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| I was also conned by fitness first. I asked to join for one month and one month only beucas ei was travelling overseas. I was told it was fine. I asked to have no direct debit detaisl as i woul dpay the month membership upfront to avoid confusion. They said they needed my bank details to register in teh computer my membership. erluctantly i gave them. I was also told if i wanted to cancel it will have to have a one month notice. So i said can i cancel now? they said oh no, you just call a week or two before it ends and then its done. I did as told and thought everything was fine. As soon as the i came back from overseas i saw my bank statement that said they had been taking out $49 a fortnight since i left the gym. SO $250 later i called to ask for a refund. I was given the run around very clearly. No one would get back to me, and they kept blaming someone else. Please DO NOT give in to the temptation of joining. Be very wary of the Conctract they make you sign. its a "CON"tract. Full terms and conditions are terrible. Be smart please! | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| What a pathetic "thinly veiled" attempt to conceal a marketing message directly from fitness first. Get a grip people, this company doesn't give two hoots about you as soon as you sign your life away under one of their contracts....check this out [URL="http://fitnessfirst sucks.com/archive/index.p hp/t-4.html"]Fitness First Sucks[/URL] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| strifeau, the same thing happen to me. They took my money for $205.79 even after i've made my cancellation! and i made that cancellation a day after i made the contract! it's only a day, so basically i've never even used the gym! has anyone in melbourne area experienced the same thing? | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| See also following sites: http://britishexpats.com/forum/showthread.php?p=54 19639#post5419639 http://www.fitnessfirstsucks.com/ In Sydney phone Fitness First Head Office 02 9387 5266 or phone Belinda (some resource person! her PRIVATE number is 02 8117 2258. Inundate these bathtubs with complaints. |
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| Please do not join Fitness First. They are nice to your face at first so that you will join, but they really only care about their own sales quota. I pity all the employees that work for Fitness First. |
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| Further comments about Fitness First and their appalling and dishonest tactics can be found at http://au.messages.yahoo.com/health/general-fitnes s/422?p=5 |
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| WARNING: NEVER JOIN FITNESS FIRST Never ever go to Fitness First, don't trust what they say, they are full of lies, I've had many bad experiences with this Fitness First in Cannington, WA Especially this person: Genevieve D'Rozario Club General Manager Fitness First - Cannington 1355 Albany Hwy She's full of lies, very dishonest person, very unethical commercial practice it is |
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| NEVER JOIN FITNESS FIRST No matter how good it sounds, it's never real Don't ever go to Fitness First in Cannington WA, especially this person: Genevieve D'Rozario Club General Manager Fitness First - Cannington 1355 Albany Hwy She is full of lies, very dishonest and unethical! |
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| My daughter went to Fitness First to see about joining they got her to fill in forms but told her that as she was under age she needed a parent signature when she spoke to me said it would be best if she went casual at forst to see how she got on. About a week later FF phoned and she said she would not be joining well we thought that was the end of that until I saw one of her bank staements a few months later and discovered FF has been making withdrawels from her account for six months well I tried contacting them and was told no one from finance was available so I contacted Consumer Protection and was told that as she was under 18 it was not a legal contract so I phoned FF again same answer so I told them whom I had been in contact with and what they had said and can you believe I got a call back within minutes from FF they apologised and said she would get a full refund over $500 within two weeks well the two weeks are up today no refund and we have had to pay bank to stop them taking more money out looks like more phone calls have to be made. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Holy cow! Barely one nice message about fitness first! I just got talked into joining by one of the recruiters for the new King's Cross gym(3 levels, opens in late July 07). And one of the recruiters was sick, you wouldn't expect someone to be sick if they frequented a gym. I suggested that I pay for the casual visits when it opens but they kept on suggesting I save moneys by joining. The comments here scare me, I feel like cancelling before the gym opens. Those fitness first bags sure are good advertisements. It makes it look like 1 out of every 20 people in Sydney are going to their gyms. They sure make alot of moneys in Australia, here's a quote from their site... http://www.fitnessfirst.com.au/about/news/index_ht ml?content_id=294 "Australia's operations alone contributed to one quarter of the value of the company despite operating only one tenth of the 424 clubs globally." |
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| I was trying to escape Fitness First after it took over my previous gym. I had to make an appointment to see the sales rep before I could cancel! My reason for cancelling was because the pool became so murky and looked totally gross when they took over the gym. Also the place was so crowded, classes were fully packed, no room to stretch out at all. Then I joined a more expensive and less crowded gym. I was ok to pay more for the better service, and because it wasn't fitness first! After a few months, that uncrowded gym also got taken over by Fitness First!!! Now I'm paying alot more and it's Fitness First again!! I'm starting to accept the fact that we can't get away from Fitness First. Sooner or later it will take over all the other gyms... My gym hasn't become too crowded yet. The only problem I had was my incident with finding the male cleaners in the change room when I was in there, and I've noticed the showers are starting to get a build up of mould. About the free stuff... I got none of those since I was an existing member of the other gyms. I was looking forward to getting one of those ugly blue fitness first bags! |
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| I agree with most ppl Fitness First do some sneaky conning. When the dude was giving me my sales pitch, I was told I could cancel at any time I wanted but Id have to pay the cancellation fee. When I told them i wanted to cancel and was happy to pay the fee, I was told I could only cancel paying the cancellation fee if i gave them evidence of me being injured or moving away from the gym. I also believed the guy when he told me id get free headphones if i referred one friend, plus a bag if i referred a second, a towel for a third and a drink bottle for 4. I only referred 3 but he gave me everything, the same stuff everyone gets even if they dont refer anyone. Then I never got the promised discount when one of the people I referred was also conned into signing up, even though we both filled out and signed the refer a friend thing. They have good equipment, but in my opinion too many members, and once youve signed your money away they dont care about you. |
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| The moral top this story is, always take out a 1 month (or 3 month) membership first to try the centre out before committing to a 12 month membership. No matter how tempted you may be to take up a 12 month membership, it’s always better to part with a little bit of cash than a large sum for a product/service you’re not sure you may stick with long-term. http://www.parliament.nsw.gov.au/prod/parlment/han sart.nsf/V3Key/LA20001123006 |
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| Hi people, On Monday, ‘A Current Affair’ aired a segment on the unethical commercial practices of Fitness First. There are 2 things that weren’t aired that everyone should be aware of. Research on exercise adherence in the ‘gymnasium’ industry reveals very daunting figures. Over 80% of people who start a gym program will drop out within the first 6 to 12 weeks. So if gyms such as Fitness First sell you a 1 month or 3 month membership, they will lose out on all that potential income earned from a 12 month membership, since 80% of you will stop visiting after this period. Recognising this, they coax you into signing up for a 12 month membership, by offering you ‘generous discounts’. Basically, the 1 month & 3 month memberships are hiked up significantly in proportion to the 12 month membership rate, which encourages the consumer to opt for the latter option as it appears more ‘economical’. This way they get their hands on the income for 12 months from the 80% who don’t even visit the gym after the initial 6 to 12 week period. You won’t believe this but this is how gyms actually make the majority of their income. What is even more incredible is the following: ‘Fitness-NSW’ (www.fitnessnsw.com.au) is supposed to be the industry body for the gymnasium industry and has a ‘Code of Practice’ (endorsed by the Office of Fair Trading) which is supposed to protect the consumer from such financial rip-off scams. However, did you know that until recently the President of Fitness-NSW is none other than Mr Mark Forrest, the General Manager of Fitness First !! As the largest contingent within Fitness-NSW, Fitness First had a monopoly in Fitness-NSW, and so their practices are continually overlooked (Talk about conflict of interest !). Mark Forrest remains an active board member on Fitness-NSW, & you can rest assured that Fitness-NSW will continue to turn a blind-eye to these breaches of the Code of Practice that are supposed to be policed. The moral top this sto ... |
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| I'm with fitness first and I hate it. I was in the female change room today and found one male cleaner emptying the rubbish bin while I was still in there. Then a few minutes later, I found ANOTHER male cleaner plugging in the vacuum cleaner!!! You would think they would get the cleaners in AFTER the gym has closed! I'm just glad I wasn't naked while this happened! | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| YES! another unhappy FF customer! When i signed up, the sales guy offered me 3 personel trainer sessions. I asked him if they were compulsory cuz i didnt want them, and he looked me in the eye and said YES! He lied to my face. About a week after joining i tried organising a personel session without success. They were always too busy. I gave up after a while and when i asked again, they said they expired after 1 month. I am joining the defence force in jan and i went to FF to cancel my membership. She asked me where i will be training, and shem mentioned there is a FF club near there. WHY would i need to pay for a gym when im doing boot camp in the defence force????? she allowed me to cancel without paying the cancellation fee, cuz i complained about the service, but she took my key pass off me. I am still paying for 1 month membership so shouldnt i keep the pass until then? anyway, i cant wait for consumer affairs to rip into them! |
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| Hi, I've just had a look through this forum. Please email me at fitnessfirstinfo@yahoo.co m.au if you are experiencing difficulty with FF. Contact me before Thursday 14th Dec, 2006. You'll be part of a very important investigation. cel88tay please touch base with me. Thanks everyone and Merry Christmas. A |
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| If you want to be drained of money, increase your stress level, deal with bad record keeping, have an unqualified personal training or go to a gym with fake and bad staff - choose fitness first. I terminated my membership and wanted to either finish the remaining of my triple pack (personal training) but FF said that they didn't have records of payment from me. Ok really weird how I told them in my letter of termination that I am terminating because the personal trainer allocated to me is unqualified and I have waited 9 months for my replacement trainer and nothing has happened. It appears their staff don't read. You are just a number and with their marketing tactics they are just reeling other unaware consumers. DO NOT EVEN BOTHER WITH FITNESS FIRST esp Fortitude Valley, QLD. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| If you are going to join Fitness First, be wary of a few things. They will offer you three 'cheap rate" personal training sessions at the beginning, to rope you into having a personal trainer. Believe me, I've been working out at gyms for about ten years and had the odd personal trainer - their personal training sessions are a rip-off for what you get. They will CHARGE you to do the most basic fitness check and CHARGE you to put together a program (which they are reluctant to do anyway, because they don't want you to do anything by yourself without paying a trainer). And this - don't bother to ask anyone to show you how to use the machines. The standard reply is "oh, you need to pay for a personal trainer to do that." I kid you not! I have been a member for a few months, and am using the facilities (of which there a too few for the numbers they pack in). But I am also waiting for the membership to expire so I can find a decent gym again. The only convenience with Fitness First is that you have unlimited use of all their branches, but believe me, the attitude is the same at every one! |
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| Yay..... found a site where others Hate Fitness First ! I'm at the Mosman gym. Its all a huge grab for money and absolutely nothing to do with customer service. They are happy to advertise over the mic you must have a towel and if not will rent you one for $2 or offering 10 passes on the sun bed or or or whatever drags in more $'s. I'm a female so when I go to the weights area its crowded, the guys are not rude but its overwhelming at times as so packed. They dont remove weights from the machines and I have to ask a guy to help me remove weights that weigh 2 or 3 times my body weight ! No one shows you how to use a machine. No staff member walks around being visible so you can ask for assistance or guidance. If there was a decent competition in this area I'd join in a flash but there isnt. Lost count of how many managers we have had as they dont seem to last long but then again they probably wake up to the fact that Fitness First does not care and dont want to cop any more flak. :) |
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| i was thinking about joining a gym, and it's definitly not going to be fitness first!! NO WAY!! | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Yep, have to agree, avoid Fitness First if you can. I have been in a few gyms and have to say I found FF quite sterile in their treatment of members, sure they have all the things you want in a gym, equipment, classes etc, but the cust service is terrible, you are a number there to pay money, dont be deluded. If you are ok with that go for it, dont ask for anything more. However my biggest gripe is when you want to leave they make it very hard, you have to make an appointment, an interview, sign some things etc. I actually called ahead being in the area, left work turned up at the home gym no appointment (has to be the home gym!) asked to cancel and was told I need an appointment, the customer service mgr cant talk to me because they are on a 'teleconference', and I cant have the form I need to sign. To me this just shows a lack of respect for members... like I'm not busy, and can just keep coming back. They are very inflexible with their process. I had earlier asked them to fax me the cancellation form and I'd sign and fax/mail back... they wouldn't do this either. By the way, I left a written request to cancel the membership on a piece of paper with my membership card. They were going to call me, never did... that is a breech of the fitness centre code of practice (they must call me within 7 days)... you can download it from the dept of fair trading in NSW ( http://www.fairtrading.nsw.gov.au/corporate/legisl ation/fitnesscentrescop.html ), it's worth knowing this when you are dealing with any fitness centre. After 3years membership, and the past 2 months I'm still trying to extricate myself from Fitness First, who are still charging my credit card... wish me luck! |
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| Well, in answer to your question roadie_traveller, my experience with different gyms, has been thus:- Everyone has their own style of excercising. Some people prefer to go to a gym where they can have the support from other members or the staff themselves(or sub-conscious obligation to go) while others like myself end up deciding that they like excercising outdoors. I much prefer going for a walk, jog, or bikeride in the fresh air. Everyone has their own style, but you won't know this until you try it. I was a member of 4 different gyms (2 were small ones from the Uni I went to, 2 others were established gyms for the public). I found that having fun classes to go to was a huge motivator - My favourites were the dancing ones, the aerobis ones, and the yoga/pilates ones. And once you're there, you can't help but do a few weights before or afterwards. As to keeping up with your motivation levels overall? Definitely keep reminding yourself of your ultimate goal - to look sexy in that swimsuit, to walk confidently into the local cafe, to do girl-on-top more often *wink wink*, to fit back into those one-and-only jeans. It's different for everybody. Just keep telling yourself over and over what your ultimate goal is : ) As to a recommendation for a gym? Curves seems AWESOME. I have had an Introduction at Curves, and only heard good things. They are women-only, and very much designed for women's bodies. The only reason I won't join up is cos I get free gym at work ! I have been horrified to hear of prices such as over $100 a month ! That is insane ! The most I have ever paid for a gym has been $54 a month! ; ) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| i was conned by fitness first i rang ff about a 10 day pass and they tryed to get me to join i said i couldnt afford it and he asked me how much i could afford and i said $60 a month iwas then told no problem come down and ill sign you up. he then signed me up for $34.95 a fornight and that he would change it by putting down that i had refered 2 freinds. suprise surprise when i got my credit card bill 1 day after the cooling off period i was charged the full ammount. so i rang the gym and asked for the sales guy and he no longer works there. so i said i want to talk to someone about it and made an appointment. at the appointment the lady laughed at me and said i signed a contract so now i have to pay an extra $20 a month for a year. she said there was nothing she could do even though it was only one day after the cooling off period. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Go to a well established independently owned gym, even if u have to travel a bit further. You will get better advice and less of a focus on stealing every cent you have to use dozens of machines that do the same thing as a well set up weights area. Whatever you do avoid franchise gyms at all cost, they usually employ young inexperienced people who they can pay a pittence to instead of older people who have been in the industry for yrs. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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