Coaching or Education Institute Refund Complaint

To, The Director / Principal [institute_name] [institute_address] Date: [complaint_date] Subject: Demand for refund of fees — [student_name], [course_name] Sir/Madam, 1. PARTICULARS Student : [student_name] Parent/guardian: [parent_name] Course : [course_name] Enrolled on : [enrolment_date] Fees paid : Rs. [fees_paid] Discontinued on: [withdrawal_date] Refund claimed : Rs. [refund_claimed] 2. GROUNDS FOR THE REFUND [grounds] 3. That the fees were paid in advance for services which have not been rendered, or have been rendered materially otherwise than as represented at the time of enrolment. 4. That retaining fees for a period during which no service was provided amounts to an UNFAIR TRADE PRACTICE and a DEFICIENCY IN SERVICE within the meaning of the Consumer Protection Act, 2019. 5. That a term purporting to make the entire fee non-refundable in all circumstances, irrespective of when the student withdraws and how much of the course has been delivered, is liable to be treated as an UNFAIR CONTRACT TERM, and consumer forums have repeatedly directed refunds notwithstanding such clauses. 6. I therefore call upon you to refund the sum of Rs. [refund_claimed] within FIFTEEN DAYS of receipt of this letter, failing which I shall be constrained to approach the appropriate Consumer Commission for refund together with interest, compensation and costs, at your risk as to expense. Yours faithfully, [student_name] / [parent_name] Contact: [contact_number] ENCLOSURES 1. Fee receipts 2. Prospectus, brochure or advertisement relied upon at enrolment 3. Enrolment form and any agreement signed 4. Correspondence regarding withdrawal ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── "FEES ONCE PAID ARE NON-REFUNDABLE" IS NOT THE LAST WORD Almost every prospectus says it. It does not automatically bind you. Consumer forums in India have repeatedly held that retaining the whole of a fee for a course the student did not receive is unfair, and have ordered refunds proportionate to what was actually delivered — commonly allowing the institute to keep a reasonable administrative charge and a share for the period attended. The reasoning is straightforward: a fee is paid for a service, and a service not rendered is not earned. A blanket forfeiture clause imposed on a take-it-or-leave-it basis is exactly the kind of term the Consumer Protection Act, 2019 addresses. WHAT STRENGTHENS A CLAIM: - WITHDRAW IN WRITING and keep proof of the date. The refund usually turns on how much of the course had run when you left. - KEEP THE PROSPECTUS OR ADVERTISEMENT. If faculty, batch size, duration or facilities were promised and not delivered, that is misrepresentation, and it changes the case from "I changed my mind" to "you did not provide what you sold". - PAY BY A TRACEABLE METHOD. Cash with no receipt is the commonest reason these claims fail. - NOTE WHETHER A SEAT WAS FILLED. Where the institute admitted another student in your place, the argument that it suffered a loss largely disappears. FOR SCHOOLS AND COLLEGES, additional protection may exist under regulator circulars — UGC and AICTE have issued directions on refund of fees on withdrawal, and several States regulate school fees. Those are worth citing where they apply. WHERE TO GO IF IGNORED: the District Consumer Commission, which can be approached ONLINE through the national consumer portal, without a lawyer, on a modest fee. A complaint must ordinarily be filed within TWO YEARS of the cause of action.