In a previous post about the downside to this job I mentioned a pupil who had an unexplained strop on her lesson last week.
Well, her next lesson was on 9th (Sunday). On 3rd Nov I texted her and asked if she was all right (her lesson on 2nd Nov was where she’d had the strop). No reply . I texted again on 6th Nov and asked if we were still on for Sunday. No reply . I texted again on 8th Nov and asked if were still on for the following day. I get the reply: ‘ I think so ‘.
Bearing in mind her lesson is at 8pm on the Sunday, I get a text message at 4pm Sunday afternoon saying: ‘ I can’t make my driving lesson later. Sorry ‘.
I decided to have a look back over her record for the last few months. Here’s what it looks like:
- Sun, 9/11 – 8pm lesson ( cancelled at 4pm)
- Sun, 2/11 – 8pm lesson (has a strop near the end)
- Sun, 26/10 – 8pm lesson ( cancelled with under 10 hours notice due to hangover)
- Sun 19/10 – 8pm lesson OK
- Sun 12/10 – 8pm lesson OK
- Sun 5/10 – 8pm lesson ( cancelled with under 3 hours notice due to hangover, I think)
- Sun 28/9 – 8pm lesson OK
- Sun 21/9 – 8pm lesson OK
- Sun 14/9 – 8pm lesson ( cancelled same day – no reason)
- Sun 7/9 – 8pm lesson OK
- Fri 29/8 – 12pm lesson OK
- Sun 24/8 – 8pm lesson ( cancelled same day – no reason)
- Sun 17/8 – 8pm lesson OK
- Sun 20/7 – 8pm lesson ( cancelled with under 6 hours notice – no reason)
- Sun 13/7 – 8pm lesson OK
- Sun 6/7 – 8pm lesson OK
- Tue 24/6 – 8pm lesson OK
- Thu 19/6 – 8pm lesson OK
- Sun 15/6 – 8pm lesson ( cancelled same day – no reason)
If I go further back there are more cancellations. There was at least one other strop in there somewhere, too, where she got in the car already upset. There were a couple where she could hardly keep her eyes open (on one, she had the remnants of a hangover at 8pm). I asked her repeatedly to give me more notice, and I warned her several times about the dangers of being tired or drinking before driving.
I’ve been tolerant because her late lesson isn’t usually required by anyone else, although it has lost me work a couple of times. But in all, her behaviour has cost me a total of more than £160 in income alone, plus the lost work and fuel – not to mention the inconvenience.
She has nothing pre-booked in my diary now, and if she calls next week to ask where I am I’m afraid I’m going to politely tell her to find another instructor. Enough is enough.