As a former student of Christos Driving School over 35 years ago, I enrolled my son expecting the same level of professionalism and reliability. Unfortunately, our experience fell far short.
The first driving lesson was canceled at the last minute due to a reported emergency--understandable, but no contingency plan or earlier notice was provided. We rearranged our work schedules twice to accommodate, only to be met with radio silence at the second lesson: my husband and son waited over 30 minutes, and no one from Christos contacted us. There was no text, no call--nothing.
Even after I corrected my son's email address twice, it was still wrong in their system, leading to more confusion. When I raised these concerns professionally, I received a defensive and antagonistic response from their business manager, along with a partial refund ($245 from a $300 payment) and a refusal to take responsibility. Instead of resolving the issue, they dismissed us and suggested we find another school.
What should be a milestone filled with learning and support became stressful and chaotic. We've since moved on to a program that values families and communicates clearly. Sadly, I cannot recommend Christos to anyone seeking a respectful, reliable driving school.
Christy, thank you for your reply. I'm genuinely disappointed to see your continued defensiveness and misrepresentation of what occurred. Let me be clear: I was never rude or unprofessional in any of my correspondence. As a business professional with over 30 years of corporate experience, I approached the situation with direct but respectful communication -- as anyone would after multiple breakdowns in service, including missed lessons, incorrect contact information (despite repeated corrections), and a complete lack of real-time communication.
You are correct that I decided to transfer my son after the second no-show. That decision was made after Christos Driving failed to show up for a scheduled lesson -- with no call, no text, and no follow-up -- and after I had rearranged my family's schedule multiple times. That is not acceptable customer service in any industry.
Regarding your comments about "full accountability": Sending a generic apology while miscalculating a refund and then blaming the customer is not accountability. It's deflection. The $300 payment was clear, and the refund of $245 was never properly explained. Suggesting that I "immediately attacked" your business is simply false -- I raised a concern, and instead of resolving it with professionalism, your office responded with antagonism and condescension.
Since you've chosen to mischaracterize my feedback, I've taken further steps. I've filed a complaint with the Better Business Bureau, and I've shared my experience with the Stow Moms Facebook group, where -- notably -- there were already existing posts raising similar concerns prior to mine.
As someone who values integrity and clear communication, I sincerely hope that your team reflects on this experience and how it was handled. My review stands not out of anger, but in the hope that future families are treated with more respect and professionalism than we were. read more
