Worldstrides

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the offer made by the business in reference to complaint ID[redacted], and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me. The business has perform this action and I consider this complaint resolved.
Regards,[redacted]

Dear [redacted]Thank you for contacting WorldStrides regarding your daughter's account. It is my understanding that [redacted] wasscheduled to accompany [redacted] on their upcoming trip to [redacted]. However, youhave cancelled her account...

and are concerned regarding receipt of your refund.According to our records, you provided notice of cancellation on December 2, 2014. Upon receipt of notice, youraccount was noted and the refund process was initiated. Pursuant to your conversation with our CustomerService Department, refunds generally take four to six weeks to be processed.Payments are made to the customer in the same manner in which they were received. Your refund check was processedand issued on January 8, 2015 and deposited by you on February 3, 2015.I apologizefor the inconvenience and dissatisfactionthis situation has caused you. but happy to seethat you havereceived and deposited your refund.Should you haveany further questions or concerns, please feelfree to contact me directly at [redacted]. We willbe providing a copy of this correspondenceas pay of our response to the recent filing you made with the Revdex.com (Case#[redacted]) in Richmond.Sincerely[redacted]

Dear Ms. [redacted], Thank you for contacting WorldStrides regarding your son's account. It is my understanding [redacted] was scheduled to accompany Stem Magnet School on their upcoming trip to...

Florida but the account was cancelled and you continue to have some concerns regarding your refund. On May 12, 2015 when you registered online, you were presented with and agreed to certain Terms & Conditions. Those Terms & Conditions provided a detailed explanation of the cancellation policy, fees, and the refund policies, as well as the $49 non-refundable deposit and information regarding the Full Refund Program Fee. During the enrollment process, you declined enrollment in the Full Refund Program which placed your account under our standard cancellation policy. Standard Cancellation Policy: This policy applies to participants who choose 11 01 to be enrolled in the Full Refund Program. Within seven calendar days following receipt of your registration confirmation or initial payment invoice (whichever is received first), you may cancel your WorldStrides program and receive a.full refund. Beyond the seven day grace period, if you, the Program Leader, school, or school administration canal, WorldStrides will retain 25% if the hase trip price• (minimum charge of $120 if hase trip price is $400 or more) ifyour cancellation lefter is postmarked more rhan 75 days prior to the group's departure, 50% of the base trip price* if your cancellation letter is postmarked 45 to 74 days prior to group 's departure. nr I 00% nf the hase trip price* if your cancellation letter is postmarked 44 days or less prior to group's departure. Upon review we could not locate any emails or submitted web forms from you requesting cancellation of the account and one contact via phone on 6/14. We did attempt to contact you via email on 3/11 and an outbound call on 3/ 17 as your account was at risk of cancellation. If we had received your cancellation notification earlier than 45 days it would not have changed the refund amount as the total payments into the account was less than 25% of the base trip price. I hope that this explanation addresses your concerns and that [redacted] is able to travel with WorldStrides in the future. Should you have any further questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me directly at [redacted]. We will be providing a copy of this correspondence as part of our response to the recent filing you made with the Revdex.com (Case#: [redacted]) in Richmond. Sincerely, Jessica S[redacted] VP Customer Service

Dear Ms. [redacted],Thank you
for contacting WorldStrides regarding your accounts.  After review it does appear that there was a
processing error that resulted in you not receiving the full refund amount on
your accounts.  Due to the cancellation
of this trip we are refunding you...

for all funds paid into your account and we
have begun the immediate process of issuing those credits.  That refund will be provided via the method
received, so all of your donors will receive their refunds directly to their
credit cards.I apologize
for any inconvenience and I thank you for bringing this to our attention so we
could resolve.  We certainly
hope that [redacted] is able to travel with WorldStrides in the future.  Should you have any further questions or
concerns, please feel free to contact me directly at [redacted].  We will be providing a copy of this
correspondence as part of our response to the recent filing you made with the
Revdex.com (Case #: [redacted]) in Richmond.Sincerely, [redacted]

Dear
Ms. [redacted]Thank
you for contacting WorldStrides regarding your daughter’s accounts.  I
am glad you were able to speak directly with our Customer Service Manager, Cindy
S[redacted].  I was pleased to hear we were
able to work together to help clear up any confusion...

regarding the
account.  The original $50 paid towards
the account was not for the purchase of the Full Refund Program, but the
non-refundable deposit for the account.  Although
under the standard cancellation policy the additional $20 payment would
normally be retained by WorldStrides we are going to make an exception and
refund you the $20 in full.I
hope that [redacted] is able to travel with WorldStrides in the future.  Should you have any further questions or
concerns, please feel free to contact me directly at [redacted]  We will be providing a copy of this
correspondence as part of our response to the recent filing you made with the
Revdex.com (Case #: [redacted])
in Richmond.Sincerely, Jessica
S[redacted]

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the offer and/or response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
Thank you for your response to my complaints. 
I understand that many flights were cancelled due to weather issues on the day that our group was traveling, May 31, 2015.  The group that my son was with was delayed three hours and it was obvious that they were going to miss their connecting flight in [redacted].  This was apparent before they ever left [redacted].  It was also apparent that there were no other flights to the Washington D.C. area from [redacted] the rest of the day.  Why in the world would WorldStrides have sent a group of kids to [redacted] knowing that they would be stuck there until the next day?
I commend World Strides for securing additional accommodations and such in [redacted] but actually see it as a very poor business decision on the company's part.  Wouldn't it have been more cost effective to delay the trip a day and fly all of the kids out of [redacted] the next day?
I think that direct communication between WorldStrides and the participan'ts parents/ guardians would be extremely beneficial.  There is no way that a Program Leader can be in contact with 45+ parents while traveling when the group of 45 is split into four separate groups.  It is not feasible.
I did receive the $200 refund.  However, I never did receive an itemized breakdown of the amount from WorldStrides as requested.  I have also learned that others in the group that traveled with my son received a $350 refund.  Please explain this to me.  Why are people getting different refund amounts from WorldStrides??  Again, my son's group was the LAST to arrive in Washington D.C.  He missed over half of the trip.  $200 is not acceptable.
Regards,
[redacted]

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the offer made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
Because, I believe I was automatically signed up for the Full Refund Program (FRP) by default and not by choice. I also believe the FRP is, in fact, another deposit as it is not refundable past seven days of purchase. It does give an explanation as to what it covers in the confirmation email. However, when a confirmation email is sent, there should be no surprises. A consumer is not looking for additional charges once the confirmation is sent, but rather if the amount adds up to what was shown at check-out. I don't believe this to be the right time to give an explanation of fees for a sub-program in which a consumer is automatically enrolled. I can see how this could benefit someone who pays the entire cost of the trip or 50% or more of the entire cost of the trip, but to take my deposit AND the $179 FRP fee when I only paid $400 is ludicrous. Worldstrides must make hundreds of thousands of dollars just from cancelations alone!  In their confirmation letter they state, "Last year, we returned more than $5 million to 9,000 families enrolled in the program.” Do the math: $99 + $179 = $278 x 9000 (people) = $2,502,000 they made JUST from cancelations. Plus, tack on on an additional $6.00 per month if you don't follow their fee schedule ($6.00 x 9000 = $54,000) AND $15.00 late fee ($15.00 x 9000 = $135,000) if you are a few days late with your installment. Wow. The sad part being that very few actually questioned it or took action to recover their costs. Why are public schools even doing business with this company? I believe it is based on this: trust - any company who is doing business with school children must have their best interest in heart, right? Exactly the angle this company has taken. This is their M.O. They actually make MORE money if people cancel their trip - to the tune of nearly $3,000,000. Think if this money was returned to the school system what programs and underprivileged families it could benefit.
I also want to mention that it is very hard to find any information on their website. (They operate two websites: [redacted] both from which I have received email communications.) An exact itemized statement/replica of one's transaction (screen captures or other) is invisible making it even harder to see what you are being charged for. Unfortunately, I cannot go back and replicate my checkout process to verify any of this. However, several other consumers have posted the same or similar complaints of bait-and-switch tactics and fraudulent charges.
It's all about principal for me. It is just plain wrong what they are doing. I don't have a problem with them keeping my $99 deposit. But isn't the $179 FRP in fact a deposit, too? Why not just call it a $278 non-refundable deposit and state this clearly? I believe they call it something different so they can somehow justify and hopefully sneak this charge in under the radar.
Please see my attachments for additional documentation. There are three emails from Worldstrides customer care within these attachments. Notice on email 3 attachment she does not answer my question asking if I would get any money back if I wasn't enrolled in FRP.
As you can see, I am not alone in my dissatisfaction and feelings of being taken by this company.
Regards,
[redacted]

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the offer and/or response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
As I stated in my original complaint, the fact that the trip was rescheduled BY THE SCHOOL was out of my control. Had the school scheduled it correctly in the first place, I would have never signed up because my child will not be available on the rescheduled date. Again, this was out of my control. However, instead of cancelling the original trip and starting a new one, which would have given everyone a refund and the option to opt out of the new trip, they rescheduled the trip WITHOUT NOTICE, causing me to have to cancel my son's trip individually and lose my deposit. Furthermore, I was never informed that I would also lose the "full refund program" fee. The only fee that was labeled "non-refundable" was the deposit of $99.
Therefore, the company's offer to refund the $6 handling fee does not satisfy me. I am owed at least $115 and I really believe I should be refunded everything since the rescheduling issue was out of my control in the first place. 
Regards,
[redacted]

[A default letter is provided here which indicates your acceptance of the business's offer.  If you wish, you may update it before sending it.]
Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the offer made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and find that this resolution would be satisfactory to me. I will wait for the business to perform this action and, if it does, will consider this complaint resolved. If the company does not perform as promised I can get back to you at: [redacted].
Regards,
[redacted]

Dear [redacted]:
Thank you for contacting WorldStrides regarding your upcoming trip to Washington, D.C. 
We apologize for the miscommunications and events which led to the delay in receiving your program reward.
In researching this matter, I have learned that you are now in receipt of...

the gift card as it was delivered via overnight mail on August 13, 2014.
Please feel free to contact me directly to discuss if my understanding is incorrect or if there is anything further I can do to help.
I again apologize for the inconvenience and dissatisfaction this situation had caused you. We look forward to continuing to work closely with you to ensure that your group enjoys an extraordinary trip with WorldStrides.
Should you have any further questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me directly at [redacted]. We will be providing a copy of this correspondence as part of our response to the recent filing you made with the Revdex.com (Case #: [redacted]) in Richmond.
Sincerely,
[redacted]
Paralegal/HR Assistant

[A default letter is provided here which indicates your acceptance of the business's offer.  If you wish, you may update it before sending it.]
Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the offer made by the business in reference to complaint ID[redacted], and find that this resolution would be satisfactory to me. I will wait for the business to perform this action and, if it does, will consider this complaint resolved. If the company does not perform as promised I can get back to you at: [redacted]
Regards,
[redacted]
Please disregard.  The refund checks from WorldStrides arrived today.
Thanks

Dear Ms. [redacted]:Thank you for contacting WoridStrides regarding your accounts. It is my understanding that youand [redacted] were scheduled to accompany [redacted] on their upcoming trip toWashington, D.C. However, you recently cancelled your accounts and have some...

concernsregarding your refund.On September 23 , 2014, when you registered online, you were presented with and agreed tocertain Terms & Conditions. Those Terms & Conditions provided a detailed explanation of the$99 non-refundable deposit, as well as the Full Refund Program Fee. Pursuant to the Terms &Conditions, the Full Refund Program Fee for this trip was $129.The Terms & Conditions further explain payment plan options, handling fees and late fees whichmay be associated with your account. You chose to spread your payments out into installmentsrather than enroll in the EZ Pay program for payment. As explained in the Terms & Conditions,"If you choose to follow the installment payment plan, WoridStrides charges a $6 nonrefundablehandling fee on each installment payment following your registration, except theinitial deposit and the final payment. There are NO HANDLING FEES associated with paymentsmade through the EZPay program."In reviewing your account I found the following: Payments received total $799. You werecharged $15 in late fees and $24 handling fees. Our Customer Service Representative waived$75 in fees on your account as of March 17,2015. On April 30, 2015 , a refund in the amount of$607 was processed. The amount refunded on your account was actually $36 in excess of whatyou should have been refunded as $799 minus the $99 non-refundable deposit and $129 FullRefund Program Fee would result in a refund in the amount of$571.In reviewing [redacted] account I found the following: Payments received total $879. You werecharged $90 in late fees and $30 in handling fees. Our Customer Service Representative waived$90 in late fees on this account as of March 17,2015. On April 27, 2015 a refund in the amountof $621 was processed. This amount was the appropriate amount to be refunded as $879 minusthe $99 non-refundable deposit and the $129 Full Refund Program Fee would result in a refundin the amount of $621. However, given the circumstances, we have made an exception to ourTerms & Conditions and have provided you with an additional $30 refund for the handling feesassociated with [redacted] account as a good faith measure. This refund has been credited to thecredit card used to make payment on this account.I apologize for the inconvenience and frustration this situation has caused you and do hope thatyou and [redacted] are in a position to travel with WorldStrides in the future.Should you have any further questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me directly at[redacted] We will be providing a copy of this correspondence as part of our response tothe recent filing you made with the Revdex.com (Case #: [redacted]) in Richmond.

Dear [redacted]:
Thank you for contacting WorldStrides regarding your daugther's account. It is my understanding that [redacted] accompanied [redacted] on their recent trip to [redacted] and that you are unhappy with some additional charges that have been applied to her account. Upon...

registration, you were presented with and agreed to certain Terms & Conditions. These Terms & Conditions clearly state that "If you choose to follow the installment payment plan, WorldStrides charges a $6 non-refundable handling fee on each installment payment following your registration, except the initial deposit and the final payment. There are NO HANDLING FEES associated with payments made through the [redacted]."
These Terms & Conditions further state that the "price quoted is based upon a minimum number of travelers" and that "the price is also subject to adjustment if the minimum enrollment is not met".
The Registration Letter provided to you by the Program Leader clearly states that the trip price was based on 35 full-paying participants. As you are probably aware, six full-paying participants accompanied the Program Leader to [redacted] for this trip. Therefore, the price of the trip was adjusted accordingly pursuant to the Terms & Conditions for each of the traveling full-paying participants. The $75 charge represents this small group price adjustment.
Regarding the general cost of the trip, it appears that this group was originally scheduled to participant in a Habitat Program with a trip price of $1979, but changed to a Splash Program, with a trip cost of $2074, prior to traveling. World Strides agreed to honor the $1979 trip price rather than apply another price adjustment. Unfortunately, it appears that when the program information was changed in our system, the price automatically updated, generating the $95.00 adjustment.
We apologize for this unfortunate error and thank you for bringing this to our attention. We have adjusted your daughter's account to reflect a $0 balance and all accounts for participants traveling on this program will be reconciled in the same manner. I apologize for the frustration this situation has caused you. I hope that the explanation above regarding the handling fees and small group adjustment fee helps to clarify those charges for you. I trust that this outcome is satisfactory and do hope that [redacted] enjoyed her trip with WorldStrides.
Should you have any further questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me directly at [redacted]. We will be providing a copy of this correspondence as part of our response to the recent filing you made with the Revdex.com (Case #: [redacted]) in Richmond.

Review: This is concerning a school trip (trip ID [redacted]) I signed my son up for through his school. (customer account #[redacted]) Worldstrides withdrew $99. on 10/6/15, $109. on 10/22/15, 12/11/15,and 01/12/16 totaling $426.00. I was told when he decided he didn't want to go, to cancel within 10 days of the next withdrawal and that withdrawal wouldn't come out. I canceled Feb 4, 2016 with a phone call. The call asked for an email also, I did email that same day asking to cancel. I received an email informing me the refund would take 4 to 6 weeks that same day Feb 04, 2016. Another email saying 'sorry to see you go', on Feb 10, 2016. Its been eight and no one will talk to me. They even sent me an email saying for $25. they'll let my son back on the list for the trip, but nothing about the refund.Desired Settlement: I'd like as much of my money back as possible.

Business

Response:

Dear

Ms. [redacted],Thank

you for contacting WorldStrides regarding your son’s account. It is my understanding that [redacted] was scheduled

to accompany [redacted] on their upcoming trip to Washington, D.C., but

on February 4th you cancelled his account and continue to have some concerns

regarding your refund. On

September 30th when you registered online, you were presented with

and agreed to certain Terms & Conditions.

Those Terms & Conditions provided a detailed explanation of the cancellation

policy, fees, and the refund policies.

During the enrollment process, you elected to enroll in the Full Refund

Program for an additional $89. When we

processed your cancellation the $99 non-refundable deposit, $89 cost of the

full refund program and $19 t-shirt were retained which left the refund at

$219. Our standard refund timeframe is

4-6 weeks. In review of your account I

see the following history of communication with Customer Service.Thursday, 2/4 – We received your requested cancellation of the account.Thursday, 2/4 – WorldStrides Customer Service responded to cancellation request with notification that the refund would be issued in 4-6 weeks (email attached).Monday, 3/7 – WorldStrides mailed a check refund in the amount of $219Thursday, 3/31 - We received an email notifying us you had not received your refundMonday, 4/4 – We replied confirming that we had sent the check on 3/7 and confirming the address we had mailed refund to.Tuesday, 4/5 – There were several emails responding to questions on the amount of refund, providing details of the Terms & Conditions, and advising we would void the original check mailed on 3/7 and reissue a new check.Thursday, 4/7 – We issued and mailed a new check to the confirmed addressI

apologize for the delays in receiving your refund, but I hope that this

explanation addresses your concerns regarding the communication with Customer

Service as well as the cause of delay itself. We

certainly hope that [redacted] is able to travel with WorldStrides in the

future. Should you have any further

questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me directly at [redacted]. We will be providing a copy of this

correspondence as part of our response to the recent filing you made with the

Revdex.com (Case #: [redacted]) in Richmond.Sincerely, Jessica

S[redacted]

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the offer and/or response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.

I want this company to be more professional.

1. I canceled 2/4 and did not receive a check until last week 4/13. It's not hard to refund electronically. The same way they took my money, they should have refunded.

Review: My daughter's middle school planned a trip to travel to [redacted] and [redacted] over Spring Break 2015. Unrelated to WorldStrides, we had problems with another travel company and had to sign up to travel with WorldStrides "late in the game". WS made exceptions to extend their sign up date to 1/30/15 for our group. They also agreed to a child's discounted rate of $2400 (vs $2550) with no additional or late fees.

After multiple attempts to contact the company to register, including HOURS of hold time, we were promised multiple times that we would be contacted directly by the CS Team Leader. Only about 1/3 of our group were actually ever contacted. When we were finally able to speak to WS for registrations, we ran into problem after problem such as the rates were not correct (despite multiple emails from the agent stating they had already been corrected), fees were added (despite multiple emails stating they had already been waived), and the sign up date had not been extended as promised.

On 2/2/15, we received an email from the rep stating "Reaching out to you…the 2015 trip will be postponed until 2016. It will be more beneficial to the group to travel in 2016 – I am working on putting together the 2016 package." When asked for the reasoning for the postponement (which our group was not asked if this option was acceptable!), the excuse was given that our "group was not able to form in time" and exceptions had been made to extend the deadlines. In fact, every member of our group was signed up and paid in full within the dates given to us in writing by WS. Our group demanded refunds and were told we "will get a refund without a problem". On 2/5, I inquired as to when the refunds would be issued and was told they are "being processed at this time". Many of the others were told the same thing. However, today, 2/10, one of the adults contacted WS and was told the refund process was started yesterday (a full week after promised!) and would take 4-6 weeks.Desired Settlement: I am requesting a full refund to be issued to every member in our group ([redacted]) to be issued immediately. I know this is possible by WS as I had another issue in which a CS rep was able to refund my money while on the phone call. For members that paid via check, I expect a check be issued back to them via overnight mail (at WS expense). For those that paid via credit or debit card, I ask a credit be provided to the card. This refund has been promised to us repeatedly and several inquiries as to when it can be expected have gone ignored.

Business

Response:

Good Afternoon, Ms.[redacted]. I hope this email finds you well. We have received notice of the above referenced complaint filed with the Revdex.com. I apologize for the delay in my response to this matter. Please also accept my apologies for the difficulties you experienced in trying to reach our Customer Support Team during the month of January. Unfortunately, due to a customer outreach program we ran during this time, we experienced an unusually high volume of calls which led to unacceptably long waiting periods for customers. In researching this matter, I have been informed that the 2015 trip previously planned was cancelled by the program leader and that WorldStrides is currently working with him to plan an exciting new trip for 2016. It is my understanding that each participant registered for the 2015 trip has been provided a full refund. Please do let me know if you have not received your refund and I will follow up with the [redacted] to determine the status. Thanks so much. Have a great day. [redacted]

Consumer

Response:

[A default letter is provided here which indicates your acceptance of the business's offer. If you wish, you may update it before sending it.]

I have reviewed the offer made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and find that this resolution would be satisfactory to me. Due to their extreme delay in responding, we have resolved the issue ourselves and am only accepting the resolution because it was taken care of over a month ago without [redacted] assistance. I do find it yet again dissatisfactory that they took so long to acknowledge this request. I am truly disappointed and disgusted by the way our group was treated by this company.

Review: This company has deceptive practices. I called them in December 2014 to apply for a scholarship. I was informed I could not apply at that time due to no funds available. I was told more funds would be available 2/1/2015. I called 2/2/15 and was on hold for 1 hour and 15 minutes before I was able to speak with anyone. I was immediately told there are no funds available. I asked how that could be as I was instructed to call after 2/1/15 and today (2/2/15) is the first business day of the month. The customer service representative was extremely rude and kept repeating the same thing. I kept telling her that I was instructed to call in February, she refused to help and hung up.Desired Settlement: The company needs to honor my application for scholarship and give priority consideration given they refused to allow me to apply.

Business

Response:

Dear**. [redacted]:Thank you for contacting WorldStrides regarding your son 's account. It is my understanding that [redacted] is scheduled to accompany [redacted] on their upcoming trip [redacted] and you have some concerns regarding your ability to apply for a FLAG Scholarship.Unfortunately, the information provided to you by our Customer Service Department was accurate.The funds available to support FLAG Scholarships for 2015 travel have been exhausted.However, I was sorry to hear about the unpleasant experience you encountered while dealing with our Customer Service Representative in this matter. WorldStrides is proud to be the oldest, largest, and most trusted educational student travel organization in the nation. We maintain an A+ rating with the Revdex.com because we review and respond to every customer complaint with compassion and understanding. Therefore, we have made an exception and authorized a refund in the amount or$ I 00.00, waived the handling fee associated with payments on your account and provided you with a total refund of $I 06.00. This amount was refunded to your credit card on February I 0, 2015.I apologize for the inconvenience and dissatisfaction this situation has caused you and do hope that[redacted] has an extraordinary experience on his upcoming trip.Should you have any further questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me directly at [redacted] We will be providing a copy of this correspondence aspart of our response to the recent filing you made with the Revdex.com (Case#: [redacted]) in Richmond.Sincerely [redacted]

Consumer

Response:

[A default letter is provided here which indicates your acceptance of the business's offer. If you wish, you may update it before sending it.]

I have reviewed the offer made by the business in reference to complaint ID[redacted], and find that this resolution would be satisfactory to me. I will wait for the business to perform this action and, if it does, will consider this complaint resolved. If the company does not perform as promised I can get back to you at: [redacted]

Regards,

Review: For more than 3 years Worldstrides has called individual teachers at my school in an attempt to sell student trips. I have repeatedly told them our teachers do not schedule these types of trips and have asked to have our phone removed from their "call list." Sales people from this company persist in calling the school without disclosing the purpose of their phone call, asking for specific teachers, then leaving a misleading message misrepresenting themselves as concerned parents, for example, "I am calling with a question about your history class, please call me at work or if it's after hours my home/cell number is..." Teachers phone back only to discover they are speaking with a sales representative from a travel company. The teachers find this practice deceptive. I have phoned the main headquarters in Virginia and been assured this practice will stopped, but to no avail. Today we received a message from a woman with a question about our history class and upon calling back found out it was a Worldstrides employee in Sacramento. Worldstrides continues to demonstrate a lack of integrity by using these deceptive sales practices. We would appreciate anything you can do to remove our school from their call list.Desired Settlement: We would like our school removed from their call list.

Business

Response:

Dear Ms. [redacted], Thank you for contacting WorldStrides regarding your concerns. We are taking your complaint very seriously and have taken the following actions to prevent any additional calling to occur in your school. • Our Senior Vice President, Steven B[redacted] has called the school, spoken with reception and assured them that no future calling will occur • We have place your school in "blocked" status in our school database that will prevent any future calling to occur • We have included a note in database with instructions not to call school in addition to blocked status I believe that these steps will satisfy your concerns regarding this matter. Should you have further questions or concerns please feel free to contact me directly at [redacted]. We will be providing a copy of this correspondence as part of our response to the recent filing you made with the Revdex.com (Case# [redacted]) in Richmond. Sincerely, Jessica S[redacted] VP Customer Service

Review: I am contacting you to inform you of the incompetent customer service offered by this company. My son just returned from a school tour that consisted of 40 students to [redacted]. There was a lack of communication before these students even left [redacted] My son's flight was delayed three hours from [redacted] to [redacted] on May 31 which made them unable to catch their connecting flight from [redacted] to Dulles, Washington. There were no other flights to Dulles out of [redacted] on May 31. This was a known fact before our kids even flew out of [redacted]. The kids were then stuck in [redacted] for over 24 hours until they could be rescheduled on a flight the next day. Worldstrides never contacted me or any other parents regarding this change. We were never informed of flight changes or told where our kids were staying that night. I called Worldstrides on Monday, June 1 to inquire about a trip extension since my son and the group that he was with had now missed two days of the four day trip. I was told by a Worldstrides representative that a decision regarding a trip extension was to be made that day and that they would be contacting all of the parents by email to let them know. Again, no parent received any information or feedback from the company. I have since contacted the company regarding a promised reimbursement for activities that were missed. I was told that they do not handle the reimbursement process and that the program leader (a teacher from our school) could explain how reimbursements are handled. Our program leader has not received any information from Worldstrides related to reimbursements.

I cannot fathom a student tour company can operate without contacting parents of flight changes, hotel changes. etc. Some of the students on this trip were as young as 12 years old. My calls to the company have since gone straight to voicemails that are never returned along with emails that are never addressed.Desired Settlement: I would like for this company to change their protocols. They need to be required to inform all parents/ guardians of trip changes/ cancellations, etc. They also need to be required to provide parents/ guardians with an itemized refund. This company needs to respond to all calls and emails from parents/ guardians. They are handling people's children and may of these children are traveling across the country for the first time. They should not be responsible for children if they are not willing to contact parents/ guardians of trip changes/ cancellations, etc. Worldstride's customer service dept. is also not open on Sundays which happened to be the first day that our students were traveling. They need to have their customer service dept. open if they have customers traveling in their care.

Business

Response:

Dear Ms. Lee: Thank you for contacting WorldStrides regarding your son's account. It is my understanding that [redacted] recently accompanied [redacted] to [redacted]. and you have some concerns regarding the trip. I appreciate your patience as I researched this matter. I have found that this group of 45 participants traveling from [redacted] was scheduled, at the request of the Program Leader from [redacted], to fly out of [redacted] on May 31. 2015. Unfortunately, there were flight delays due to the terrible weather conditions this region was experiencing at the time. WorldStrides worked cJosely w]th the Program Leader to evaluate the situation and secure a new flight plan for the group as diligently as possible. Unfortunately. [redacted]'s airport did not have a lot of options for a group of this size, which made booking additional flights challenging. It was our understandjng that the Program Leader was in direct contact with parents while the WorldStrides Tour Central team continued to assist with this matter. WorldStrides secured additional accommodations, to include transfer buses. hotel rooms, an outing to [redacted], and compensated for all meals during the group's delay at no added cost to the participants. Additionally, WorldStrides forfeited funds used to secure accommodations previously arranged for the group that were nonrefundable and unused due to the group being delayed by the weather. Please let me assure you that our first priority is always the safety of our program pru.ticipants. Staff at our Tour Central offices in [redacted]., [redacted], and New York City are available 24 hours a day via phone. These trained professionals are prepared to answer your questions and handle emergencies that may arise at any time. As WorldStrides has almost 300,000 participants traveling a year to destinations throughout the United States and the world. the Tour Central offices are designed to focus on vital situations affecting the safety of our participants during the tour rather than refund and customer support issues. Those issues are handled by our Customer Support team during normal business hours. [ am sorry to hear about your dissatisfaction with our Customer Support team's availability, but certainly hope that you can understand the necessity to handle situations in this manner. Although WorldStrides had no control over the acts of God that caused the delays for your son's group and we believe this situation was handled to the best of our ability in direct communication with the Program Leader, we do recognize that this caused you an inconvenience and dissatisfaction. Therefore, as a matter of good faith, we have authorized a refund in the amount of $200 on [redacted] account. Refunds are processed in the manner in which payment was received. Your refund check was processed on June 29, 2015. Again, I apologize for the frustration this situation has caused you and do hope that [redacted] is in a position to travel with WorldStrides again in the future. Should you have any further questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me directly at [redacted]. We will be providing a copy of this correspondence as part of our response to the recent filing you made with the Revdex.com (Case#: [redacted]) in Richmond. [redacted] Paralegal/HR Assistant

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the offer and/or response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.

Thank you for your response to my complaints.

Review: I enrolled my daughter in the Worldstrides program September 2014 for a trip her school was planning to take to Washington D.C. June 7, 2015. After paying my daughters trip in full by the requested deadline of March 24, 2015 by WorldStrides. I was later notified by my child's school in April that the trip was going to be cancelled due to lack of participation in the program. I was assured by my child's teacher that ever dime I paid would be refunded back to me especially since I signed up for the Payment Protection plan for my daughters account. I have reached out to Worldstrides several time trying to get my refund returned to me. I have encountered some rude customer services representative. I have asked to speak to the Financial Dept that handles refunds and was told there was no way possible for me to speak to that department. After paying over $1700 for this trip I cannot believe I'm having this kind of difficulty getting this resolved from an organization that claims they are passionate about creating life-changing learning experiences for students and strives of the excellence of the program. I have tried for a week now to contact a supervisor by the name of [redacted] to discuss my concerns regarding my refund. I have left not only my cell phone number for her to return my call but I have also left my work number for her to call me back should she not be able to reach on my cell during my work hours. She left 1 message on my cell phone, and I returned her call and left 2 additional messages asking her to contact me on my work phone. As of today I still have not spoken to her. The call center representative state they work from home and that it is physically impossible for them to walk over to her office and ask her to call me so the only thing they can do is to send her a message. I am completely dissatisfied with the company and totally disgusted with the way they conduct business. I feel parents should be aware of the way Worldstrides conducts business.Desired Settlement: I would like my full refund and I would like to speak with the programs director or administrator concerning this matter.

Business

Response:

Dear [redacted]Thank you for contacting WorldStrides regarding your

daughter’s account. It is my understanding that [redacted] was scheduled to accompany

[redacted] to Washington D.C. However, the trip was canceled and you have

some concerns regarding the cancellation and your refund.IN researching this matter, I have confirmed that

cancellation was initiated by the Program Leader from [redacted] due to

low participation. WorldStrides has made an exception to the Terms &

Conditions and, as a good faith gesture, provided a full refund to all

participants registered for this trip, to include the non-refundable deposit.Payments made on [redacted] account total $1,653. Refunds are

processed in the manner in which payments are received. Therefore, on May 28,

2015, the follow refunds were processed: $724.00 was refunded back to your

V[redacted], $209.00 was refunded back to your [redacted], and a check in the amount of

$720.00 was forwarded to you via regular mail.I am very sorry to hear about your dissatisfaction concerning

your experience with our Customer Support Staff and apologize for the frustration

this situation has caused you. I do hope that [redacted] is in a position to travel

with WorldSrides in the future. Should you have any further questions or concerns, please feel

free to contact me directly at [redacted]. We will be providing a copy of this

correspondence as part of our response to the recent filing you made with the

Revdex.com [redacted] in Richmond.

Review: I signed my son up for this trip not knowing that I would be moving in the upcoming months. I also did not know that I would not receive a full refund if I canceled.Desired Settlement: I would like a full refund, which is 4 months at 119.00. Thank you

Business

Response:

Dear Ms. [redacted], Thank you for contacting WorldStrides regarding your son's account. I am glad you were able to speak directly with our Customer Service Manager, Cindy S[redacted]. I was pleased to hear we were able to work together to help clear up any confusion regarding the account. I hope that [redacted] is able to travel with WorldStrides in the future. Should you have any further questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me directly at [redacted]. We will be providing a copy of this correspondence as part of our response to the recent filing you made with the Revdex.com (Case#: [redacted]) in Richmond. Sincerely, Jessica S[redacted] VP Customer Service