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Ok, so I had a dcg start on January 22nd. On Monday the 25th, I had to call her mom in the middle of the day to come pick her up because she had a fever. Well she ended up being sick all week and so she wasn't here at all except for those few hours on Monday. I just got a text from dcm asking to see if she could get refunded. My contract clearly states that they still pay no matter if the dcg is here or not. It's to hold her spot. I just feel bad that I have only watched her one and a half days total. Would y'all stick to your contract and not refund? I feel like I'm not going to keep this family long because I keep having to reiterate my contract. It's very frustrating because I spent soooo much time on this contract!!
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If you bend on this, enforcing your written policies goes out the window. Just remind her what the contract states. -
Take the emotion out of it, that's always helpful (not easy, but helpful). Since you keep having to reiterate our contract to them, yes, I would hold them to it. They need to know your serious on your policies. I would just send a message saying "As per our contract payments are based on enrollement not attendance. No discounts are given. Hope dg is feeling better and we look forward to seeing her next week!" End of discussion
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Thank you both! She just texted me back saying she was just asking because dcg was literally here for 4 hours...
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It may ****, but it's business. I would simply respond with something like "I know it's unfortunate timing that dcg was sick her first week but your payment is for the space and not for attendance. Although she may have not been here, your payment ensured that the spot would still be available to use as soon as she was well enough to attend."Comment
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Rates are based on enrollment NOT attendance or time used.
Rinse and repeat.
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I tell parents at enrollment, it is a risk they have to take. Kids always tend to get sick when they first start due to getting acclimated to new germs, not all kids, but most.
If this were me, would just remind them that they have to pay for the spot and there will be no refund, but that you will not require a two week notice or such if they wish to not continue on.
Let dcm know. I had this spot open and ready for you to use and it was not available to anyone else, so it needs to be paid for.
if she gets mad, let her get mad. Don't worry about how she is going to feel about your decisions you make with your business. rules are rules. she signed on with those rules I am sure.Comment
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I'm going against the tide here but you have to realize I am not a strong-willed person.
I certainly agree with everybody and the points they made BUT being she was only there 4 hours her whole first week, I probably would have made a compromise of some sort. I guess I always believed in 'what goes around comes around' or hope it works out that way for the most part. I get that this is business and that is how my contract reads too(pay 52 weeks a year no matter what). Plus I guess I'm extremely lucky in that none of my parents try to take advantage of me thereby making me feel compromises are a good thing.
But that's just me.
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I personally would have just started their week the next week. If the shoe was on the other foot I know I wouldn't be happy.I'm going against the tide here but you have to realize I am not a strong-willed person. I certainly agree with everybody and the points they made BUT being she was only there 4 hours her whole first week, I probably would have made a compromise of some sort. I guess I always believed in 'what goes around comes around' or hope it works out that way for the most part. I get that this is business and that is how my contract reads too(pay 52 weeks a year no matter what). Plus I guess I'm extremely lucky in that none of my parents try to take advantage of me thereby making me feel compromises are a good thing.
But that's just me.
But I would be very clear that this was a one time thing and be very clear you would not be doing this again.Comment
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I can see both sides, but as a parent, newly enrolled, the last thing I would do is ask for the provider to compromise her policies. I would feel bad asking for a favor one week into our relationship. It stinks, but if you give break now and dck continues to get sick frequently (she may be a kid who gets sick a lot), it could really bite you in the bum later on
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One thing I have learned the hard way... Start off the way you want to continue.
I like how snbauser worded her reply. Friendly yet firm.
If you are having to keep reiterating your contract with her, I think you need to be firm 100% of the time. Refer her back to the contract. As per your contract.... etc etc etc.Comment
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I have a paragraph in my illness policy that allows a 50% credit (not a refund) towards the next week /month that states IF a parent has to keep their child out 5 straight days (I would count the Monday child left early) AS LONG AS they bring me a Dr's note with diagnoses that same week stating said child has to be out for this amount of time due to said illness... it stops parents from trying to use it as credit for last minute vacation time, but ****s if the family doesn't see a DR. No note, no discount.
I get that kids get sick and raising mine as a single mom, I get the missing so much work crap, but I don't want a parent thinking they can pull one over on me either if they decide not to work one full week - I figure it's my way of compromisingComment
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My son attends a small daycare center and they have a policy where if a child is out 3 consecutive days, that week's tuition is half off (we pay Mondays for that week's care, so the following week we just need to pay half). I've always thought this was a very fair policy, but I can see it not working in a home daycare, as that could be a big loss of income (I know for me, if my paycheck was $100 less one week than I expected, it would be difficult for me to pay my bills on time). As a parent I can see being frustrated paying for a week your child wasn't able to attend, but at the same time, you signed a contract. And I would also never ask my dcp if I could not pay for that reason.Comment
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What makes her circumstance or story any different than someone else's?I'm going against the tide here but you have to realize I am not a strong-willed person. I certainly agree with everybody and the points they made BUT being she was only there 4 hours her whole first week, I probably would have made a compromise of some sort. I guess I always believed in 'what goes around comes around' or hope it works out that way for the most part. I get that this is business and that is how my contract reads too(pay 52 weeks a year no matter what). Plus I guess I'm extremely lucky in that none of my parents try to take advantage of me thereby making me feel compromises are a good thing.
But that's just me.
Where do you draw the line?
Why does the provider have to lose income because of an illness DCG picked up somewhere else? She'd only been in care for 4 hours so I doubt she picked up anything in that small time frame.
... and Hmm 4 hours in? Just in time for the Tylenol to wear off...
Who knows really... point is I dont think the daycare provider should **** it up and take the loss. It's that parent' child. Their responsibility.
Absoloutely!
The business model/plan for a center and how they charge their clients differs greatly from an in home provider.
Your discount, when absent more than 3 days, doesn't come directly out of the providers pocket.
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