AA and BSM Must Refund 80,000 Learners Over Hidden Fees

The owner of AA and BSM driving schools must pay refunds. More than 80,000 learners are affected. The company failed to disclose the total price for lessons upfront.

A Major Payout for Learners

Customers booked their lessons online. The hidden fee only appeared at checkout. This broke consumer law. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) led the investigation.

£760,000 in Refunds

Affected customers will share £760,000. The average payout is around £9 per person. The CMA also fined the company £4.2 million. The practice is called “drip pricing”.A spokesperson for the driving schools said they were “disappointed”. However, they “cooperated fully” throughout the investigation.

Its Went Wrong

The mandatory booking fee was £3. It was not shown at the start of booking. New customers only saw it at checkout. By then, they had already selected lessons, chosen times, and entered personal details.The company admitted the fee should have been displayed earlier. They made immediate changes to their website. The fee is now more prominent. All relevant customers will receive refunds.