Is the closing date midnight tomorrow....am awaiting a payment...even though I ask for them a week before the closing date...this hasn't arrived and I wanted to give them every chance.

Yes, tomorrow at midnight is correct I think.

Difficult one - if you make that a stipulation I'd be tempted not to send in the entry without the fee though.

I'm not sure if it's midnight or close of business at the AB..ie. 5 o'clock? Can you contact the person you're waiting for and press them a bit? Or perhaps ring the AB direct for their cut off times? I can't see a time in any of the guidelines.

Maybe this person will have to wait for the next session...

Edit: MM answered before me...midnight is probably correct then!

Yes it's really tricky... a parent and two children and two of them have exams this term... but fees for last few lessons not paid up...no lesson this week as they are at a funeral...and I always send out a newsletter with dates in and ask for a week before closing date so I can clear cheques. Haven't not entered anyone before....after an email they said cheque was in post. Teaching an adult is different,I find,because you do build up a friendship.Am hoping it will arrive tomorrow. Have another pupil on same entry as them but may do hers today anyhow...can't decide. aghhhhhh

yes, aghhh ! When do you see them next? It's always tricky when a funeral is involved.

Do check that midnight deadline by phone if you like - it's possible I've just assumed that, being online, normal office -type hours didn't apply.

I would feel slightly uneasy if lesson fees are also behind. I guess you could wait for tomorrow's post ?

Difficult one - in this instance I think I would go ahead and enter the other one so you are sure they are entered in time. If the payment arrives and you make a second entry, make sure you also send AB an e-mail asking them to collate the entries together.
I might have made an exception due to the funeral if the exam fee had not arrived in time, but speaking to them first to make sure they are committed (can't get the money back once sent, etc.). However, as the lesson fees are also outstanding, definitely not. Cheques don't sit in the post forever - and you would have thought, given the deadline, that it would have been sent first class. I smell money troubles...hope I'm wrong...but even more reason to be careful. It's one thing to be owed fees, but parting with money as well - a definite no-no.

Tricky. If the funeral is a very close relative, then there may be genuine reasons why things have gone a bit pear shaped for them and I would be inclined to be generous. However, you should not put yourself in a position of financial difficulty in order to pay the fees. Sometimes you do have to make a stand in order to stop people taking advantage of you, but you need to pick the occasion carefully, and this may not be the one..

Same policy here. No money (for me cheque needs to be cleared too) = no exam entry.

What if you entered them as they said they wanted to be entered, but the next lesson said they'd changed their mind and didn't want to be entered now. You'd still be liable for the entry fee.

The closing date is definately midnight. I've had an email from my teacher before at about 10pm one night asking if I wanted to be entered cos she couildn't remember and only had a couple of hours left.

As for the fee, I can't really comment. I've only entered a couple of students for exams myself, and I've alwasy trusted them with the money so have collected ir whenever is convinent (one paid before, one after the entry was made). None of my teachers have ever wanted payment beforehand though. Which reminds me....I must remember to pay my violin teacher for my exam this term.....

I know it sounds harsh but I wouldn't enter them. You did ask for the money a week before. If you enter them, they could say they are in shock after the funeral and don't want to do the exam and that they didn't ask you to pay for them. Aside from this, people are so inconsiderate. It just gets to the point sometimes that you cannot keep waiting for people and have to do what is best for you otherwise people take advantage.

THANK YOU FOR ALL YOUR REPLIES...REASSURED ME THAT I WASN'T BEING MEAN AND STINGEY. I entered the other one yesterday and got the family to give ME THEIR CARD DETAILS...ALL RESOLVED...Now will try and get the two put together.
Thanks again

It's funny how we follow on from how we've been treated isn't it? Like my own teachers (past and present) I don't ask for money up from for lessons, preferring to be paid on the day.
Exams, however, are a different matter - the fees now run into several hundred pounds, so I really MUST get the student's committment in the form of fees beforehand for obvious reasons. The trouble is, if you let them off (collect the fees retrospectively) once, they will think that's what they can do forever!

The fact that your immediate reaction isn't just to contact them implies you don't know them all that well. I've certainly entered pupils before I had their money in my hand but I've always been confident of getting it, or I wouldn't have done it. If I were you I'd ring and leave a message and say (politely) that you can't afford to be out this money at the minute, so if they still want to enter to drop it in with you today or this evening. If the message is there for them to find, then they really can't blame you for not reminding them - just in case there is a good reason why it's been overlooked.

None of my teachers have very many students as one is pretty much completely retired so hasn't taken on any new people for about 5 years, and one is already a full time classroom teacher so again does little instrumental teaching. I think if I had fees running into more than about £80 I would want them beforehand.

i had emailed,texted and finally phoned on mobile...but had been assured that i would receive the payment before they went away.it is now resolved...but I really think it is important to get exam fees before the pupils enter...I can't afford to throw away £40 if someone turns round and says I don't want to do it.