LA Fitness in Evanston. Two thumbs down...
Yesterday was a beautiful, heat-filled, gorgeous day on the North side of Chicago. I left work with a few errands to run and thought I’d go to L.A. Fitness to take care of cancelling an accountI had with them.
I stroll on up the to L.A. Fitness location in Evanston,IL and ask about cancelling my membership and closing my personal training account.
Here’s a little background…
When you sign up at L.A. Fitness they, of course like any other gym, try to sell you personal training. Back in December of 2010 I’d already been thinking of getting my own personal trainer to meet some goals I’d set. (Yep, trainers need trainers too!) So when I went up to L.A. Fitness in Evanston, IL and decided to sign up one of the female trainers, who also just so happened to be the Personal Training Manager. (take note of that job title and keep reading…)
So we sit down and we negotiate the packages they offer, how many sessions, how often I’d have to come in to meet with her in order to meet my goal, etc. She was VERY good at selling and even hooked me up with a small discount for the sessions I was going to be paying for. She showed me the price I’d be paying each month (which was more than my regular monthly membership) and when I’d start (January of 2011). She printed out a copy of the contract for me to sign, and I signed it. But…she never gave me a copy of it. I repeat: SHE NEVER GAVE ME A COPY OF IT!
Here’s what I knew after I left that meeting with her:
1) I’d be training with her twice a month.
2) I would be paying _____ each month and that amount would be automatically withdrawn from my account on _____ day.
3) Although she was the PT manager, she herself would be my trainer.
4) The training wouldn’t start until the end of January of 2011
5) It would be really fun and great working with her. (-__-)
Side note: She moved extremely slow and thoroughly through the part about why I would be a great candidate for training but VERY fast through the money and contract part. I remember that distinctly. Mmmhhhmmm…
So…At the end of January, L.A. Fitness had taken out the amount Sunny and I had agreed on for my training. But I realized that I wasn’t really using their facility and didn’t really have time for the training at the moment, so I called to put the training on hold, with every intention of starting it back up again when I could make time. When I called, the representative said I could put it on hold for up to 3 months at $15 for each month. I had to pay it all up front. So, I did. $45 to put the training account on hold for 3 months. That was for February, March and April.
The end of May rolls around and I get a call from L.A. Fitness stating they couldn’t withdraw the funds for the training account. Honestly, I’d forgotten it would start back up again after my 3 month hold and no, I didn’t have the funds available at the time. So I had to decide if I had the time or the money to continue it. And I didn’t. So after they continue about 4 times to get the money out, I call and talk to a rep.
The convo with the rep…
Me: …Well actually I need to cancel that account because I don’t even use the training. I haven’t used my sessions at all.
L.A.Fitness Rep: Oh, well we won’t be able to terminate the account until February of 2012. Until then, you’ll have to pay for it each month.
Me: *very confused* wait…12 months? I had no idea this was for a whole year!
L.A.Fitness Rep: Your PT account has a 12 month contract. We can’t cancel it until then. The best we can do it put it on hold.
Me: No! I don’t want to put it on hold. I did that already. NO ONE TOLD ME I had signed a 12 month contract.
L.A.Fitness Rep: Well, you can call or go up to the Evanston location and talk to the PT manager there. They might be able to help you better.
So here’s where yesterday (June 6, 2011) begins…I walk into L.A. Fitness and ask to speak to the PT manager, who I think is still that chick I met with. Turns out, it’s not. This new guy introduces himself very rushed and quickly and asks what I’m there for. I say I want to cancel my personal training account because I haven’t used the sessions and I can no longer afford to be paying for it. I barely use the facility. So here’s where I get pissed and those of you who follow me on Twitter, here’s where those tweets come in.
“Forget you…and your credit.”
Mind you…the entire time he looks absolutely disgusted that I’m even sitting there and is VERY impatient.
PT Manager: Let me look up your account and see what’s going on here… *starts typing on his computer all fast* Soooooo…you want to cancel your personal training….well…it looks like we weren’t able to take the money out of your account several times. So your account is in decline.
Me: *getting agitated because of his attitude* So…What does that mean?
Him: I can’t do anything. *keeps shaking his head like I’m some invalid*
Me: So there’s no way to cancel my account?
Him: You can pay the $445 it’s going to take to cancel it. Or wait til February. You have to pay the remaining payments due. Or at least half to cancel it.
Me: ……
Me: Sir…I haven’t even used the training sessions. I barely come in here. And I had NO CLUE this contract was 12 months.
Him: Well…the manager that set this up is no longer here. I took her place. You don’t even have the option to put it on hold. It’s in decline. *disgusted face*
After that…he sits back in his chair and folds his arms like he’s done with me.
Me: *steam coming out of my ears* So what am I supposed to do?
Him: You’re gonna have to just let it go on your credit. There’s nothing I can do. (REALLY???)
Me:….So just let you all swindle me out of my money and ruin my credit because YOU failed to let me know it was a 12 month contract. I didn’t even get a copy of said contract that states it’s a 12 month term and now I can’t get out of it?
Him: *look of impatience and even more disgust* Well that was up to the other PT manager to give you a copy, and she’s not here.
At that point, I just got up and left. The PT manager basically said “F*ck you and your credit.” What kind of customer service is that? I might be maybe even the slightest bit more understanding of the 12 month contract had I not run into this bug-eyed, impersonal, uncaring, impatient PT manager who kept looking at me and treating me like I was absolutely nothing.
He didn’t even try to understand my situation. Didn’t offer to call corporate or a senior manager to try and see what he can do about my being misinformed about the contract. When I talked to that rep on the phone, who said I could talk to a PT manager, I was under the impression he/she would at least TRY to help me cancel it or just understand the situation.
When I tweeted this entire rant, being sure I @ replied L.A. Fitness in most of my tweets, they responded, trying to understand the situation.
And…after I went on about my story and how pissed I was about how I was treated…
Now why couldn’t I get this kind of treatment in person?
Anyway… I never even used the sessions. I haven’t been into L.A. Fitness since about January. Why would they continue to make me pay for something I don’t even use? How I was treated sickens me. L.A. Fitness and many other big fitness and health corporations are only out to get money and make healthy living a “business” not a lifestyle. As a trainer, I would never make my clients continue to pay for something they don’t utilize or bind them into a contract that is hard as hell to get out of. And yes, perhaps it was my mistake for not getting a copy of something I signed. But it’s a BIGGER mistake of the personal training MANAGER not to think to GIVE me one. You’re the manager for goodness sake!
I’m appalled. I’m disgusted. I’m shocked. And I’m pissed at the way I was treated and how this situation was handled. L.A. Fitness has not heard the last from me.
Has anyone else had an L.A. Fitness horror story? Do share!
Be Renewed
Trust me. None of this surprises me. Everything about that place, and the people that work there, is sleazy. I’m sorry you had to go through that. I will definitely retell your story to anyone I know who even attempts to THINK about doing sessions there.
Thanks so much Annette. I appreciate you. LA Fitness is a horrible, horrible place and I can’t believe I even gave them my money in the first place.
I currently have an online special with LA Fitness where it’s no contract and $10/week. I remember the first time I went there they tried to sell me a contract talking about the Internet special wasn’t good and then tried to sell me some bogus personal training package. The guy was not friendly, didn’t pay attention to me or my needs, and sounded like a robot. I did his fitness assessment since it was free. When I came back a week later on my own, the guy didn’t even recognize or acknowledge me (I am a paying member after all) but I overheard him gloating to another trainer about how much money he was making due to the PT sessions. I was totally disgusted. In my face you just told me you only care about the money and don’t care about the people. LA Fitness is notorious for being assholes. The best you can do is beat them at their own game by going the no contract route and setting it up yourself via the net.
I understand your frustration but it was your mistake not to read the contract in its entirety before signing. The contract is legal and binding so you must pay up. I hope everything works out.
yea something similar happened to me. I went to Bally’s and I guess LA Fitness took over the gym. I was using it while I was in college, I moved back to NC and they didn’t have any participating gyms within 15-30 mins of me, so I asked to cancel my account (hold wasn’t available). They said I had to pay some foolish amount of a fee to cancel. I told them all to go to hell it wasn’t my fault that they didn’t have a gym near by and they really expected me to drive 45mins away to go to the gym? Malarky. I cussed them out every time they called..I wrote corporate and worried them to death and they eventually cancelled the acct. but I still had to pay a fee that they never got. It sat on my credit and I just provided a justification if I needed to.
Oh wow! That’s horrible! This is another example of how impersonal and money hungry these big fitness corporations are. They don’t care about your well-being. When it has to come down to cussing people out or writing a tell-all blog post just to cancel an account that was unfairly handled, something is seriously wrong! Thank you so much for your comment.
I am in Ohio. We do not have an LA Fitness. Most places these days want to keep their customers happy and they also want their customers to refer new customers. I think you should stay on this until someone agrees to end the contract. The customer service would be enough to make me say I will not be coming back. I would like to start up again with a personal trainer. The last person that I was was good, but his attitude was not. I respect my money, and will not spend it at places that do not. Maybe you could post soon on what to look for when you are looking for a trainer.
Thanks so much for your comment and suggestion! (And sorry this response is late…) Working with a trainer can be a very rewarding experience because it’s an opportunity to learn, grow and get to know what works for you and your body. If you have a trainer who cares not only about the money, but about YOU, you can achieve just that and more. I will definitely take you up on your suggestion and let folks know what they should be looking for. And so that you know…the issue with LA Fitness was resolved. I spoke with the District Manager the day I posted this and he was extremely concerned and attentive to my situation. Thanks again!
Renisha, you need to take this to the top and fight them at the highest level- that’s the only way you’ll get shit done. Do not back down, because there is ALWAYS something you can do.
Did you perchance hear my story about GoDaddy dramz from a few months ago? I had a VERY similar situation where THEY fucked up and were trying to put me in an impossible situation wherein I had to pay for their mistake and there was “nothing they could do.”
Really. I spent hours on the phone, escalating from supervisor to supervisor, until I reached the apparent “highest” person, who said she was “authorized to make decisions on behalf of the president.” And her decision was that she wasn’t gonna do anything about it. mother…
So I contacted the president’s office and the rest is history. I refuse to operate in the realm of “no options.” My email subject included the words “refund obligation.”
Get to the top and hit ‘em hard. My story is a primo example. What’s your resolution?
http://mizchartreuse.com/2011/03/29/no-daddy-no-go-go-daddy/
Yes! I did read your post and I SO remember being so angry for you, because they almost did the same thing with me. I did get the matter resolved with LA Fitness the exact same day I posted this. The District Manager called me minutes after this went up and was extremely concerned. I think he was more concerned about the bad name LA Fitness in Evanston was about to get. After this post, the hell I was going to raise would not have been pretty at all.
I go to Planet Fitness. It’s hella cheap and they don’t have any classes, but they’ve got the equipment I need and only cost $10/month. But anyway…I had a similar situation with Massage Envy. And after going to the BBB, I found out that there were many cases were folx were swindled out of their money. Ugggghhh, I feel your pain, sis!
Thanks Britt! I got the matter resolved, and I’m happy to say that I now realize the power of social media. I had no idea my tweets and post would cultivate such an immediate and concerned response from the District Manager at LA Fitness. He was extremely concerned and maybe even a little disturbed. He called me minutes after this post went up. What’s sad is large corporations like this do NOT care about anyone’s health or well-being at all. They only want our money. Anyway, it’s all over and done with. Thank goodness!
Boy I wish I came across your website before I signed up for 12 months of training sessions. So far they have been great but it’s always perturbing to see that the ONLY way to cancel in this day of age is to PHYSICALLY mail a letter that they may or may not receive even with CERTIFIED MAIL.
I guess I’ll have to wait and see how bad the process will be come this time next year but you can bet that I’ll be sure to tell my YELP friends and to post a BBB complaint if everything is not up to par!
Anyways, thanks for sharing you story and it’s awesome that you got it resolved!
Alex H,
Did you know prior to giving them your card information that you would be enrolling into a 12 month training program?
If so, you shouldn’t have anything to worry about. There are holes and inconsistencies in Ms. James comments.
I believe there are crooked individuals working everywhere, not just at some LA fitness in Illinois.
Keep working hard and enjoy your program.
After 12 months, you can keep the program at the same rate on a month to month basis.
Write in a calendar a reminder, I just finished a 12 month program in March and stayed on until May.
Each individual case is different.
I have been an employee, there is something called price presentation.
It shows they offer a 3,6, and 12 month program.
So,you are telling me you signed an agreement that recognizes you as being financially responsible without reading the terms and conditions?
Renisha James gave the former PT director her card information and walked out of the facility without a contract?
Those are the facts.
The District Manager handled the small PR nightmare just to put an end to your ‘tantrum’.
You don’t respond to any comments other than ones of support.
Be responsible for your actions!
Quit blaming the big corporations for a mistake that was ultimately caused by you, Renisha James.
The positive part of the situation would be that your credit has been salvaged.
However, I hope you learned a more valuable lesson than, “The power of social media”
Take responsibility for your actions, no one put a gun to your head and made you sign up for 12 months.
JJT
JJ, thanks for your comment and your concern about this situation. Like I stated in the post, I do realize (and have learned quite a lesson) that I should have made sure I had paperwork in my hand and read it over before I signed it. No, no one put a gun to my head, but like I said I don’t specifically remember being told that I was signing up for 12 months. My biggest concern was how I was treated when I walked into that facility, which was also the issue the District Manager was concerned about. I shouldn’t have been treated that way. Thanks again for your concern. It’s no longer an issue. I’ve moved on.
great blog here Vancouver Fitness Club
I just figured today that the personal training is AUTOAMATICALLY RENEWED to month to month and they just kept charging my credit card continuously. I called the corporate and the rep offered to cancel my contract stating next month but he said there’s no way he would refund me for the unexpected charge. He said that I could use the sessions or sell them to others (who would want it??? huh?). It sucks since I planned to cancel the membership already since the gym is too far from my house but now I have to pay for the trainings that I don’t want and another month of the membership fee. It is all because the stupid contract says so. They are not willing to help frustrated people. What they do is to get people to sign the contract without telling them the details that they need to know upfront. I asked the rep why there’s notification sending out to customers remind them of the automatic renewal. He said that they just don’t do that.
Typo in my comment. It should be “there’s NO notification sending out to customers to remind them of the automatic renewal.” I guess you should already figured anyway.
I had a horror story. My trainer was leaving and I was totally connected with her. She knew what worked for me and didn’t work for me. She was going to start training privately. So I tried to get out of my contract and the manager tried to manipulate me into not canceling and I was told the only way out was with medical documentation stating that I am unable to workout. I still train with that trainer who doesn’t like me in a contract and is so amazing. If you want a trainer, private us the way to go. Don’t get locked into anything
I wish someone had told me or I had looked up this information prior to signing up with L.A fitness! They are a horrible company. I’ve only used 3 sessions, I was told I could cancel my contract at anytime, or freeze the account. I was never told I would have to pay a buyout fee for the contract! I hesitantly signed it to begin with but was assured I could cancel if I needed to- well I clearly cannot afford the monthly payments, how the hell am I suppose to afford a buyout cancellation fee?!
almost the same thing happen to me..i tried cancel my personal training and they wont let..Im just wandering if i closed my bank account and they wont charged me anything because my bank already been closed..
Same damn thing is happening to me. I have never used the pt sessions because the trainer kept canceling me and I have a tight schedule so we couldn’t ever make it work. Now they are wwithdrawing $200 a month and im not using the services. Wish I knew what to do…
I am in the SAME situation and i reported as fraud to bank of america and they declined it. I have sent a mail in details what had happened (never received a contract or saw or aware of) to LAF Corp office but havent heard a word. i am foreign and i just moved here in USA not long ago, from another side if the country absolutely not familiar with terms in contracts (again, never saw one) they have totally taken advantage of me even when i said i would like to talk to my husband and discuss of the charge the sales person wont let me go and really talked into me. I am almost wondering if i someone will start class action lawsuit on this kind of situation, since it seems to be there is a certain pattern to hiw they sell PT program. I am seriously thinking to call the news channel and start doing a campagin against to their management. Anyone else had similar situation? Or the same?
I live in Irvine – orange county (Southern California) and one of the managers of L.A. Fitness at 2880 Michelle Drive Irvine, CA location signed me up for 12 months training session at rate of $320 without giving me any heads up. I was not aware of this contract until I saw a charge of $320 on my credit card statement. I went to that location but I they told me that it is too late to cancel the contract since the 30 days of cancelation was already passed. I am freezing my account for 5 months (monthly membership + training session) and L.A. fitness is charging me extra $25 every month for this service and basically I am just trashing $25 every month for nothing. After 5 month , they will start charging me $29.99 for the monthly membership and $320 for the monthly training session. I have no time , no money and I have no idea what to do?! I really need help. Please help me!
Very deceptive practice. This just happened to my better half. Did they actually report you to any of the credit bureaus?