Archive for the ‘Fitness Clubs News’ Category

Peak Fitness Clubs - Winston Salem Members Upset

Peak Fitness Clubs Winston-Salem, NC.   On Tuesday, March 11, 2009 members arriving at to the Peak Fitness Club location on Jonestown Road found the doors locked and a sign indicating that the gym was “temporarily” closed.  According to an email sent by Emily R. Saunders:

“I regret to be the one to inform you that the doors to the Jonestown club were locked last night due to a dispute with the landlord trying to significantly raise the rent.  They are trying to re-negotiate, but in the meantime the club is closed and in order to protect the assets that were there they have moved all of the equipment out over night.

This of course happened very quickly and I’m in shock myself!  I will certainly keep you all posted on the status of things, but for the time being the club is closed.  I will update you this afternoon on where our paychecks will be this afternoon.  I am very saddened by this as this club was my “baby” for a while.  I ask you all to stay positive in any conversations with members.  There is a specific “hotline”  they will be able to call with questions or concerns.”

Why would Peak Fitness Club be concerned about their assets?  Wouldn’t they have a lease in place that would dictate the rate of rent?  My guess would be that they are behind in their rent and worried that the landlord was going to padlock the building, so they decided to sneak in after hours and grab all the equipment they could.

The closing of this gym would seem to directly violate the terms of their agreement with North Carolina Attorney General’s Office.  Specifically, Peak Fitness Club is required to give “advance notice to gym members and the Attorney General’s Office when a health club will be closed or when members will be transferred to another location”.  Based on the email sent by Ms. Saunders at Peak Fitness Clubs, this did not happen.  One is left to wonder how the Attorney General will respond to this unexpected and unannounced closing.  The settlement has only been in place since January 18, 2009 and now less than two months later, this happens.   Does the Attorney General have the ability to control the actions of this company?  One can only hope that something will be done get this situation under control.

WXII was the first TV station to report on this recent issue with Peak Fitness Clubs.  The story can be found here: Peak Fitness Clubs Winston Salem Problems

Sources:

Posted by Best Gyms on March 11th, 2009 No Comments

Peak Fitness Clubs Legal Problems

Peak Fitness Clubs Legal Problems continued yesterday as a Superior Court judge ordered Peak Fitness Clubs to change their illegal and deceptive operating practices in response to hundreds of consumer complaints.

The North Carolina State Attorney General’s Office negotiated a comprehensive agreement with Peak Fitness Clubs, and Judge Howard Manning approved the consent judgment Thursday.

“Many people are making New Year’s resolutions to lose weight or get in shape by joining a gym,” Attorney General Roy Cooper said in a statement. “We want to make sure that people get what they pay for and that health clubs treat their members fairly.”

Cooper said his office has received about 300 complaints regarding Peak Fitness Clubs over the past five years.

Under the agreement, Peak Fitness Clubs and its owners will change customer service, contracts and billing practices at all 28 of its health clubs across North Carolina. The company also will reimburse the Attorney General’s Office $30,000 for consumer education and investigative costs.

The changes include the following:

  • A single point of contact will handle all consumer complaints, concerns and questions, and contact information will be clearly posted in all Peak Fitness Clubs clubs, on all Peak Fitness Club Web sites and on all customers’ contracts.
  • Contact information for Peak Fitness Club’s billing company, ABC Financial, will be clearly posted in all Peak Fitness Clubs, on all Peak Fitness Club Web sites and on all customers’ contracts, and a working fax machine will be provided in all Peak Fitness clubs for cancellations and correspondence with Peak Fitness Club.
  • Appropriate bonds will be purchased and maintained for each health club the company operates in North Carolina. Bonds can be used to pay refunds to members if the club shuts down.
  • Memberships to any Peak Fitness Club cannot be sold more than 180 days before the gym will open.
  • The Attorney General’s Office will be notified before the Peak Fitness Club enters membership contracts for clubs that have yet to open, and the company will purchase a bond of at least $10,000 for the club and give consumers written notice of their extended three-day right to cancel their contracts.
  • Peak Fitness Club will give advance notice to gym members and the Attorney General’s Office when a health club will be closed or when members will be transferred to another location.
  • Pro-rated refunds will be given to any customer who purchases or renews a membership to a club that then closes within 90 days.
  • All membership contracts will include a specific time period for the membership measured in years or parts of a year, contain a full statement of consumers’ right to cancel the contract within three days of signing it and contain a full statement of their right to refunds.
  • Peak Fitness Club must clearly explain that automatic renewal of memberships is optional.
  • Pro-rated refunds will be paid when members move more than eight miles from the club or more than 30 miles from any Peak Fitness Club location or are no longer able to use the facilities because of death or disability.
  • Peak Fitness Club must honor lifetime contracts purchased prior to 1980 at health clubs now owned by Peak Fitness Club. Consumers who allowed their lifetime contract to lapse or otherwise entered a replacement contract with Peak in 2008 have 60 days to contact Peak to get their lifetime contract reinstated.

The comprehensive judgment also prevents Peak Fitness Club from making anymore false or misleading statements to consumers, such as telling members that they can cancel their contracts at any time, that a club will not close or that a new club will open.

“Over the past few years, we’ve been able to recover more than $1 million for hundreds of North Carolinians who were members of health clubs, gyms or dating clubs that shut their doors,” Cooper said. “If your health club closes down unexpectedly, let us know about it.”

Some Knightdale customers of Peak Fitness Club might also be eligible for refunds, he said. People who purchased memberships at Peak Fitness Club Knightdale before the club opened and didn’t get a refund as requested can apply to get their money back by contacting the company by e-mail through the PeakFitnessClubs.com Web site or by fax at 704-896-5741.

Additional stories about Peak Fitness Clubs legal problems:

Posted by Best Gyms on January 9th, 2009 No Comments