Complaints

The complaint text that is displayed might not represent all complaints filed with BBB. Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:03/14/2024

  Type:Billing Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  On their website, it states that OffLeashK9 offers training at home. I called them and asked how to sign up. They said I had to pay first and then could set up ******s (not a subscription). After hearing the options, I elected to pay $900 for comprehensive training which included the e-collar ($200 item). She said nothing about a subscription model or an expiration date to my payment. She provided no contracts. My payment was taken over the phone. She said they would give me the collar at my first ******* As I tried to schedule that ****** she told me this service can not be performed at my home and that my family should be present with at least the 2 main caregivers. I was disappointed because ******s at home with the collar were the 2 reasons I signed up. In the meantime, unexpected health problems, the death of my father, late work hours due to COVID (my husband and I are physicians) and separate schedules for both children got in the way of scheduling. I called at least 3 times in the last 2 years to know my options. Each time I called, they could not locate my account. That was the GREATEST BARRIER since I would have to search credit card statements to prove that I paid. Finally, today I found the transaction and called them. I expected a change fee, possibly a penalty but did not expect to hear that $900 expired completely similar to a "GYM Subscription." This was the first I was hearing of this. I did not ask for a refund, just credit toward training and the collar. When they refused that, I asked for just the collar. They refused that too and said it was part of their services and was risky to use without training. I wanted the collar to use with another trainer since OffLeashK9 absorbed ****** dollars without doing anything. The same collar is available on amazon without training but I would have to pay ****** for it again. I would appreciate a refund, credit, the collar, anything for the money I paid!

  Business Response

  Date: 03/19/2024

  ****** **** purchased a dog training package on March 14th 2022 (not a typo, purchased two years ago).  Client scheduled 2 appointments while on the phone with our receptionist at the time of purchase.  Client was also sent an email to create a password to access her account. Records show that on March 30th 2022 at 8:15pm the client canceled the ****** from the online portal with a reason of conflict in schedule.  (see attached document). Our office staff reached out to the client on May 30th 2022 by email to help client rescheduled her canceled appointments. Client also signed an agreement which states our cancelation policy.  When the clients stated we couldnt find her account when she called us on March 13th 2024 it was because she couldnt remember the name she used to register with since it was 2 years ago.  At the time of Ms. ****** purchase we did not have "in home training" available to purchase, that is something we began in fall of 2023. Purchasing over the phone our staff would of told her it wasn't available before she paid and we do not require everyone in the household to be present at training, we do recommend it. 

  The first time we heard from this client in two years was March 13th 2024 and client asked for us to give her the training equipment so her friend can do the training since she "doesn't have time". (She did not want to come to us for training.) This is against our policies and is not ethical when dealing with equipment that could possibly hurt her dog if used incorrectly. We offered to work with her and figure out what would work best and she just demanded the collar that she paid for.  Ms **** has access to her online portal since March 13th 2022 where she can contact us for scheduling, she can schedule her own appointments and see her paid receipt along with many other things. In two years we never heard from her even when we reached out.  The package she purchased was 8 ******s expiring in 180 days. I am very forgiving when it comes to expiration dates and have on multiple occasions extended them when clients have contacted us.  She could see her package and expiration date on her portal and on her paid receipt which was emailed to her and accessible on her portal.  I attached 5 screen shots of ****** ****** account which shows her purchase, her expiration date, her canceled ******s which say canceled by client, and her signed agreement which states our cancelation policy. Again all of this information is on her portal which she has access to. At any point if she would of contacted us within a reasonable amount of time of purchase we would of extended the expiration date. We were willing to get her scheduled when she called on March 13th 2024 if that is what she wanted but she did not want that, she just wanted the equipment which is only part of the training package. I can understand her frustration on paying a large amount of money and not using the services but she signed the agreement, she had access to her account from time of purchase and we where willing to work with her. We are frustrated to be put in this position and receiving negative reviews on ****** and yelp, and being reported to the BBB for following our policies.  

  Customer Answer

  Date: 03/22/2024

   
  Complaint: 21429113
  
  I am rejecting this response because:

  I called for the 1st time on March 14th 2022 after reading on their website that they specialize in training dogs how to stay off leash with a training collar and that they do provide ******s at home. I briefly discussed packages with their receptionist over the phone and agreed to pay ****** for a comprehensive training package including 8 -1 hour ******s and a ****** collar. She stated I needed to create a login and sign their waiver before I could pay. I created an account, and signed the waiver. I did not select from packages or knowingly sign any other contract with a cancellation policy on that portal. You can see the formatting. The expiration did not show unless I knew to log back in and see where I paid. I called the receptionist back right away, provided my cc and was eager to schedule the ******s at home. That is when I found out, they did not offer ******s with the collar at home. I tried to schedule a weekend ****** but they did not offer those at that time either so I scheduled a tentative weekday ******. I could not rearrange my patients and get out of work in time so I rescheduled, on the portal but I did not go look at the tab where I paid because I had no reason to do that. I had to cancel twice in those first 2 weeks and then decided I could not do this training on weekdays. I resolved to have my daughter take the dog for training when she was home from college in the summer. 
  When we called in June 2022, Offleash K9 could not locate my account. I only gave them 2 names (my maiden name and my married name). I became worried that my payment was lost. I did not recall that there was a portal and if they could not find me in their own portal I did not even think there would be a working portal for me. They said they would search and call me back which they did a few days later and left a message stating I needed to prove I paid before moving forward. Because they could not find my account, they must not have documented my calls. This is why they are claiming I signed up, canceled twice and did not call again for 2 years. I assumed my only remedy was to find the ** bill or call again and speak to someone different. I tried calling again in August of 2022, and had to leave a message. I wish I wrote all my calls down but every time there was a holiday or a break for my kids coming up, I called to see if perhaps they could look harder and my payment information could be located. I believed it was the businesses responsibility to find the payment I made to them rather than them putting the burden on me to find and prove I had paid. It was a hardship for me because 2 months after I paid for the ******s, my purse was stolen and I had to order all new credit cards. Our statements were packed away. We have 5 separate LLCs and much administrative burden. Plus I was just hoping to schedule during any upcoming breaks from college that my daughter would have to go to the ******s. The delay in scheduling was not due to a lack of me calling, rather they could not find me in their system. 
  They are misquoting me when they say I refused to come for training when I called on March 13th of 2024. This is all I have wanted with each call. I could not come in March of 2022 because of their more restricted time spots but was seeking to schedule ******s when I called on March 13, 2024. I wanted training, and the collar rather than my money back. I would have paid a change fee and an adjustment if the fee had increased for the same service but they would not allow it. I did not realize they had no record of me calling all along. They were fixed on the untruth that I had not called in 2 years. 
  When I called for the final time on 3/13/24, they again could not find my information in their system using my married or maiden name. I started pulling out our old ** bills and then I remembered about the portal. It triggered me to search my email and I found a copy of the waiver. I redeemed my password and found my payment in the portal. As I picked my phone up to call them and show proof, they were calling me saying all they had to do was put my phone number in to find my information. They had found it, but ALL the funds were expired. I did not understand how that could have happened. If I had known, I would have been much more vigilant about scheduling rather than checking in to see if they could find my information every few months. During those calls, no one warned me that the funds would expire. They offered no ******s for the money I paid, no collar and no refund for the collar. They speak about me as if I was just going to ask a friend to train my dog. I am a physician and my physician associate who has undergone 8 ******s of training from Offleash K9 (and also knew nothing about the 6 month rule) had offered to show me how to set it up and charge it so that I could work with another trainer. She brings her retriever to our back office and uses the collar and was going to at least orient me to it. I had every intention of seeking professional training and wanted it from Offleash K9 until they gave me nothing for what I paid. They offered a single one hour ****** for an additional ******. I told them I was willing to pay a rescheduling fee, updated charges if they would just let me use my funds towards their services but they refused. I looked through all the emails and logged into their site and could find no contract. I see the 6 month rule is under the refunds tab on their website. I never looked at that since I was not interested in a refund until they denied me any credit for what I paid. The owner has snapped back and lied on the forums I have posted on. He feels my story has changed but I wish he had taken the time to think it through, talk to me and understand all I wanted was the ******s. I even said please just give me one or 2 ******s, the collar, something for my money. 
  The confusion stemmed from them not being able to find me. They should have asked for my number if it was that simple when I was speaking to them directly on the phone multiple times in the past 2 years. I did not think I would be able to see anything in a portal that they could not find me in themselves. They have no record of me calling because they could not find me! I dont believe asking them to look up my married and maiden name should have thrown them off as much as it did and was surprised it took minutes to find me with my cell. 
  I have reported them since their policies are unclear. I signed no contract other than a waiver and was not obligated to check the portal for an expiration date noted on their portal. Nor was I obligated to schedule through the portal since they do schedule over the phone. It should be their obligation to know that a customer has paid them. It caused unnecessary delays in my scheduling and did not allow me to use the services I paid for. I could argue that they should have honored a pause in their 180 day period that included all of the times I called and they could not find me. That period should have restarted from the moment they located me with my phone number. They did not keep records of all of my calls and are falsely claiming that I called 2 years later. 
  I do not trust Offleash K9 with training my dog after the way they have responded. At this point, I would like a refund.
  
  
  
  Sincerely,
  
  ****** ****

  Business Response

  Date: 03/25/2024

  There are two people who answer the phone, the office manager and the owner. When a client calls we do everything we can to find a clients account. With only two people answering the phone I find it hard to believe that myself or my manager couldnt find the account.  We are capable of looking up clients accounts by names, dogs names, email and phone numbers and we would of asked for all of those when speaking with the client. My system can even go into the history of that date of purchase and see all transactions which is then linked to the client and immediately goes to their account. If we did receive 3 phone calls in the last two years we would of been able to locate the account within a few minutes. Could it be possible you called the wrong Off Leash location instead of us. We will receive phone calls from *********************** every once in awhile not realizing they are calling the wrong location. 
  We have been in business for 11 years and majority of our scheduling is on the weekend. Our weekends are always booked solid and have cancelation lists for these appointments. I can see a reason for not booking a weekend appointment was because my trainers were booked with no appointments available. (see attached picture of full weekend schedule March 2022)We have been using the same scheduling system since 2019 and you had full access to schedule your lessons. We do not require you to call to book your appointments. If you did call to schedule we would of been happy to do that for you.  We offer lessons both weekdays and weekends with morning, afternoon and evening appointments. I do not see how that is restrictive when scheduling. We see over 100 clients a week and it is not our responsibility to make sure everyone is booking their appointments. We did however reach out to you two months later (May of 2022) to get you scheduled with no response. Again in home lessons were not available, since covid we stopped offering in home sessions and only began offering them again starting in January 2023. (picture of announcement attached)
  We did offer a way to have lessons but you didnt want that. You just wanted the collar. Then you began posting negative reviews on public forums before I was aware of the situation. 
  Our policies are clear. They are stated on our website, the portal and appointment confirmation emails. 

  Customer Answer

  Date: 03/27/2024

   
  Complaint: 21429113
  
  I am rejecting this response because:

  It is your word against mine. I signed no contracts except for a waiver. I called multiple times to schedule ******s and your 2 representatives could not find my account, even this last time. I am not sure why she did not enter my phone number or ask additional contact info before she hung up if your company has multiple ways to find an account. She called back and explained how she found it finally with my cell because I was not going to stop before I proved I paid. I let her know that before I hung up so maybe she believed me and decided to check further. It's not mandatory to use the portal to schedule ******s. Calling should be enough. It would be bizarre for an average working person to pay ****** for a service/goods and not make efforts to use them. It is even more alarming that your business would not give the customer even the smallest benefit of the doubt. I did not want a refund each time I called, just the services. I would have paid 150 more for your trouble of rescheduling without any issues. That would have been much less effort than this ridiculous back and forth. I will remove my complaints, if you will make a reasonable concession. An additional ****** for 1 ****** when I already paid ****** for 8 ******s originally and got nothing, is not reasonable or a concession. 

  Sincerely,
  
  ****** ****