Complaints

This profile includes complaints for Music & Arts's headquarters and its corporate-owned locations. To view all corporate locations, see Find Local Branches.

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  Music & Arts

  7550 Teague Rd Ste 115 Hanover, MD 21076

  
• 

  Music & Arts

  5295 Westview Drive, Suite 300 Frederick, MD 21703-7159

  
• 

  Music & Arts

  7839 Maltlage Drive Liverpool, NY 13090

• 

  Music and Arts Center

  742 W Route 70 Marlton, NJ 08053-1644

• 

  Music and Arts

  1388 Chain Bridge Rd McLean, VA 22101-3904

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:09/13/2023

  Type:Billing Issues
  Status:

  ResolvedMore 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.

  We signed up for lessons with Music and Arts for both children at different times. After attending the lessons for a while, we were ending up with several sessions that were getting carried forward and were planning vacations in the summer, so decided to cancel. We informed the store in person on 5/30/23. They had some challenges with their process and systems, but confirmed that we did cancel. The corporate office contined to bill me for several months. I could not get them to stop, so I submitted a dispute with my credit card company. I recieved 1 credit from Music and Arts, and the other via the credit card company. Yesterday, I received another bill from Music and Arts. I am concerned about them filing a false claim that may affect my credit. They attempted that already. I have quite a bit of documentation, but am limited on what I can upload, so I am attaching the letter I sent to ****. We were billed for over $700, but only attended a total of 8 lessons. Please let me know if you need more information.

  Business Response

  Date: 09/22/2023

  Dear ******* ******,

  I am writing in response to your concerns regarding your lesson account with Music & Arts. I apologize for any frustrations you may be experiencing. I can confirm you were refunded $128.00 to your credit card ending **** on September 21, 2023, and your lesson accounts are closed. Please allow 3-5 business days for bank to process the refund. Your credit has not and will not be affected by this.

  Thank you for your time,

  Jessica N*****

  Customer Answer

  Date: 09/25/2023

  
  
  Better Business Bureau:
  
  
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ******** and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.

  Thank you both for your help.
  
  
  
  Sincerely,
  
  
  
  ******* ******

• Initial Complaint

  Date:09/13/2023

  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.

  Please see the attached word document for a full account of the problem. Supporting documentation and written correspondence is included in attachments 1-5.
  
  This complaint is regarding an outstanding charge that has been acknowledged in writing from the local Music and Arts store manager should be refunded. My credit card company blocked Music and Arts from charging my card what they determined to be a fraudulent charge. After multiple attempts to clear the charge in written correspondence, on the telephone and via email, Music and Arts informed me that my account was delinquent. I am appealing to the BBB for assistance in clearing the charge.
  
  All information included in the attachments have been provided to Music and Arts multiple times.

  Business Response

  Date: 09/19/2023

  Dear ***** **********

  I am writing in response to your concerns regarding Music & Arts. I apologize for any frustrations you may have experienced surrounding your lesson account. I can confirm as of September 14, 2023, your account is closed with a zero balance. 

  Thank you for your time,

  Jessica N*****

• Initial Complaint

  Date:09/13/2023

  Type:Customer Service 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.

  I purchased items for my daughter's band class for her Bassoon on 9/1/2023 and paid for 2-day shipping. By Tuesday 9/5/2023, I didn't see a tracking number so I decided to call to find out when the items would be delivered, but I was on hold for over 3 hours and I still did not speak to anyone. The rest of the week, I called, sent emails and went to their social media outlets to try and get to a person to see where my items were. I finally got a response from an email saying their 2-day shipping didn't mean I would get it in 2-days. They said they would refund my 2-day shipping fee and that my items were on the way. I finally received some of my items on 9/7/2023 and I was still missing 2 items, one was supposed to be delivered to the local store, so I called and tracked the tracking number but it said that it wasn't picked up by the carrier, but it ended up delivered to my house on 9/8/2023 but I am still missing the three Bassoon reeds I ordered. There is no way to track it and I have been calling and emailing still. I finally received another email yesterday 9/11/2023 and they said that the reeds were not in stock and were on backorder. When I ordered them, they were in stock and I never received anything about having to wait for the reeds and when they would be sent out. My daughter needs this for her instrument and if I knew they weren't in stock I would have ordered from somewhere else to have them on time. There is no reason that it is so hard to get in contact with customer service about items we spent our money on. I spent $200 and couldn't get a hold of anyone. I even tried to call their corporate office. I still do not know when I will receive my items, the email said they will be back in stock 9/15/2023, my daughter needed her items by Wednesday 9/6/2023 and it is now 9/12/2023. There should be some type of compensation for all these problems and unable to get on the phone and speak to a live person. Order numbers ************* *************

  Business Response

  Date: 09/18/2023

  Dear ******* **********

  I am writing in response to your concerns regarding Music & Arts. I apologize for any frustrations you may have experienced surrounding your order.  I can confirm your Bassoon reeds were received on September 15, 2023, tracking number ******************. As of September 15, 2023, all of your items have been received. 

  Thank you for your time,

  Jessica N*****

• Initial Complaint

  Date:09/12/2023

  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.

  I rented a flute, 2012 through the years the flute was lost. On 06/15/23 I called customer service at 9:06a, inquiring when monthly payments would end. Was informed the flute was worth $730, it was paid off with the "credit" of my payments which totaled $2,729. I was informed no refund would be received of the excess due to me losing the flute. When I asked about the extra funds I paid, approx. $2,000 I was told, "Why would we ever give you another? You lost it". I was unable to finish a sentence, requested my situation be escalated to supervisor and a copy of my original contract. She said she would email me my contract, took current email address, said a supervisor would call within 24-48 hours. (I have the account number given, can provide upon request.)
  
  Two days later received a call back, was told I would not receive a refund for excess funds due to my losing the flute. I repeated the flute was $730, that I paid the full worth of the instrument so they could replace the one lost, and that their electronic funds transfer had continued to take out monthly charges to $2,000 and I would not receive that back, which was confirmed as correct. Again asked for a copy of contract.
  
  On 08/16/2023 at 1:40p after waiting in queue since 1:23p I spoke with another customer service agent named Erica. I repeated my request for a copy of my original contract, after being placed on hold she said yes, the contract can be sent via email. She took my email address. I was placed on hold again and she said they "don't have the contract" so will need to request it. A "ticket" was created (I have the ticket number given to me at this time, available upon request)
  
  On 08/24/2023 at 1:56p I waited in queue for callback until 2:56p. Someone said hello twice then hung up. Initiated queue again immediately. At 4:04p I was told that my original contract had been purged since it was pre-2016 and there was nothing they could do and I would not be receiving a refund nor my contract.

  Business Response

  Date: 09/28/2023

  Dear ***** ***,

  I am writing in response to your concerns regarding your rental with Music & Arts. I apologize for any frustrations you may be experiencing. You didn't report the instrument being lost until June 2023, at that time we closed your account and stopped the billing. We are unable to refund you any money however you can use your rental credit in the amount of $1,932.82 to purchase another instrument. Please go to your local Music & Arts location to discuss your purchase options.

  Thank you for your time,

  Jessica N*****

• Initial Complaint

  Date:09/11/2023

  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.

  When I went to music and arts in 2017, I rented a Trombone for my sons school program. We then returned the trombone after the program was finished. Later in the year, I received a collections report that Music and Arts had reported $3924 to collections. I had no idea why, so I called and they said because you kept the trombone and missed payments. Made no sense, I sent in many disputes for this, instead they added late charges to the collections. I called the original store I rented the instrument from and they told me, at the time a new system called DAX was being implemented and they were experiencing some issues. Unfortunately my account was affected. It created a duplicate account for the instrument, one account showed us returning the instrument, the other account was left open saying I still had the instrument. So that’s why I was charged $3k to collections due to a system error. I have been trying to call them, email them and no response. This false collection report has drastically affected my life in purchasing a home, car, credit cards and so on. I’m trying to get this removed from my credit but can’t get ahold of them.

  Business Response

  Date: 09/21/2023

  Dear ***** ********

  I am writing in response to your concerns regarding Music & Arts, I apologize for any frustrations you may have experienced surrounding your rental. You never contacted Music & Arts to request or to verify pick up at the school, per your contract you must notify Music & Arts prior to leaving the instrument at the school. This instrument should have been returned by you to the local store where you rented it. I can confirm you contacted your local Music & Arts store on September 11, 2023, to advise them that you returned your instrument to the school, the instrument was picked up by one of our Educational Representatives and processed on September 14, 2023. Your account was not affected by our company implementing a new computer system, which was in 2016. A duplicate account was not created under your name. Your balance is over 3K because you didn't make your agreed upon payments or return your instrument properly. Please call *** at 1-888-******** to resolve your outstanding balance. Once you have settled your balance with them your credit report will be updated accordingly.

  Thank you for your time,

  Jessica N*****

• Initial Complaint

  Date:09/11/2023

  Type:Customer Service 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.

  I have been trying to make a payment for months. My original card expired and the automatic payments were unable to come out. I have tried calling and am always on hold for more than an hour with no one coming to the phone. I have done a call back and still deal with the same issues. I tried to go online and make a payment. I put in all of my info and there is no way to even make a payment. Customer service is non existent. I just want to make a payment on my rental

  Business Response

  Date: 09/12/2023

  Dear ******* *****,

  I am writing in response to your concerns regarding Music & Arts. I apologize for any frustrations you may have experienced surrounding your rental account. I can confirm we have spoken to you multiple times regarding updating your credit card and making a payment, the most recent being August 14, 2023. You stated you would call us back later that day, according to our phone records you did not call back. We have called you back on August 18, August 24, August 30, September 6 and September 12. Please return our call to 1-833-952-4609 and we will update your credit card and take your payment over the telephone.

  Thank you for your time,

  Jessica N*****

• Initial Complaint

  Date:09/11/2023

  Type:Customer Service 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.

  I rented a flute for my daughter, I also ordered a starter kit and a red beginners booklet that she needed for class. Only the flute was delivered, and the other two said it was still processing. I’ve emailed customer service 3 times, called and was on hold for over 2 hours, and tried the chat function for 25 minutes before it knocked me off and said it was closed. This is very frustrating and I need help as she needs this beginners book for school. I was already charged for these things.

  Business Response

  Date: 09/18/2023

  Dear ********* ******

  I am writing in response to your concerns regarding Music & Arts. I apologize for any frustrations you may have experienced surrounding your rental. I can confirm your starter kit was delivered on September 14, 2023. Your book shipped on August 18, 2023, but is stuck in transit, a new book was shipped to you with tracking number ************************** and will be delivered September 18, 2023. 

  Thank you for your time,

  Jessica N*****

   

• Initial Complaint

  Date:09/11/2023

  Type:Customer Service 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.

  I have tried to contact Music and Arts customer via phone and email with no response or connection. Trying to resolve account balances and other service issues but continue to remain on hold for hours. This has been a frustrating ordeal because it is connected to my child’s instrument rental.
  
  I noticed several complaints and wonder why legal action against this company has not been filed. Also, with no notice, one rental payment has been put into collections before pre-warning from Music and Arts billing department.

  Business Response

  Date: 09/21/2023

  Dear ****** ****,

  I am writing in response to your concerns regarding Music & Arts. I apologize for any frustrations you may have experienced surrounding your rental. You spoke to two different representatives on September 5, 2023, one at 12:28pm and another at 3:34pm, during those conversations you advised us you would to call us back on September 19, 2023, and make your payment. As of September 21, 2023, we haven't heard from you nor have we received the promised payment. Unfortunately, your last payment made was on November 28, 2022, so your account was forwarded to ***** for assistance with collections. Please call them at 1-888-******** and they would be happy to assist you.

  Thank you for your time,

  Jessica N*****

• Initial Complaint

  Date:09/11/2023

  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.

  Aggressive collection tactics (violating proper consumer debt practices) for an INCORRECT BALANCE that occurred when Music & Arts purchased a small, locally-owned music store during summer 2022. Despite my many attempts to resolve - calls, emails, certified letters, including sending copies of my instrument rental agreement they could not locate - they have taken no action to correct the billing errors or acknowledge receipt of the correct information that I provided. They simply continue to call, send statements, and threaten collection proceedings for the wrong balance amount. At the beginning of the billing mess, they even sent an amount to a collection agency and concurrently made an unauthorized transaction on my credit card for the same charges.

  Business Response

  Date: 10/02/2023

  Dear ******** *******,

  I am writing in response to your concerns regarding your rental with Music & Arts. I apologize for any frustration you may have experienced surrounding your rental.  You didn't have any rental credit at the time of the Tenor Sax rental, see the attached contract. As explained to you the balance on your account is correct. On September 19, 2022, your monthly payment of $59.00 was charged then you called in for your payoff and the additional $524.31 was charged. You then disputed both charges with your credit card company and were refunded. Due to non-payment your account was sent to ***** for assistance with collections, please call them directly at 1-888-*********

  Thank you for your time,

  Jessica N*****

  Customer Answer

  Date: 10/02/2023

  
  
  Complaint: ********
  
  
  
  I am rejecting this response. Please see all the documentation that I provided with the complaint. I do not believe you have reviewed the documents because you are asking the same questions that I have explained many, many times.

  We had an existing rental credit that a former employee failed to mark on the revised/upgraded rental agreement when my student switched from an Alto Sax to a Tenor Sax. This error was pointed out to me by YOUR EMPLOYEE at the local M&A store on 9/21/22. Since YOUR COMPANY could not find the records, I provided the 1st rental agreement to YOUR EMPLOYEE in the Account Resolution department per THEIR REQUEST on 4/3/23. No one has ever responded or acknowledged that I have provided the documentation that was requested. 

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

  Customer Answer

  Date: 10/06/2023

  Received 10/6/23 - different amount and format than any other statement received in the last year.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:08/31/2023

  Type:Customer Service Issues
  Status:

  ResolvedMore 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.

  My complaint is identical to that filed on BBB 8/7. I signed my son up for trumpet lessons on April 30th 2023. I signed no agreement or contract, and was not advised of any terms regarding automatic renewals and how to cancel. Nevertheless, I learned of the automatic renewals the hard way, and I deduced that I would need to cancel the recurring charge before it hit my credit card next month. I purposely went to my local M&A store on June 26th, KNOWING that I might be on the hook when the next charge hit on June 30th, because my initial purchase was on April 30th, and according to M&A's own Terms and Conditions, "Monthly lessons are billed on the date of original purchase." (I had to hunt down these terms and conditions online, when I should have been made aware of them at time of purchase) Yet somehow, the same day I walked into the store to cancel on that day (the 26th), my credit card was charged for the next round of lessons ($168). M&A's billing practices clearly violated their own terms and conditions by charging me 4 days early! I naturally requested a refund, but it was quickly obvious that store employees have no authority to issue refunds, and no digitized system for providing proof and tracking to customers that a refund was requested. After multiple trips and phone calls back to the store, I was advised each time that it would just take longer. What!!?? 60 days after the initial cancellation, I'm back in the store, and they tell me it was denied because I didn't cancel in time! Nobody even contacted me to advise me of this denial! Music and Arts just decided they would violate their own policies, keep my money, and not tell me about it! To add insult to all of this, M&A's 888 phone number is a road to nowhere - multiple hours waiting on hold, and no one ever answers to help resolve this through a corporate channel. I HAVE NEVER ENCOUNTERED SUCH DECEPTIVE BUSINESS PRACTICES. It shouldn't be this hard, and I'm tired of wasting so much time to fix it.

  Business Response

  Date: 09/18/2023

  Dear ****** *******,

  I am writing in response to your concerns regarding Music & Arts. I apologize for any frustrations you may have experienced surrounding your lesson account. I can confirm you were refunded in the amount of $168.00 on September 4th, 2023, to your credit card ending ****. Your lesson account is closed with a zero balance. Your account will remain closed as long as we don't receive any disputes from your credit card company.

  Thank you for your time,

  Jessica N*****

  Business Response

  Date: 09/19/2023

  Dear ****** *******,

  You received a bill because we received a chargeback from your bank on September 5, 2023, the day after your refund was processed. This created a balance due on your account, we've since won the dispute and your account has been closed with a zero balance. A zero-balance statement is attached for your records. Your account will remain closed with a zero balance as long as there are no additional chargebacks received. Our Customer Service telephone number is 1-888-731-5396.

  Thank you for your time,

  Jessica N*****

  Customer Answer

  Date: 09/23/2023

  
  
  Better Business Bureau:
  
  
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.
  
  
  
  
  Sincerely,
  
  
  
  ****** *******