Welcome AWOL! I’m very glad to see another Brit joining – the Yanks and Aussies are very numerous, and far too uncouth for my liking!
Regarding your refund, I think you should go for it, and the sooner the better. Almost all orgs in the UK are in a really bad way, financially speaking (and in fact in most other ways as well, come to think of it). If you delay too long, there is a real risk that they will go belly up and be unable to repay you.
Here’s my suggestions on what to do:
1. Decide if you want to get a refund of all unused, money on account, or for all money paid for all services, actually taken or yet to be taken. If it is the former, this should be doable within a few months, if it is the latter, be prepared for a long and arduous fight.
2. Establish exactly how much money you have on account. Dig out all your receipts, credit card bills and bank statements etc. You may need these if you need to go to court. Also, ask for a detailed breakdown of your money on account, if you don’t already have one. If you have paid money in advance, they have to tell you how much is in your account. You don’t have to tell them why you are asking for this info at this stage, but make sure you get this statement. Check it against your records and make sure you are happy with the final figure.
3. Send a letter via recorded delivery, asking for refund of money on account or for everything you have ever paid, according to your decision to 1 above. Quote the official CoS policy on refunds:
HCOPL 23 Oct 1963 ‘Refund Policy’
1. Refund at once in full any refund demanded.
………..
The new policy then is:
1. Refund any fees and as demanded, whether for training or for processing.
and,
HCOPL 31 July 1966R (Revised 28 Jan 1991)
“DONATIONS PROMPTLY REFUNDED TO ANY DISSATISFIED STUDENT OR PRECLEAR IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE POLICIES OF THE CLAIMS VERIFICATION BOARD, IF THE PRECLEAR OR STUDENT IS DISSATISFIED AND DEMANDS IT WITHIN THREE MONTHS AFTER THE TRAINING OR PROCESSING, THE ONLY CONDITION BEING THAT HE MAY NOT AGAIN BE PROCESSED OR TRAINED.”
Give them a time-limit to reply, say 2 weeks from receipt of your letter.
Make it very clear that if they do not respond, you will be seeking legal recourse against them.
4. If they respond, at all, they will probably ask you to come in for a handling. This consists of shunting you around the org in the hope that you can be bullied into dropping your claim. They will probably try to make you feel guilty, tell you that you are losing your “chance for eternity” etc, etc. Don’t listen to any of it – be polite, but firm.
They will also probably want you do a routing form. You do not have to do this. And, certainly do not sign anything that limits your rights. When I got my refund, they tried to make me sign a waiver, promising to never talk about Scientology to anyone, not to discuss the refund and to never even help anyone who opposed the CoS. I refused, and they caved in. They may suggest that they can keep a portion of your money for ‘admin’. This is bollocks and do not agree to this.
Legally, the only thing you have to do, is give them a receipt for the money.
5. I’m assuming that they will either ignore you, in the vain hope that you will go away (talk about non-confront!) or just string you along with the old “we are working on it” routine.
In this case, you will need to get legal advice and possibly representation. Make sure you get a reputable solicitor, who isn’t going to charge an arm and a leg.
They will draft a letter to be sent to your org. Hopefully this will do the trick. If not, you need to ‘raise the ethics gradient’.
6. Send a letter to OSA at St Hill Manor, explaining the situation and tell them that you would like to avoid a court case, if possible, but only if you get all your money. Then be prepared to send letters to your local MP, Trading Standards, BBC Watchdog, local paper, office of fair trading, Charity Commission (the body responsible for deciding who gets to be a charity) and anyone else you can think of. They absolutely hate bad publicity. If you can generate enough of a threat, they will find the money from somewhere.
So, in summary, don’t take any BS, don’t let yourself be pushed around, don’t sign anything that limits you rights and don’t accept a penny less than the full amount.
If you need any help, PM me and I can tell you how I (eventually) got my refund.
Good luck!
Axiom142
