Earlier this year my eight-year-old daughter became involved with Karate. It has overall been a good experience for her and she has enjoyed learning the martial arts. We selected the dojo based on a location close to our home and from the beginning we had some issues, but we liked one of her teachers... and he did a great job of relating to the kids and the parents.

As my daughter's involvement grew and we were asked to sign a long-term (three year) contract in order for her to move up to the intermediate level of training and to be on the black belt track. (They would not put her in this program without the contract). Soon thereafter is when it everything went south. The teacher whom we liked and respected left the school and we became less satisfied with the level of instruction. Some parents spoke to the owner, who insisted that he himself is a "great" teacher. But like art, opinions about instruction are subjective. While he may think he does a fine job, we just were not as pleased as we had been. Additionally, a fifteen-year-old girl, who was obviously new to instructing martial arts, taught the two classes I recently observed.

My wife has tried to get out of the contract, only to find that the "financial services" firm who handles the billing will not allow us to terminate, and the owner of the business says we must talk to them. My assumption was that we would have a one or two month cancellation fee...but NO.... they expect us to continue to pay $150 per month regardless of if we want to be there, or even if we ever show up again (they told my wife that our satisfaction or participation had nothing to do with the contract).

Other parents in the neighborhood have told me about similar experiences with this karate school. I checked with the local Better Business Bureau and discovered that the school has an "unsatisfactory" rating. There have been three complaints with the BBB since February regarding "sales practice issues" and "billing or collection issues". In each case the owner of the dojo has simply ignored the BBB (no response to the complaint), which means he did not even attempt to work with the dissatisfied client. This is a bad sign.

I work in a professional environment where good and ethical business people want happy clients, not just those locked into contracts. This is my first experience with someone who does not care about customer service.

I have spoken with two attorneys who have said that there are many of these types of businesses (karate schools, gymnastics studios, dance instruction, gyms, etc....) make a practice of forcing people to pay on contracts regardless of satisfaction or participation. They outsource their contracts with "collection firms" who know how to structure it so that clients do not have the rights that one would normally expect.

My wife was lead to believe that the contract was there to keep us engaged in the program and guarantee the price for the black-belt training. They avoided letting her know that there was no way out.... and again, our daughter could not progress in her training without the contract. Having never had experiences with these types of business practices..... It never dawned on us that this would be an issue. It seemed like a gym membership where a thirty-day cancellation notification was all that would be necessary to move on. It is just karate for the eight-year-old!!!

I am disappointed in the whole situation because the martial arts teach about integrity, ethics and honor. I have spoken with the "governing bodies" of karate associations only to find they do not get involved in billing and contract issues of their registered dojos (RED FLAG). I was told that contracts are common, but most schools would never force you to pay if you did not attend. Beyond that statement there was nothing they would do for me.

In getting the kids involved in their programs they are so friendly, but the tune can sure change fast.

I am currently looking at legal options. Fortunately, we have great legal advisors. If the owner of the karate academy believes that we should have to pay for three years ($5000) of instruction that we will never receive....then he is not the kind of man I want my family to associate with in the first place.

I am mad, sad, disappointed, frustrated, and sorry that we have to deal with this situation. I have learned a few lessons that all parents should follow when getting their kids involved in karate (and other martial arts) or any other formal activity:

1. Do not select your school, academy, dojo, studio, etc... based only on location. Find the one with the best reputation.

2. Ask other parents for their opinions of the establishment. Ask those who are currently active in the program and especially ones who have been involved for a long period of time. Also, seek out others in your community who might have participated in the past.

3. Run a free report on the business through you local Better Business Bureau. If there have been complaints, this may (or may not) be reason for concern. How a company responds to a complaint is more important than if there are complaints on record. If the business has not responded to complaints, be extra careful. Certainly NEVER sign a contract with them if there are unanswered contract and billing complaints. This means they will ignore your complaints should they arise in the future.

4. Specifically ask about cancellation fees and policies. If it is not clearly stated in the contract, make them write it down or refuse to sign the contract. Do not take it lightly just because it is a kids activity.

While we all hope the people who facilitate our childrens activities are wonderful souls who put our kids experience above all else, it is not always the case. I hope that others can learn from our mistake.