AndrewMel
Registered
Hi there,
I am new to this site and to diving. Unfortunately I have had a very bad experience with the second dive course that I signed up with through PADI. Its a long story but basically our Diving instructor insisted that we pay him up from and then cancelled the course on 24 hours notice and has since then has refused to refund us. (this all happened about 3 weeks ago).
We contacted PADI in the UK as they are responsible for the Africa region and they initially suspended the instructor but after he offered to 'settle' with us by paying us back and delivering our course books to us, PADI re-instated the instructor and closed their investigation (without even telling me and before the instructor had refunded us or delivered our course books).
Now it appears that the Diving instructor is not going to refund us and having done some investigating of my own, it appears that there are many other divers in my area that have been ripped off by the same instructor. He seems to take the client's money up front and then either cancel or never finish the course.
I have mentioned all of this to PADI (who I am still in contact with) and provided them with supporting fact but their view is quite literally that they are only concerned with the divers ability to teach safely and the fact that he has stolen our money is outside their jurisdiction. As things stand this instructor is still accredited by PADI even though they are aware that he is using this accreditation to con people out of their hard earned money.
Surely this can't be right?
Does anyone have any suggestions as to how I can take this further. Its caused myself and my family a lot of trauma and we feel let down by PADI who we though was there to look after the interests of divers but is seems that they are only interested in looking after their own instructors (even if it turns out that they are acting criminally)
I am new to this site and to diving. Unfortunately I have had a very bad experience with the second dive course that I signed up with through PADI. Its a long story but basically our Diving instructor insisted that we pay him up from and then cancelled the course on 24 hours notice and has since then has refused to refund us. (this all happened about 3 weeks ago).
We contacted PADI in the UK as they are responsible for the Africa region and they initially suspended the instructor but after he offered to 'settle' with us by paying us back and delivering our course books to us, PADI re-instated the instructor and closed their investigation (without even telling me and before the instructor had refunded us or delivered our course books).
Now it appears that the Diving instructor is not going to refund us and having done some investigating of my own, it appears that there are many other divers in my area that have been ripped off by the same instructor. He seems to take the client's money up front and then either cancel or never finish the course.
I have mentioned all of this to PADI (who I am still in contact with) and provided them with supporting fact but their view is quite literally that they are only concerned with the divers ability to teach safely and the fact that he has stolen our money is outside their jurisdiction. As things stand this instructor is still accredited by PADI even though they are aware that he is using this accreditation to con people out of their hard earned money.
Surely this can't be right?
Does anyone have any suggestions as to how I can take this further. Its caused myself and my family a lot of trauma and we feel let down by PADI who we though was there to look after the interests of divers but is seems that they are only interested in looking after their own instructors (even if it turns out that they are acting criminally)