Instructor hasn't registered certification with PADI

[rgilkes]

I would also wager that you are not the only one that is having the same problem with this instructor.

Once I started experiencing these issues, I actually noticed that there were a ton of posts on their Facebook page from others that were trying to get their c-cards.

Was he an independent Instructor, or associated with a dive shop?

Independent instructor, which is what has made this difficult because I don't have a physical location to go see him.

Call 1-800-729-7234 or send an email to customerservice@padi.com.

Doing this today!

What is the instructor number on your OW card?

IDCS-186719

 

[rgilkes]

Think of the next round of students that have to put up with this BS. Drop the hammer on this guy and alert PADI, the local shop and social media.

I have every intention to do what I can to warn future students about this. Planning on leaving Yelp, Google and Facebook reviews and posting a review on this board including all my issues.

 

[AlexL]

IDCS-186719

Is your instructor Ruben? if so, paid up through the end of the year according to PADI Pro Chek

 

[Charles2]

You can go here and check to see if you are even in PADI's records - PADI | The Way the World Learns to Dive® - This is the link to replace your c-card (United States). Just fill in the details and click "Search Record". It will return your name and certification dates. At least this will tell you whether Ruben has turned in all your paperwork, including the nitrox. If you would rather not bother with the hassle of dealing with Ruben, you can just order a replacement card and you will be good to go. My credit card will allow me to file a claim for any or all of the undelivered services. Seems to me that the cost of the replacement cards would be an undelivered service. Also let PADI know about your experiences.

 

[rgilkes]

Update: I just called the PADI number that Sevenrider860 posted and they told me that I could email them scans of my temporary, along with my diver number and they would register it in the system. Call took all of 5 minutes. Would have saved a lot of frustration if I had just done that from the beginning. Thanks everyone for the help!

 

[boulderjohn]

A number of years ago I had a problem--I was told that the certifications I had turned in were not accepted because I was not a renewed instructor. That shocked me, because I was on automatic renewal. PADI had sent me a letter telling me I had to renew because my credit card on file had expired. I didn't even open the envelope because I saw it was a letter about renewing my membership, and I thought--hey! No problem--I'm on automatic renewal.

So I had to take care of the renewal, and the problem was solved, but the whole process took a couple of weeks because I was using the old mail-in PIC system. If I had used the online system, the problem would have been solved immediately.

This may be what happened here, but in my case the students were told immediately what the problem was, and they were perfectly understanding about it.

 

[rgilkes]

Well either PADI got a hold of them or they read this board because I just got this message on Facebook a few minutes ago and within 10 minutes the PADI confirmation email was in my inbox

 

[Diver0001]

Hey all,

I completed my OW and Nitrox with a local instructor in Jacksonville back in May. After the course, the instructor gave us temporary c-cards that he hand wrote/signed. After about a month, I reached out to the instructor because I hadn't received an email from PADI nor anything in the mail (he told us the email would come in 2-3 days and physical c-card in 4-6 weeks). The instructor didn't respond to phone calls (voicemail was full) or email. In fact, the only thing they responded to was Facebook messages. They told me that it would be processed soon and they would keep me updated. Over the next month, I sent two more FB messages to check on the status and they stopped responding. Finally, I sent a FB message, email and left a voicemail (finally) saying that I didn't want to escalate to leaving bad reviews/contacting PADI/BBB, but their unresponsiveness was extremely unprofessional. Like magic, I received responses the same day and TA-DA I received an email from PADI for my OW that afternoon.

My issue now, is that I paid an additional fee to complete my Nitrox cert the same day and they have not registered that with PADI. My temporary c-card expires next week and I'm not really sure what to do. They are not responding to any forms of communication. Is there anything I can do by reaching out to PADI or any other method to get the cert registered? Am I just stuck trying to file a dispute with my credit card company for the amount I paid for the Nitrox class?

Thanks for the help!!

Keep complaining. It worked the first time.

And in in the future do not allow the instructor to use a paper form. Certifications can be entered online. You'll get your confirmation mail in 2 seconds and your temporary card digitally. Once you have that then the instructor is out of the loop and any further problems you have you can take up with PADI, who are very reliable about these things.

In the past there were so many instructors who did not submit forms that it is actually in the PADI standards that it is a violation on teh instructor's behalf to withhold certifying a student who has completed everything (and paid in full, of course). One recourse you have with PADI, therefore, is to report the instructor for a standards violation. Then PADI will be phoning the instructor instead of you. It's nasty to do that but you can at least tell your instructor that you will if he doesn't get his patoosh in gear and submit it.

R..

 

[tursiops]

Keep complaining. It worked the first time.

And in in the future do not allow the instructor to use a paper form. Certifications can be entered online. You'll get your confirmation mail in 2 seconds and your temporary card digitally. Once you have that then the instructor is out of the loop and any further problems you have you can take up with PADI, who are very reliable about these things.

In the past there were so many instructors who did not submit forms that it is actually in the PADI standards that it is a violation on teh instructor's behalf to withhold certifying a student who has completed everything (and paid in full, of course). One recourse you have with PADI, therefore, is to report the instructor for a standards violation. Then PADI will be phoning the instructor instead of you. It's nasty to do that but you can at least tell your instructor that you will if he doesn't get his patoosh in gear and submit it.

R..

Since the offending instructor is an "elite instructor" it would be interesting to hear the conversation he might have with PADI about standards violations.

 

[rgilkes]

And in in the future do not allow the instructor to use a paper form

Didn't know this. Thanks!!

And thanks everybody else for your help/advice!