On an earlier post, I mentioned my unwillingness to pay in “package” for my driving lessons. Even if my driving instructor explained the possibility of eventually spending more for my lessons if I don’t pay in package, I just felt a little safer paying per lesson or per 5 lessons. The reason why is simple.
Last night, my mum told me that she will pay for my younger brother’s lessons in full. In full means, in package. Sure, you get a discount but there’s no guarantee that you will get your money’s worth. That, and the possibility that you will actually lose more than what you paid for.
Last night, I texted my instructor informing him that my mum will pay for my younger brother’s driving package on Monday. He told me that he will come to pick him up at 2pm today for driving lessons. He did not show up. My sister tried contacting him but to no avail. Earlier this week he did tell me that he might not be available this afternoon but eventually, he’s the one who set up an appointment time and didn’t make it. He didn’t keep his word in a way.
This is just a taste of possibly unsatisfaction with instructors or people in general when you pay in full. You can’t get your money back, especially if there’s no written agreement or contract. It’s the same in almost everything you pay for.
Another example of where this can be applied is with web hosting. If you pay per year, or per 2 years, you will get a really good discount on hosting costs. The problem though, is that they usually offer only a 30-day money-back guarantee. So they only have to ensure that the service they provide is perfect for the first 30 days. After that, they can treat you like crap and you can’t have your money back.
If you want to shift to another host, you basically lose the remaining months that you had paid for. Which really sucks.
For this reason, I prefer to pay for a short period of time only so what’s lost is lost and wouldn’t be that great of a lost. For example, if my driving instructor just disappears all of a sudden, I’d have lost just 5 days worth of driving lessons. If my host disappears all of a sudden, I’d just lose the remaining months’ worth of hosting.
The disadvantage on the other hand is that if I take too long to learn how to drive, I would have to spend a lot more than if I were to pay the package cost assuming that the instructor delivers the service. Same with hosting. But that said, I still prefer to feel safe and just pay short term than pay in full.
Related posts:
WYSIWYG! I'm a simple person trying to live the simplest life possible - it seems to be the most difficult thing to achieve! I'm an internet enthusiast and I've been a webmaster since early 2007. I like: blogging, developing sites using open source software, social media, computer games, '80s music, comedy & horror, animals, crunching on M&Ms peanut and Smarties!
