New Year Special Reels You In And Bang In Month 3 You Find Out What You have Done And You Will Be Lucky To Be Out By Month 6 Without Paying Even More.
Gyms Make Their Money On Thousands of Cancelled Contracts Each Year
Virgin Active has been trending on social media this week for all the wrong reasons dealing with the yearly increases. For many I guess they will just have to cancel their memberships which is easier said than done. Most people with a gym contract are oblivious to what they have signed as it is a simple gym contract and you are not buying a car.
I learned that the hard way any years ago as I was paying for my entire family which wasn't cheap and it took months to cancel the contract. The sign up is always easy, but try and cancel and see how they try and squeeze you with the fine print. Every year thousands with their New Year resolutions flock to the gym and the gyms know they will not last the year and will make extras on the penalties when trying to cancel their memberships.
I guess most people do not know exactly what they are paying each month until the increases are that big they start to notice.
Virgin Active have a termination fee which can be as much as 60% depending on the length of you contract. Those who are complaining about the January price increases will end up paying a good few months in penalties like I did and why I will never join another gym ever again.
Lets be honest a gym membership is the first item that gets cancelled when we are under financial pressure as it is a luxury and not a necessity. The same reason I cancelled was the yearly increase as I could no longer justify the expense and if they had kept the fee as it was or a reasonable increase I would have remained. Or have a month to month membership so there are no hidden fees. This is why having a home gym is always the best option and a solid investment in your self.
The fine print is there for a reason and is definitely part of their business model because people do not read what they are signing. I was never informed at the time of the penalties and I was never aware that membership fees could double either. This is not normal business practice and should not be allowed to happen.
If you are at a gym and see a refurbishment happening you know that you will be paying for this. I have often wondered how gyms make money as commercial exercise equipment is not cheap to purchase and maintain. The gyms max out their memberships with 3 month specials on a 12 month contact knowing once the price goes back to normal most will leave paying some type of penalty.
Every couple of years I look at my monthly bills like our private security companies who we have to have for insurance purposes. Every year these increase and if ignored you could be paying double what your neighbor is paying. New clients do not pay the same rates as someone who has been a client for many years and for me this is what I find wrong. This is why I have no problem cancelling yet still staying with the same company on a new contract as why must I pay more. This of course down to them offering a month to month contract which is how contracts should work.