Thousands of students are taking legal action against their universities over months of disruption to their education because of lockdowns and staff strike actions.
The legal team claim that during the response to the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as strike action by university staff from 2018 onwards, universities across the UK breached their contracts with students.
Universities cancelled classes, moved them online, and denied or severely restricted physical access to campus facilities like libraries, study spaces, and labs.
Solicitors Asserson and Harcus Parker are working together to help the Student Group Claim members claim financial compensation of thousands of pounds each from their universities.
They are seeking damages for students to reflect the difference between the market value of the services paid for and the market value of the services provided.
“When you pay for a service, if you did not receive what you paid for, you deserve compensation. Universities promised students in-person tuition and access to facilities and other services in return for substantial fees,” said Shimon Goldwater, a partner at Asserson, in a statement on Saturday.
“During strike action and the pandemic they failed to provide this but still expected to be paid in full,” he added.
“Students have often taken out substantial loans to pay for a package of education and experiences which they did not receive. Working with Harcus Parker we want to ensure students get fair compensation for the disruption to their academic lives and their ruined university experience,” said Goldwater.
Letters before claim have already been sent to 18 universities seeking damages on behalf of current and former students at those institutions. These include University College London, LSE, Kings College London, and the Universities of Manchester, Leeds, Birmingham, Warwick, and Cardiff.
UK students pay £9,250 ($10,300) a year for undergraduate courses and more for graduate courses; international students pay up to £40,000 ($44,700) per year.
“Like any other consumers, they deserved compensation when they received substantially less valuable services than those for which they paid,” wrote Student Group Claim, adding that further students are signing up “every day.”
It claimed that universities have “thrived financially during the COVID period” and can “afford to meet their legal obligations and make good their students’ losses.”
The legal team said that “no other service provider would get away with cancelling a service or replacing it with a lower-value substitute without offering a price reduction.”
“Access to state-of-the-art facilities and world-renowned in-person teaching are decisive factors when choosing a university. However, notwithstanding the significant cancellations and changes made during strikes and the pandemic, often for months on end, universities have largely failed to offer financial compensation to students,” it added.
