Bill Plant Driving School Instructor Support Update – 22nd April
Driving Lesson Customer Services
As discussed, the Driving School has seen a substantial rise in bookings for its driving instructors nationwide. Having restructured our Bookings and Customer Service Teams, Bill Plant Driving School operates dedicated and specialised teams to manage both of these functions independently.
Our main goals from a Customer Services perspective are to:
- Offer the highest level of service to all our customers, reflective of our best-in-market driving school position, to ensure your driving lessons are viewed as premium products
- Consistently work to reduce the volume of complaints
- Consistently work to reduce to volume of refunds
Whilst bookings numbers are very high at this moment in time, complaints and refunds have also risen in line with them and must be addressed ASAP. As of today, 76% of the complaints we receive are from students who have paid for their initial driving lessons and called in because their allocated instructors have not contacted them within 24 hours of receiving their booking details. This is not acceptable.
If we want to be a premium driving school, offering higher lesson prices, this must come alongside a premium level of service. If you receive a new student, you must contact them within 24 hours. If you know you won’t be able to contact a student within 24 hours should you potentially receive one, for example, tomorrow, simply request the Instructor Support Team to close your diary today and contact them to reopen it in 2 days time.
There is no excuse not to contact a student within 24 hours of receiving their details unless it is an emergency, as at worst, you can send them a text stating:
“Hi name, it’s instructor from Bill Plant Driving School, I hope this message finds you well. I have received your booking details and will be in touch tomorrow regarding scheduling your driving lessons as I am fully booked all of today with existing clients. I very much look forward to speaking with you soon! Kind regards, instructor.“
If you have tried calling the student and they have not answered, please leave them a text as proof to us you have tried to contact them. We appreciate you are busy, however action must be taken as these complaints are far too high at present. To reduce these instances, in accordance with your franchise agreements, we are introducing a new Traffic Light system to our complaints and refund policy to penalise repeat offenders who damage the Bill Plant Driving School brand to the detriment of its instructors:
Refunds and Complaints Policy Additions – Traffic Light System
- Refunds and Complaints will be reviewed every Friday by the Instructor Support Team Relationship Managers and Customer Services Team. All instructors start in “Green” status.
- Instructors who have 3 or more complaints and/or refunds linked to complaints (you will not be penalised if refunds are due to other reasons e.g. you can’t fit them in) within the previous 4-week period will receive a call from their Relationship Manager to get in touch. A subsequent email will be sent if you do not answer. Should you not respond to our contact within 24-hours your diary will automatically be closed until you have spoken to your Relationship Manager.
- On the call, these cases will be discussed with you directly and you will be made aware that you have entered “Amber” status. If you receive one further complaint or refund linked to a complaint in the following 4-week period while in “Amber” your diary will automatically be closed until you have spoken with your Relationship Manager and you have paid an incurred fee of £25 to Bill Plant Driving School. Your lesson price will also be capped at £27.50 for new students until you move back to “Green”. If no further complaints and/or refunds linked to complaints occur in the following 4-week period, you will move back down to “Green” status.
- If you receive one further complaint and/or refund linked to a complaint after the first in “Amber”, you will move to “Red” status. Instructors in this category are at significant risk of being defaulted for being in breach of their franchise agreements. Your diary will automatically be closed until you have spoken with your Relationship Manager and you have paid an incurred fee of £35 to Bill Plant Driving School. Your lesson price will also be capped at £25 for new students until you move back to “Amber”.
- Any further complaints or refunds linked to complaints in the 4 weeks after entering “Red” status will see your franchise terminated as per the terms of the agreement and you will be pursued to the fullest extent for breach of contract.
Please note, the vast majority of instructors will never leave “Green” status, based on the data we have internally, 40% of the refunds are caused by 4% of the driving school’s instructors and there is a pattern of complaints against instructors that we are determined to address. For the benefit of all our instructors’ reputations and our ability to command higher lesson prices, we must all remain committed to offering only the highest of levels of service.
We hope that you all understand the need for these measures, which are put in place to ensure the long term success of Bill Plant Driving School and its instructors and command higher lesson prices based on our quality of tuition and professionalism.
Instructor Support
Should you need any guidance please do not hesitate to contact your Relationship Manager in the Instructor Support Team on 01765 643374.
From everyone at Bill Plant Driving School, thank you for your on-going support and stay safe.
Kind regards
Tom Hixon
Head of Instructor Support