Feel like I was ripped off by local dive shop

[SRV2007]

I hesitated making this my first post, but it has really been eating at me, so here it goes:

Not too long ago, my local dive shop in Alabama offered the Advanced Open Water Certification class for free, as a promotional deal. The only things folks had to pay for were the instructional materials and, of course, the trip for the check-out dives.

Finished the class and signed up for the trip. Was told that the trip would cost $365.00, which included 2 nights at a motel ($65.00 a night - 2 students per room), weights (I used my own), use of their tanks, and a total of 4 dives (two, 2-tank dives) with a diving outfit in Panama City Beach, Florida. However, since I decided to pay for my own room at another hotel (did not want to share a room with someone else and motel was already booked) in Panama City, they gave me a discount of $65.00, so I paid $300.00. Well, due to bad weather, we were unable to go diving in the ocean in P.C., so we instead did our checkout dives at Vortex Springs for 2 days -- no ocean dives as planned. I used all of my own gear, weights included, and a total of 4 tanks of gas over the 2 days of diving at Vortex. Am I missing something (are there "administrative fees", so to speak, in the dive shop industry on trips like these?) or does it sound like I was ripped off?

 

[Arizona]

Hard to tell without an itemized bill. There are fees for books, your pic among other fees. Ask the shop what they charge if you want to hire tanks and compare what you paid. Factor in transportation on land and sea. The instructor should make something, but it is more likely the shop will.

Hope this helps,

AZ

 

[Colliam7]

Not too long ago, my local dive shop in Alabama offered the Advanced Open Water Certification class for free, as a promotional deal. The only things folks had to pay for were the instructional materials and, of course, the trip for the check-out dives.Well, due to bad weather, we were unable to go diving in the ocean in P.C., so we instead did our checkout dives at Vortex Springs for 2 days -- no ocean dives as planned. I used all of my own gear, weights included, and a total of 4 tanks of gas over the 2 days of diving at Vortex. Am I missing something (are there "administrative fees", so to speak, in the dive shop industry on trips like these?) or does it sound like I was ripped off?

I wouldn't say 'ripped off'. I also wouldn't say the AOW was offered 'for free' by any means, although the overall price was very modest. But, your specific question appears to be whether the daily admission cost to Vortex Springs ($19 for divers) was the same as the daily per person charter costs for a boat out of PC ($65-$75 for 'in-shore' dives), and that is not likely. In fairness the charter arrangement may have involved the instructor being 'comped', and that might not be the case at VS. But that is a trvial amount. A suggestion - if this was a 'promotional' offer, it implies the shop did it to promote future shop business. There is nothing wrong with asking them what the rebate, or in-store credit, will be for divers in the course, considering you paid for ocean dives and did not get what you paid for. If the weather did not permit the charter boat to go out, they (the shop) didn't pay. If they want to 'promote' business, it would be unwise to have customers annoyed by something like this. If they say, 'Sorry, you paid for the course, not for a particular dive venue.', I would suggest you drop the issue, and that shop in the future. And, you only had to do 4 (not 5) dives for AOW?

 

[Diver Lori]

Example: Certification dives while traveling in the Carribbean can cost $200 to $400 depending on destination. And that's only the dives.

Hopefully your instructor was pulling most of the revenue from your fees.

 

[ClayJar]

My LDS here in Baton Rouge does our checkout trips to Vortex (1 day) and Panama City Beach (two 2-tank days, plus a 2-tank night trip if there are advanced or better). Thankfully, we rarely get blown out, but it does happen occasionally (including and entire trip last year).

Anyway, if we're blown out once, we go to Morrison (free), and if we're blown out both Gulf days, we go back to Vortex for Sunday's dives. In either case, the shop refunds the difference to all the divers who paid for the boat trip(s). Do they have to? No, they could run with the "you paid for a checkout trip, and that's what you got" line, but as you can plainly see, that tends to make people feel slighted.

I dare say the difference between my LDS (where if you get blown out, you're quite likely to sign up for the next trip, just for fun) and your LDS (where when you got blown out, you're rather less likely to want to do anything with them) is enough to account for the shop's cost. (The trip that was a total wash ended up being a net loss to the shop, but I've seen quite a few of those divers back out again.)

 

[fireflock]

What did the shop say when you asked them about it?

 

[pir8]

Do you bring your own Eggs to the Diner when you go there for Breakfast?

 

[Web Monkey]

I hesitated making this my first post, but it has really been eating at me, so here it goes:

. . .

included, and a total of 4 tanks of gas over the 2 days of diving at Vortex. Am I missing something (are there "administrative fees", so to speak, in the dive shop industry on trips like these?) or does it sound like I was ripped off?

You got two days of supervised diving with an instructor, including tanks and a C-Card for about $150/day.

It's not the deal of the century, but you're certainly not being "ripped off".

Terry

 

[SmokinReefer]

Do you bring your own Eggs to the Diner when you go there for Breakfast?

That got me laughing. A friend of mine drives a truck past this diner in lower Delaware. He got tired of these tiny eggs they were serving. He started taking two eggs with him when he knew he would be passing by. Somehow he had the waitress convinced they were some kind of special eggs......golden perhaps?

 

[scubadobadoo]

What it comes down to is, as Colliam said, do you get a refund for the canceled boat trips. Did the shop?

Also, web monkey has a good point too. Not the best deal ever but it could have been much worse.

In the end, it sucks, but I have lost a good bit of cash on canceled dives due to weather. I have spent entire paid vacations in hurricanes praying in a dark room with limited supplies for days. It's part of what we do, eventually it will happen, you will get blown out even if that won't make you feel better now. It'll pass.