turned into a stressful experience.? None of my friends or family are interested in his offer of gift coupons, which he offered in lieu of a refund.? I am still hopeful the owner will issue me a refundIt would be easy for him to avoid this kind of issue in the future just by updating his website so a potential customer could be well informed of the class details before submitting payment.? I guess he could also just credit my friend’s account and maybe she would give me my money back for getting me into this situation.? Regards,[redacted]? ? ? ?
Regards,
Suvi Aika

My name is [redacted] and I am the owner of Texas Rowing Center.  This customer initially contacted us on 4/24 wanting to schedule her three rowing lessons.  She purchased those lessons through our website for $199.  I responded to her immediately on 4/24 letting her know that we...

offer lessons at 7AM and 9AM every day of the week and asking her what day/time works for her.  On 4/28, she called Texas Rowing Center and spoke with one of my managers, [redacted] Shepherd.  [redacted] told the complaintant about her options for taking the lessons, including a group lesson option that we also offer.  The complaintant emailed me the next day demanding a refund because our options did not work for her.  She also seemed upset because she said she had not gotten a response to her initial email on 4/24.  In fact, we had responded to her initial email the same day it was received (she must have not read it). As with all customers, we told the complaintant that we would be happy to schedule her lessons at any time during the day and on any day with a special individual instructor, which we are still willing to do.  All we asked was that she provide the time and day she would like to get started with the lessons.  We even offered to do the same for her friends, who she said also were interested in lessons.  The complaintant, with an increasingly threatening tone, continued to demand a monetary refund by email.  She demanded that I call her to discuss the matter.  I called her on 4/29, but she did not answer and did not return my call.  In an email, I explained to her that we do not offer monetary refunds, which is standard in the health and fitness business.  For example, if you join a gym and pay for a membership, you typically can't get a refund if you decide not to go to the gym.  However, unlike most gyms, we will give customers a gift certificate for the full value of their purchase that can be used on any of the many other TRC services, including kayaking, canoeing, and standup paddling.  That way the customer still gets the value of their purchase even though they decide not to row (which is a different service from paddling).  The gift certificate is still available for the complaintant, and of course, we are also willing to deliver on the lessons that she purchased on a schedule tailored to her availability.  Thank you