Unis are adding clauses to student contracts to stop them claiming pandemic-related refunds

A Tab investigation has found that the University of Edinburgh, the University of Glasgow and the University of Leeds all changed their terms and conditions between the years of 2019 and 2021, to add clauses which specifically limit their liability for pandemics.

University College London, King’s College London the University of Bristol and the University of Liverpool also have clauses in their student contracts which cover them for pandemic-related disruption.

The NUS described the contract alterations as “incredibly disappointing,” adding that unis need to start seeing students “as people, not pound signs.”

Universities Minister Michelle Donelan has previously said that students should “absolutely” request refunds from their universities if they feel unsatisfied with their teaching.

However, The Tab can exclusively reveal that this is not an option for thousands of students across the United Kingdom, as they have been forced into signing contracts with their unis, making pandemic-related refund requests impossible.

The liability section of The University of Edinburgh’s contract now reads: “The university will not be liable to you for any failure to carry out, or delay in carrying out, any of our obligations under the contract where that delay or failure is caused beyond the Universities reasonable control including…pandemics, epidemics, or disruption resulting from pandemics or epidemics and national emergencies.”

This is what students’ contracts with universities looked like before and after the pandemic:

BEFORE: University of Edinburgh Student Ts & Cs (2019 entry)

AFTER: University of Edinburgh Student Ts & Cs (2021 entry)

BEFORE: University of Glasgow Student Ts and Cs (2019 entry)

AFTER: University of Glasgow Ts & Cs (2021 entry)

In 2021, the University of Leeds added a whole new section relating to Covid to ensure students can’t request refunds

Students are now being denied refunds

These recent changes have led to students being denied refunds on the grounds that they signed the contract with the university.

In this response from University of Edinburgh to a student requesting a refund,  the university complaints department denied the request on the grounds that “when matriculating as a student, you agreed to the terms and conditions of admission, which includes the agreement to pay fees at the rate set out in your offer letter…there was never a guaranteed fixed ratio of online to in-person contact.”

The response given to an Edi student who asked for a refund for pandemic disruption

Back in August 2021, The Tab reported that across the UK, just £800,000 in tuition-fee refunds had been given out in response to Covid-19, or the equivalent of 88 students receiving a full year of their tuition fees back.

The process of requesting refunds after the university rejects your request is a long and complicated one, and it differs between Scotland and the rest of the UK.

Many students simply don’t have the time to go through the appeals process with Office for Students (England & Wales) or Scottish Public Services Ombudsman (Scotland), and in the mean time these universities have beefed up their contracts to head off any challenge their legal position.

Hillary Gyebi-Ababio, NUS Vice-President for Higher Education, said in response to the contract changes: “This is incredibly disappointing, and shows that marketised education is totally broken.

“Whilst they were working to protect their huge reserves, I heard from students who were locked inside accommodation without any support. Universities are supposed to have a duty of care to their own students. They need to start seeing them as people, not pound signs.”

A University of Edinburgh spokesperson said:  “We review and amend our Student Terms and Conditions on an annual basis to ensure that the terms remain up to date and enable us to plan for future exceptional circumstances which may affect how we deliver our programmes to our students.

“Universities continue to face many adversities, including the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, and we have robust contingency and resilience plans in place to successfully tackle and manage these risks.”

This is not the first time the university has updated these conditions to protect itself against refund claims from students. Following the first round of strikes in 2018, the uni changed its Terms and Conditions to state that it would not be liable for industrial action taken by staff.

A spokesperson for the University of Leeds said: “Like all universities, we have had to make alternative plans for delivering teaching and learning in response to the pandemic.

“While we have robust plans in place to maintain the quality and standards of our degrees, a student who is dissatisfied with their academic provision is able to complain through our Student Complaints Procedure.

“Our approach has been consistent with evolving guidance from the Office for Students, with the health and wellbeing of our students and staff remaining our top priority.”

A spokesperson for the Department for Education said: “As independent institutions, universities are autonomous and therefore have their own policies in place regarding contractual obligations with students.

“We would however, expect any changes in Terms and Conditions to be explicitly communicated to students so that they are fully aware of what they are signing and we are looking into this matter further to make sure that this is the case.”

The University of Glasgow did not respond to requests for comment, and a spokesperson for Leeds University said they could not comment at the present time.

Featured image credit: Contract (Unsplash). Student (Shutterstock / Shopping King Louie)

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