Q: Trying to receive refund from my child's preschool due to school shutdown for covid-19
I know these are unprecedented times we are all going through but long story short my son's baby and me program put on by a local independent preschool has been canceled since mid MarchI've contacted them asking for a refund for the days the school was not open since we paid upfront back in September. They told me they will not be issuing refunds because they are basically still liable for their bills and haven't received any forgiveness from creditors or state funding. I've read the contract we signed and it states no refunds will be issued for missed days because of personal issues, taking your child out of the class but doesn't state anything about the school having to close down and be unable to prove services. Basically we're talking about a couple hundred bucks... not a fortune...but money is tough right now they aren't the only ones trying to figure out how to pay the Bill's
Is there any way of persuading them to refund the money or any local authorities that can help ?
A:
I think that you would be hard-pressed to get a refund. First, read the agreement carefully. You have to look to see if there are any provisions that assign the risk of missed days? The agreement states that you have to pay for days that your child is not there. Many contracts of this kind have provisions dealing with emergency shutdowns, does yours?
Most contracts indicate that you are not buying each day individually, you are reserving your child's place for a longer period of time. The business needs your payment to pay the overhead for the entire term of the agreement, not just the days that your child is there. The business's expenses do not stop because your child or any child is not present. If you are polite and express your concerns, you may be able to negotiate a partial refund, or a credit toward future, make up days.
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