Bad LDS Experience.

[DukeAMO]

Wow. Our instructors/DMs never asked for tips. I had no idea tipping was even something you would do. Now I wonder if it's customary, hm. I knew about tipping on boats, but classes just seem different to me. Apparently all of the DMs just have their pay credited to their account at the shop, because they end up using all of it for gear/trips/fills. ;-)

Our LDS actually charges less than the online shops for most gear, when you account for shipping costs. I'm sure they've still made a tidy profit off of us, because both of us bought a lot of gear there. Also, if I'm going to spend an hour in the shop asking 20 questions to make sure I get gear I'll like, I feel like I should buy something. And we've had some minor gear issues already, which they fixed for no charge. Customer service!

There is another nice LDS just a few miles away. We've picked up a few things there, we've used their nice training pool, and we might go on some of their trips. But we'll get the majority of our stuff from the LDS we started with, because they've been treating us well. That's the honest way to make money, as opposed to the shady things you mentioned!

Hopefully you can find a good LDS. It shouldn't be difficult in Tampa. Maybe some people here can recommend one.

P.S. We started with a Groupon from the LDS, but it was for Discover Scuba. IMHO that's a better idea for the shops, because they're not losing as much money on that class, and they still pull people in.

 

[BLoaf]

It was a great deal, and a lot of people got certified for a good price. The LDS simply didn't hold up their end of the deal and had lousy customer service in my case. If they were losing money with a groupon then they should have pulled out every bell and whistle and gone above and beyond with the service to gain loyal customers. I am never going to do business with them again!

Unfortunately, you were the victim of " The Groupon Deal ".

 

[Scuba_Noob]

Like many of the other divers here (only for charters and trips), I've never been asked for tips for courses, and I didn't know the etiquette at the time. I do know that my OW instructor was excellent, and the only mention of gear buying was giving me a coupon after the class was done. I would have tipped, if asked at the end, but I don't support asking for a tip at the beginning.

Because of the professional and helpful nature of my LDS, I decided to support them by buying my regs and BCD there (which were a few hundred dollars more than if I had bought them online). Also, I wanted to build a good relationship with the LDS.

If you felt jaded by the instructor and the store (which you should), you might not want to trust them with the instruction. What they did by asking for tips constantly, begging for money, and lying about the engine - that was all completely unprofessional. By trying to aggressively sell to you, they lost themselves a customer. And they should have honored the Groupon. I'm glad for you that you have another choice in LDS.

 

[TSandM]

I just wanted to observe that the relationship between shop instructor as described by Mr. Derail is not universal.

With our shop, the instructors ARE independent contractors. They are paid by the student, and if they teach a class of 8, they make about $8 an hour when it's all over. The AIs and DMs that work with the students in the pool and in OW are not paid at all. If they are sufficiently active, they receive a discount from the shop on purchases made there, but it's not a big one. Instructors receive nothing from gear sales made by the shop to their students.

I think the vast majority of students are unaware that most of the staff that works with them are doing it as a volunteer activity.

 

[Rich Keller]

Unfortunately, you were the victim of " The Groupon Deal ".

Groupon just sells discount coupons for any type of business that wants to advertise that way. They have nothing to do with what happens after that. Everything the OP said was the fault of the LDS.

 

[dumpsterDiver]

what is the name of the shop?

 

[BLoaf]

Mac's

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

Sounds like a shop that's seriously worried about losing business ... and doing everything they can to make it a self-fulfilling prophesy ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[Tim R Alcoser JR]

**** Im sure people in my area know this place, They still have my bc, so im not dropping a name right now.

---------- Post added ----------

Also, I bought the equipment (mask etc.) based of a description of what I needed in the groupon, the LDS never went over anything until after I bought stuff. They "Screwed" themselves. They should have more business forsight.

I was going to say... I hear about these bad experiences all the time, all over the boards. I have been fortunate enough to have pretty decent instructors and shops thus far. But I don't care what anybody says. If I have a bad experience as bad as some of the stories floating around these forums, I'm singing names (dive shops) and locations over Yelp, Scubaboards, BBB, etc and will not feel bad doing so.

Many people don't, and I think that is a mistake because they are going to keep doing the same thing over and over until they do get a little "encouragement" to change and know what us, as customers, really think.

My intention is not really to "hurt" the dive shop, but to keep others safe and protect them from BS experiences like that. And again, to give them a little motivation to change otherwise.

This would be, most likely, after speaking to the actual owner/operator of the lds or boat to ensure he knows what is really going on and if he even cares.

 

[BLoaf]

Well, I have actually heard worse stories about the owner himself. There is a review for the place on G+, talks about the guy yelling at people and being extremely rude. There are a couple good guys...they seemed good, but its a lot of the younger guys that dont seem to give a crap.