Thousands of AA and BSM learner drivers to be refunded £760,000 over hidden charges – right here’s how one can declare | EUROtoday

Two main driving colleges owned by the AA have been ordered to refund greater than 80,000 clients and pay a £4.2 million high quality by the UK’s competitors watchdog for partaking in an unlawful pricing tactic.

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) discovered that AA Driving School and BSM Driving School colleges omitted a compulsory £3 reserving price from their marketed upfront costs.

This observe, referred to as drip-pricing, meant that learner drivers weren’t proven the complete value of their classes initially, with the price solely showing later within the reserving course of.

Individual refunds will range relying on the variety of lesson packages bought, averaging round £9 per buyer, and totalling greater than £760,000. The mixed refunds and penalty will quantity to almost £5 million. This marks the primary monetary penalty issued by the CMA for a breach of shopper legislation because it gained new enforcement powers.

CMA chief government Sarah Cardell mentioned: “If a fee is mandatory, the law is clear: it must be included in the price from the very start – not added at checkout – so consumers always know what they need to pay.

“At a time when people are watching every pound, dripped fees can tip the balance. And when it comes to something as important – and costly – as learning to drive, people deserve clarity.

“With our new powers, it will never pay to break the law or treat consumers unfairly. Where the rules are ignored, we’ll step in to put things right.”

A spokesperson for AA driving colleges mentioned: “Although the £3 booking fee was made clear to customers prior to their purchase, we acknowledge it should have also been displayed at the start of the online booking journey.

“Having listened to the regulator, we made immediate changes to our website to make the £3 booking fee more prominent.

“We are now refunding all relevant customers. Whilst we are disappointed with the outcome of the investigation, we have fully co-operated with the CMA throughout and would emphasise that protecting consumer rights has been central to our business for more than 120 years.”

The determination comes after the Department for Business and Trade reported in 2023 that almost half of on-line companies used dripped charges, costing customers as much as £3.5 billion yearly.

Who is eligible for a refund?

The CMA launched its investigation in November 2025, and located that individuals reserving classes between April and December that yr had been initially proven costs that didn’t embody the necessary reserving price.

New clients had been as an alternative solely proven this on the reserving stage, after they’d already chosen classes, chosen instances, and entered private particulars.

This observe is called ‘drip-pricing’, which is unlawful and may mislead clients into believing the services or products they had been shopping for was a cheaper price than they might later be charged.

The common payout might be round £9, the CMA has mentioned, including that affected clients don’t have to take any motion. AA Driving School or BSM Driving School will contact them immediately, confirming that the cash might be mechanically refunded to the cardboard used for cost. If this isn’t potential, a cheque might be issued.