Toll-free telephone numbers provided by Geos Corp. for its students were inundated with inquiries Thursday, a day after the major English conversation school said it had begun bankruptcy procedures.
No employees were seen at Geos schools around the country, and calls to the Geos sales department went unanswered or were connected to a message saying that nobody was available to answer the phone.
The toll-free number the school set up for its students has been flooded with inquiries, but most calls were relayed to an answering machine saying the lines were busy.
The National Consumer Affairs Center received a number of complaints and inquiries from Geos students.
Although a few employees showed up at the head office in Shibuya Ward, Tokyo, on Thursday morning, all said they were in the dark about what was going on.
The Tokyo Metropolitan Consumer Center also has received inquiries by students wondering if their fees would be returned. The center plans to discuss this matter with Geos and the Consumer Affairs Agency.
G.communication Co., the Nagoya-based firm that will take over 230 of Geos’ 329 schools, and Geos jointly held a briefing Thursday for Geos employees. According to a G.communication spokesman, the meeting was for all Geos employees, including those who work at 99 schools that will be closed.
The two firms were reportedly sending letters urging students to transfer to schools taken over by G.communication.
Geos filed for bankruptcy at the Tokyo District Court on Wednesday with total liabilities estimated at 7.5 billion yen.
