They tried to sue me for money I'd all ready paid!

“They tried to sue me for money I'd all ready paid!”

Written on: 05/08/2012 by gaffnp (2 reviews written)

You should absolutely avoid this gym at all costs. I was a loyal member in Southport for several months until myself and the people I live with decided to pitch in to buy a treadmill together, because none of us much liked having to travel to the gym. I gave one month's written notice, paid my fee and that was that - or so I thought!

A few months down the line I get a letter advising me I still owe the £20 severance payment. "Fair enough", I thought, "someone's made a clerical error" - so I telephone and they promise to look into it. A few weeks later, not only was there no telephone call, but I received a letter from a debt collector advising me that I was now in debt, and if I didn't pay within six days I'd be taken to court!

Because they DO NOT GIVE OUT RECEIPTS FOR ANY PAYMENT MADE, I had to seek legal advice on what to do next. When I went in, I demanded they check their records and sure enough, their own reception computer said that I was fully paid up! At no stage in the entire process had anyone even thought to check my account information before bringing in debt collectors!

Furthermore, they refused to compensate me in any way, shape or form for all of the telephone calls I'd had to make or the legal advice they'd made me seek. I asked if they'd consider donating the £20 to the charity I work for as a good-will gesture and they point-blank refused - I have never known a company to refuse to do this; even Student Finance England have done this for me when I found myself in a similar situation with them last year, in acknowledgement of all the money I'd had to spend sorting out their mistake. I didn't even get a written apology from the gym, and the explanation for what had gone wrong was completely inconsistent with the timeframe of what actually happened.

Avoid them at all costs. Not only is the price extortionate to begin with, but God forbid you try to break away from them. I still half expect to end up in small claims court defending myself after this fiasco.