After attending an open day in mid-September I signed up for a 10-week Chinese evening class at the Soas University of London. It was the end of the day and the staff expected me to sign up and make a payment there and then of £340. I was offered the most appropriate class, but was worried that the time and day could be problematic. However, under pressure and worried I might miss out, I reluctantly paid.
The class was due to start in October, but a week before I received an email saying it had been cancelled. The school confirmed that a refund request had been sent to the finance office and that it would take no longer than four weeks, but would likely be processed faster.
Four weeks later I had still not received my money, so I sent another email. I was told the payment was processed on 3 November and that I would have it in two to three days, but it has still not been sent. I am young, work part-time and volunteer while I apply for jobs. I have since had to pay £270 for a different Chinese course, so this is not an insignificant amount. RM, London N7
You received disappointingly poor service from a major university, although its booking and payment terms for part-time courses are all set out clearly in its terms and conditions. It says: “We strongly advise you to enrol at least five days before the start date as places are allocated on a ‘first come’ basis. Places cannot be reserved in advance without payment. If a scheduled class does not reach the specified quorum, it will be cancelled – and students notified five working days before its start” – and that the refund “may take up to four weeks”.
Soas tells us you have been refunded – admittedly five weeks later. It apologises and says it is “of course looking at why the refund didn’t happen within our four-week turnaround time”.
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