your opinions please on instructor's charge

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spacefaer

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Is this normal?

Asked a local RC instructor how much he charged - his reply - £40 which includes the hire of the arena.

All well and good - only the arena is at his own yard. Why a hire charge for his own arena?

Am I being unreasonable but I thought that he was taking the proverbial
 
Sounds reasonable, he still has to pay to maintain the arena and insure it for outsiders use just the same as any other place would. I’d only expect a reduction if the lesson was using my own facilities... but then there is mileage / travel time to factor in.
 
I would pay £40 for a good instructor at their own yard. At the end of the day, you are using their facilities so its their insurance, surface and time not mentioning their experience. The arena next to me (bog standard 20x30 indoor) is £20 to hire for an hour, with no lesson.
 
I don’t think the charge is unreasonable, but the wording is. I’m guessing the charge is as above, as if you hired his arena for a lesson with somebody else and to cover maintenance etc, but he should probably just say a lesson is £40.
 
I think it's taking the proverbial expecting to use his ménage for free when he has to pay to install/maintain/insure. You'd pay anywhere else
 
Assuming the arena is a reasonable size, decent, reasonably surfaced and well maintained - around here you would pay £20 - £25 for arena hire alone I'm afraid.

But if the arena is small, poor quality or unmaintained I would be tempted to ask what he would charge to travel to a local better equipped one.
 
Maybe he's had people assume that's just for the lesson & then ask or try to pay for arena hire on top. Like the others I don't see what your problem is.
 
I am guessing he hires his arena. So, as Nari says, the cost of the lesson and arena hire are rolled up in the £40. Good price. My trainer charges the same, plus I have to add a tenner’s arena hire on top.
 
Melleeka - you are spot on - I wasn't arguing about the price of the lesson - I've paid more than double that in the past - just depends on the fame of the instructor!

What I was surprised at was his phrasing - surely if he's teaching at his own yard, the lesson is £40. Arena hire implies that it is not his own place and there is a hire charge to the owners of the arena.

I just thought it was an odd way to put it, that was all.
 
Ha ha I love answers on this forum :D :D Don't worry Spacefaer, I got what you meant ;) I think it was an odd way of phrasing it from him - I would have expected him to just say 'the lesson is £40' or, if he was at another venue where he had to pay for arena hire, say for example 'the lesson is £50'

And yes I did understand that you have no problem with the cost of the lesson :p
 
The yard my instructor is at charges liveries for use of the indoor so if I go there I have to pay use of the arena on top of what she charges to come to me.

She comes to me and it's £20 for 30 minutes or £30 for 45 which I think is pretty cheap.
 
I agree with the OP, its a strange way to phrase it, I'd expect him to say "a lesson costs £40" I teach at home, and thats how I would say it.
 
Perhaps the instructor has had people ask re cost for arena hire in the past, and so to avoid repetition, he just states it is included in the fee. Probably strange to say if at his own yard, but don't see how phrasing that way is taking the proverbial (which is the term used in the OP).
 
It's probably more like he's had people who say "oh that's expensive, I only pay £xx for so-and-so to come out to me" so he says "to include arena hire" to justify his pricing to those types of people.

I don't see the issue myself, I've heard the expression used before.
 
I agree with the above two replies - he probably said it like that because he's had people then say "Does that include cost of arena hire too?"

I don't see what's strange about the wording at all.
 
What I was surprised at was his phrasing - surely if he's teaching at his own yard, the lesson is £40. Arena hire implies that it is not his own place and there is a hire charge to the owners of the arena.



Is it his own yard or rented? I rent a yard and can use the arena myself and to teach my liveries but have to pay £10 per hour if outside clients come in for lessons
 
hottoddy said:
Is it his own yard or rented? I rent a yard and can use the arena myself and to teach my liveries but have to pay £10 per hour if outside clients come in for lessons
Click to expand...

^^^ this. I have the same with my instructor who rents the yard and can use arena for her owner's horses, but has to charge if teaching outsiders. She's not allowed to take liveries.
 
Another factor to consider is that he may teach his own liveries at his yard too. Presumably the use of the arena is included in the livery price, so they would pay less for a lesson, because they won't be paying for 'arena hire'. Perhaps if this is the case he has had problems with clients comparing prices and wondering why some people were being taught for less.
 
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