desilina82
New Member
** I hope that this thread will inspire others who have had issues with Bally's Total Fitness to express their situation - and to FIGHT, and not back down. Please share your stories.**
Hello All,
This is my first post on this board, and I am quite surprised that I have not seen many posts (only a few) regarding Bally's Total Fitness. Why is this? Also, why does it seem as though no one has a chance to cancel their contract? I do understand that they can afford the best lawyers money can buy, but does this mean that average people can't win against them?
For those who are not aware of Bally's contract drama, I will explain it here.
Bally's Total Fitness has received a large number of complaints over the years, in regards to their cancellation policy. Even if you are a broke college student who needs to cancel your membership in order to pay for school, you can't cancel. Even if you are losing your house, and trying to pay for your sick child's medication, you can't cancel. If you sign their 3 year contract, you are locked in for 3 years.
Here are the ONLY ways to cancel your Bally's Membership: death, permanent disability, or moving 25+ miles from any facility. THAT'S IT! In layman's terms, if you're trying to cancel your Bally's membership, and you're ALIVE, within 25 miles of a Bally's, and NOT permanently disabled (and they are extremely picky on what they consider permanent!), you CAN'T cancel your membership! Period! If you happen to live on the East Coast (NYC, Philly, NJ, etc) - there is literally no way to live that far from a Bally's - they are everywhere! Which means that a large majority of people who live on the East Coast only have 2 options with which they can use to cancel their membership: die or become permanently disabled. Wow - what great customer service Bally's has!
And guess what? Even if you only go to the gym only 1 time within your 3 year contract, you are still obligated to pay the FULL balance. Which is upwards of $2000 dollars! And if you do not pay them, they will report you to all 3 credit bureaus, and ruin your credit. How are people supposed to organize their finances, if they can't even cancel a simple gym membership? It's not like canceling Netflix! There are serious issues that occur! There are hundreds of websites with complaints.
For more, simply google: "bally's contract" "bally's membership" etc.
Here is what an alleged Bally's Membership Counselor had to say about it - and warning, she isn't very nice:
***********************************************
Jenna - 3 May 2008
"I personally am one of the membership counselors who explains in plain English to each member who signs their contract. We NEVER tell them that they can "cancel anytime they want," or sign up minors. We are clear from the beginning that they have a set amount of time in which they may cancel, but beyond that they are responsible for FULFILLING THEIR AGREEMENT.
tj- you have no idea what you're talking about. Our "breaching" our contract by failing to maintain the club to one individual's "standards" do not constitute a requirement on our part to cancel their membership. We DO cancel memberships being used inappropriately (such as by another family member with existing member's consent) but the balance is due and payable if we find you are frauding your account. In conclusion, the only way to cancel your account is: death, permanent disability verfied by your primary care physician that renders you totally incapable of performing any physical activity (we have only once had this happen and it turned out to be FRAUD by the customer, or moving 25+ miles from any facility. We do not "finance" our contracts, rather everything is done in-house to keep a close monitoring on financial activity. ONLY when a member defaults does their membership get sold to a collections company. You are NEVER allowed to cancel a membership by phone, fax, or mail as we do not know if some jealous ex has obtained your information and is cancelling every account you have. We even require a form filled out and signed by two witnesses! Contractual terms clearly state that we may change said terms "at any time with no notice to buyer or member" and that these changes do not in any way affect the legality of their contract.
The reason Equifax has stopped accepting consumer complaints for fitness centers is because after the consumer files a complaint, the contract is read by Equifax attorneys and found to have sound structure and those "fraudulent" charges were actually perfectly legal bank drafts that continued until their cancellation date. We have been through this so many times: Members behave as though it's OUR problem that they're too lazy to go to the gym and that they are under their personally fabricated impression that they don't have to pay if they're not coming to the gym. We are not babysitters. It is in no way my responsibility to ensure your fitness health or personal motivation. Most people just assume that if they don't come to the gym that month, we won't charge them. It's an AUTOMATIC draft. That means our billing system drafts it - you guessed it - AUTOMATICALLY. Again, if you don't drive your car for a month, I'll bet the bank doesn't let you out of paying your note that month.
It is not a crooked business; but often members believe our contracts are something they will just get out of whenever they want "because they said so." If you think you are above the law, you are not. We follow the same financial and contractual structure as 95% of the health and wellness centers in this country. The law can, will, and has upheld our payment drafts in every single chargeback case we have ever processed.
What people think they are getting away with when they sign up for a fitness center is deplorable. People think they can come in, get 3 months free, and cancel their membership before they get drafted for their first paid month. Then when you tell them that they signed an agreement, they will say anything, whether true or a blatant lie, to get out of that agreement. I have had people I personally signed up and vividly remember conversating with about the cancellation policy say that they never even signed an agreement or have been in the building. One woman told us that she had never even lived in the state the club was located in. We mailed a fraud notice to her address down the street a few days later, and she magically received it the next day. She also magically still had a local home phone number and magically drove to the facility within 30 minutes of phone conversation from three states away. We had a gentleman who claimed that he cancelled his membership 10 years ago and angrily demand to know why we were calling him 10 years later. We had only been in business for two years at the time.
Grievances are not a valid reason to cancel your account, and neither is "not having time to come anymore." If you purchase a car, you can't give it back or stop paying the note because you don't have time to drive it anymore. You have to either sell it (similar to transferring your membership) or - here's a thought - GET YOUR FAT LAZY AS* UP OFF THE COUCH AND GO DRIVE! Most people try to cancel their membership with no valid reason other than that they are too lazy to go. Every gym allows cancellations with true or valid reasons. But if the facility is open from 5 a.m. to 10 p.m. you have literally ZERO excuse not to come.
If someone signs up a minor, that is unfortunate. But the bottom line is:
IF YOU ARE NOT GOING TO FULFILL YOUR CONTRACT, DON'T SIGN IT."
****************************************************
Having said all of this - what can be done? Why should someone, who only went to the gym once or twice have to pay upwards of $2000?? In my case, it's $2500!! And I've only been to the gym on 2 occasions - yes, only twice! Meaning, I've swiped my card (Bally's can check their system to see when I logged in with my membership card - which is the only way to enter the gym) twice. This means they want me to pay $1250 per visit!!! If that is not crazy, bizzare, .... then I do not know what is.
If you are also going through this - PLEASE share your stories!!
And...to be honest, I have no faith in the justice system if apparently no one can beat a GYM company. Wow....think about it. It's amazingly sad how a piece of paper (contract), can not be altered even when us humans go through many life cycles (up and downs, goods and bads) - what ever happened to empathy?
Hello All,
This is my first post on this board, and I am quite surprised that I have not seen many posts (only a few) regarding Bally's Total Fitness. Why is this? Also, why does it seem as though no one has a chance to cancel their contract? I do understand that they can afford the best lawyers money can buy, but does this mean that average people can't win against them?
For those who are not aware of Bally's contract drama, I will explain it here.
Bally's Total Fitness has received a large number of complaints over the years, in regards to their cancellation policy. Even if you are a broke college student who needs to cancel your membership in order to pay for school, you can't cancel. Even if you are losing your house, and trying to pay for your sick child's medication, you can't cancel. If you sign their 3 year contract, you are locked in for 3 years.
Here are the ONLY ways to cancel your Bally's Membership: death, permanent disability, or moving 25+ miles from any facility. THAT'S IT! In layman's terms, if you're trying to cancel your Bally's membership, and you're ALIVE, within 25 miles of a Bally's, and NOT permanently disabled (and they are extremely picky on what they consider permanent!), you CAN'T cancel your membership! Period! If you happen to live on the East Coast (NYC, Philly, NJ, etc) - there is literally no way to live that far from a Bally's - they are everywhere! Which means that a large majority of people who live on the East Coast only have 2 options with which they can use to cancel their membership: die or become permanently disabled. Wow - what great customer service Bally's has!
And guess what? Even if you only go to the gym only 1 time within your 3 year contract, you are still obligated to pay the FULL balance. Which is upwards of $2000 dollars! And if you do not pay them, they will report you to all 3 credit bureaus, and ruin your credit. How are people supposed to organize their finances, if they can't even cancel a simple gym membership? It's not like canceling Netflix! There are serious issues that occur! There are hundreds of websites with complaints.
For more, simply google: "bally's contract" "bally's membership" etc.
Here is what an alleged Bally's Membership Counselor had to say about it - and warning, she isn't very nice:
***********************************************
Jenna - 3 May 2008
"I personally am one of the membership counselors who explains in plain English to each member who signs their contract. We NEVER tell them that they can "cancel anytime they want," or sign up minors. We are clear from the beginning that they have a set amount of time in which they may cancel, but beyond that they are responsible for FULFILLING THEIR AGREEMENT.
tj- you have no idea what you're talking about. Our "breaching" our contract by failing to maintain the club to one individual's "standards" do not constitute a requirement on our part to cancel their membership. We DO cancel memberships being used inappropriately (such as by another family member with existing member's consent) but the balance is due and payable if we find you are frauding your account. In conclusion, the only way to cancel your account is: death, permanent disability verfied by your primary care physician that renders you totally incapable of performing any physical activity (we have only once had this happen and it turned out to be FRAUD by the customer, or moving 25+ miles from any facility. We do not "finance" our contracts, rather everything is done in-house to keep a close monitoring on financial activity. ONLY when a member defaults does their membership get sold to a collections company. You are NEVER allowed to cancel a membership by phone, fax, or mail as we do not know if some jealous ex has obtained your information and is cancelling every account you have. We even require a form filled out and signed by two witnesses! Contractual terms clearly state that we may change said terms "at any time with no notice to buyer or member" and that these changes do not in any way affect the legality of their contract.
The reason Equifax has stopped accepting consumer complaints for fitness centers is because after the consumer files a complaint, the contract is read by Equifax attorneys and found to have sound structure and those "fraudulent" charges were actually perfectly legal bank drafts that continued until their cancellation date. We have been through this so many times: Members behave as though it's OUR problem that they're too lazy to go to the gym and that they are under their personally fabricated impression that they don't have to pay if they're not coming to the gym. We are not babysitters. It is in no way my responsibility to ensure your fitness health or personal motivation. Most people just assume that if they don't come to the gym that month, we won't charge them. It's an AUTOMATIC draft. That means our billing system drafts it - you guessed it - AUTOMATICALLY. Again, if you don't drive your car for a month, I'll bet the bank doesn't let you out of paying your note that month.
It is not a crooked business; but often members believe our contracts are something they will just get out of whenever they want "because they said so." If you think you are above the law, you are not. We follow the same financial and contractual structure as 95% of the health and wellness centers in this country. The law can, will, and has upheld our payment drafts in every single chargeback case we have ever processed.
What people think they are getting away with when they sign up for a fitness center is deplorable. People think they can come in, get 3 months free, and cancel their membership before they get drafted for their first paid month. Then when you tell them that they signed an agreement, they will say anything, whether true or a blatant lie, to get out of that agreement. I have had people I personally signed up and vividly remember conversating with about the cancellation policy say that they never even signed an agreement or have been in the building. One woman told us that she had never even lived in the state the club was located in. We mailed a fraud notice to her address down the street a few days later, and she magically received it the next day. She also magically still had a local home phone number and magically drove to the facility within 30 minutes of phone conversation from three states away. We had a gentleman who claimed that he cancelled his membership 10 years ago and angrily demand to know why we were calling him 10 years later. We had only been in business for two years at the time.
Grievances are not a valid reason to cancel your account, and neither is "not having time to come anymore." If you purchase a car, you can't give it back or stop paying the note because you don't have time to drive it anymore. You have to either sell it (similar to transferring your membership) or - here's a thought - GET YOUR FAT LAZY AS* UP OFF THE COUCH AND GO DRIVE! Most people try to cancel their membership with no valid reason other than that they are too lazy to go. Every gym allows cancellations with true or valid reasons. But if the facility is open from 5 a.m. to 10 p.m. you have literally ZERO excuse not to come.
If someone signs up a minor, that is unfortunate. But the bottom line is:
IF YOU ARE NOT GOING TO FULFILL YOUR CONTRACT, DON'T SIGN IT."
****************************************************
Having said all of this - what can be done? Why should someone, who only went to the gym once or twice have to pay upwards of $2000?? In my case, it's $2500!! And I've only been to the gym on 2 occasions - yes, only twice! Meaning, I've swiped my card (Bally's can check their system to see when I logged in with my membership card - which is the only way to enter the gym) twice. This means they want me to pay $1250 per visit!!! If that is not crazy, bizzare, .... then I do not know what is.
If you are also going through this - PLEASE share your stories!!
And...to be honest, I have no faith in the justice system if apparently no one can beat a GYM company. Wow....think about it. It's amazingly sad how a piece of paper (contract), can not be altered even when us humans go through many life cycles (up and downs, goods and bads) - what ever happened to empathy?