Virgin Active South Africa
reviews and complaints

1 August 2017 is the most recent date upon which I have complained to staff at Virgin Active Victory Park about the dirty, very dirty, swimming pool.

2 weeks earlier I asked to speak to the duty manager about the dirty pool, and did. He promised to do something and the very next day I saw a team sweeping the pool, which did improve the condition of the pool somewhat.

BUT the pool is currently brown on the bottom, bits of debris visible on the bottom, the water is murky and smelly.

The swimming students fill the passages with their clothes and bags one cannit get from the sauna or shower area to the change locker area and these youngsters talk very loudly, scream sing loud one cannot enjoy the sauna or steak room and yesterday they were changing in the sauna with bags and sitting on cellphones fully clothed chatting on cellphones. Also young kids unatended while the Dad and brother were gyming, entering and playing in the sauna and steam room they looked 9 years old the taps are disgustingly dirty and so are the facilities they get cleanened by eyes view only. As members we need to enjoy what the sunninghill members enjoy which is clean facilities free from noisy and untidy children clogging the sauna and gym area and parents that come just to bath their kids in there or leave the kids unattended to misbehave, i really feel like cancelling my membership as I am not enjoying my money's worth and the staff in front are told about this but they clogg the reception area, too lazy to come down every 5 minutes to reprimand members about their children or to reprimand the swimming teacher, we are going to start taking videos and pictures of this and broadcasting on social media, please Roodepoort do something.

Good day,
I trust this email finds you well.

I have been going to the Faerie Glen gym in Pretoria South Africa for a couple of years and am experiencing a lot of tension between the personal trainers in the last couple of weeks. This has escalated to a point where I feel I don't want to go there anymore. For me the gym is a place to unwind the daily struggles of life. This has become a problem since some of these trainers have "ganged-up" against one trainer who works extremely hard (btw she has the largest training group than any of these other trainers). They have formed a click and I have noticed that they are influencing some of the clients as well which I think is extremely unprofessional. I see this as a form of bullying against this woman and feel it is unacceptable.

This is suppose to be a professional space and I think these trainers needs to be reminded of that. What really bothers me is that apparently management were aware of a personal dispute between two specific trainers and yet they weren't bothered to appoint the other lady a couple of weeks ago. This was when everything started!

I really hope you can sort this out since this gym is my happy place. I would also like to be kept anonymous since I think these people would go the extra mile to make me feel very unwelcome as well. If I am exposed in any way I will have to take this further...

Please...please get to the bottom of this as soon as possible.

Kind regards,
Virgin Active Customer

Dear Sir/Madam. I'm a parent of a 9 year old daughter. I have a challenge with Southgate Virgin active. When I joined the club more than 10 years I was informed that my daughter will be looked after when I train and that I will not be disrupted unless there's n emergency. When she moved out of the day care class at he age of 7 she was allowed to use computers with other children with the help of the staff of virgin active.
Two months ago I was told that I needed to supervise my daughter during my training. This is disturbing beacuase it means that I cannot fully concentrate during my training. I then challenged the club manager about this as to why there are no classes for children above the age of 7 years since they are no longer allowed at the computer area. Her response was that I needed to supervise my daughter or alternatively look for another gym. I found that very unprofessional for her to respond in that way. She then informed me and other parents that there's a class designed for kids above the the of 7 years which never took place after they moved from the daycare. Most parents with children above the age of 7years are frustrated because of this new rule because they come for pick hour classes which starts at 17:30 -19:00 ( spinning, kick box, high impact which I believe is not age appropriate because of its high intensity)
I would hate to see virgin active loosing members because of this misunderstanding and of an unwilling manager who refuses to hear and understand our frustration as parents.
I will really appreciate if this matter can be taken seriously as I have made several calls to Head office to look into this matter.

It is with great concern that being a member at Virgin Active SA that it has resorted to this.

I have been a member for 7 years and was or am hoping for a longer membership but this is a great issue, my boys have been at VClub since the age of 2 while I gymed, but now that they have reached that age (9) there is no facility for them. If they come with me to gym they need to be supervised by myself. But I attend the studio classes and they are prohibited from entering the studio. Now please explain to me, if I cant take a gym class at the gym because I have kids with me and am told that I must rather go on the treadmill where I can supervise my kids...honestly why do I have a gym contract.

If Virgin Active SA is all about customer service why hasn't this been an important issue to create a club for kids 9-14.

Unless all parents who have had these issues just left it and maybe haven't returned therefor losing members...by the looks of it, it doesnt bother Virgin active at all. Certainly I am not the only one complaining.

So I guess I could be the next one to cancel my contract if nothing is done about it.

With discussion with management at my club are you telling me that im the only parent with this problem that Virgin Active hasn’t made it a priority to cater for this. If we paid for VClub what harm would it do if we paid for a Preteen Club.

When do I go to gym now, this does not help especially if I am a single mom. There is no way I will leave my children at home while I gym.

Your response will be greatly appreciated.

I signed up for a virgin active membership at Carlswald at the beginning of this year based on what I was told. Firstly, the sales consultant told me they can remove the debit order as the first order has to run initially, so I waited a month to change it to EFT only to find out this cannot be done and if I wish to pay via EFT I would have to ensure payment is made on the 20th of each month whereas I only get paid at the end of each month!

Secondly, before I signed up for the membership I was told that I can move memberships to a different branch at no additional cost as I was looking to relocate. I am now relocating in August and I am now told that the membership for the branch of my choice differs based on some geographic location. I was advised on all the incorrect information just to get the deal signed off! If no resolution is met I want to cancel this membership at no additional cost as it is a 2year contract!

I am a national member of Virgin Active and joined my wife up at New Market as is is close to where we live. I am a qualified ACE personal trainer as well as having many other qualifications and have been in the health and fitness industry for over 22 years, working and training at gyms all around the world. Just a little personal history to hopefully show that I have a diplomatic view point to substantiate my complaint.

Over the last couple of months the overall discipline of members has rapidly been deteriorating with members not using sweat towels, leaving cardio and weight machines full of sweat and in the rare case that a member makes the effort to walk over to the paper towel roll, will wipe the apparatus half halfheartedly and throw the paper on the floor. No weights are ever put back on the rack, and the main problem for all of this is that there are no staff or management walking around and educating the members about proper gym etiquette. I know this is a problem that a lot of gyms face as I have been in the firing line myself in the past when I have tried to speak to members regarding this.

The biggest problem however is the overcrowding of the grid lean class in peak hours. The gym has limited training space as is. The grid lean class is overflowing into the training area. No one can use the calisthenics apparatus or the pull-up bars. There are also no small weights to use as all of them have been taken by the class. Kids are running around like its a circus playing on the equipment and bouncing the big exercise balls around with no supervision. I personally know of at least 20 members that have left the gym in the last couple of months because they can no longer tolerate this. Above all, there is no way that the instructor can oversee so many people training and give them the corrective advice to help prevent injury. I have seen so many horrifying training techniques, people stumbling over one another and near misses with weights to the head that I am surprised that there have not been more serious injuries.

Some suggestions if I may:
- Regular announcements to use a sweat towel and pack equipment and weights away
-Regular interaction from staff and management to members to educate them of correct gym protocol and etiquette
-Cleaning staff on hand to try and keep the gym tidy and hygienic
-Limited positions for the grid classes as not to overflow into the gym classes (like the spinning class)
-More grid classes to keep members happy
-Own Weights specifically for the grid classes so the instructor does not have to use the limited amount of weights in the gym that members are trying to use
- No kids running around treating the facility like a playground

I hope this helps and that something will be done as my friends and I really like training at New Market and don't want to leave to another gym

Thanking you

After two years of membership at the Virgin Active Kenilworth branch, i was very surprised to have almost double my debit order amount be deducted from my account this month without any communication from Virgin. When i went to see a manager at the branch, i was very abruptly told, that Virgin sent me and email and a letter so how can i claim that i was not notified? I was told i am lying. When i inquired about two increases in one year, i was told that this is not unusual and that i should accept it. This discussion with the manager regarding my finances is happening at reception in-front all the strangers passing by because the manager didn't feel like opting for a private meeting facility. after the engagement where i was called a liar and i was not allowed in the gym to get a car key from my husband that was already busy with his training. The manager tells me that my card is not allowing me access and unfortunately i will have to wait until my husband is finished training to get the key from him. She then opens the same gate that was blocked for me, for a group of people (not members) with a manual override that she has behind the counter. and this because i was not happy with an unauthorized debit order on my account. I eventually got through to my husband telephonically and when he approached her to ask why she is ill treating me and humiliating me? she calls the security for him. Now this is how you are treated at Virgin Active Kenilworth. Like rubbish! i intend to make sure my experiences with the club is shared on every media and social media platform available to me.

Virgin active? Can't resolve a simple matter of double deductions? After 7 months of overcharging me... And after 7 months of me trying and trying over and over again and being made false promises over and over again.

I am still having problems with this. Seriously now, its been 7 months, how is this matter not resolved yet?

The incorrect amount was once again deducted from my virgin active account, again.
You blamed the problem on discovery vitality, but I received feedback on the 20th of june stating that the matter had been resolved (After 6 months I might add) and that I would be receiving my full discount and that my monthly fees would be deducted correctly from virgin active's side.
This however did not happen. According to virgin active, I was a low usage member, being moved to a high usage member. This is not correct! Please refer to my access history!
I demand a full refund for all 7 months' incorrect deductions (Which were double my normal fees).

Please send me the details of a manager that I can contact directly or so that I can arrange a personal meeting with them to resolve this matter.

Date: 6 June 2017
Client Number: N/A
Description: My car was jammed using a remote jammer at the parking at Virgin Active Bedfordview. After I came out of the gym a hour later I found that my laptop and wallet had been stolen from my car. I then proceeded to enquire the security guards in the parking regarding the incident. I was informed by the guards that these kinds of events occur regularly at Virgin Active Bedfordview. They further complained that there were not enough guards in order to patrol the large parking area at the gym. I made a complaint at reception and I was told there had been two further incidents of car jamming and break ins reported before me. I filled out a complaint at reception and then proceeded to make a complaint at the Police Station at Bedfordview. Again at the police station there was no surprise expressed by the policeman that a theft has occurred at the parking lot as according to them this is a normal occurrence. I received a case number and the police allocated an officer to the case and have performed fingerprint tests on my car.
Solution:
I'm really disappointed with the service from Virgin Active. I have received one email since the incident from VA asking me if I have made a complaint to the police. For a company that charges exorbitant fees the lack of customer support is incredible. It is also incredible that so many similar incidents occur at this Virgin Active and nothing is done about it. Having been a member for a number of years, I'm extremely disappointed at the service I have received. I have managed to claim Insurance on some of the items stolen from my car but I would like some other sort of compensation from VA.

Good day
I decided to join virgin active on the 30th of May and submitted everything online of which my closest option was braamfontein i visited the club on the 1st of June and the assistant there told me the joining fee which i paid was going to allow me access to the gym till the end of the month and a debit order of R199 will be done from the 1st of every month there after but to my surprise when i got to the gym on the 12th of June i was told my account is in arrears and i'm expected to pay R199 so i can't access the gym so i'm told the R150 that i paid was for the month of may 😳 the month i wasn't even a member and never used the gym, this juss killed my spirits guys how can i pay for something i didn't use, my question is how come? i know its a mere R200 but i need explanation

Description - Date of incident - 4/6/2017
Cell phone Number of member/client - [protected]
Description of incident - Deoche (member of Virgin Active New Market in Alberton) went to bathroom to wash off face after gym around 13:15 on Sunday the 4 June. When I (Deoche) left bathroom, I forgot my cell phone on the basin. 2 Hours later I realized my phone is missing, and realized I left my phone on the Basin. I called immediately to the gym around 15:30, and they advised me there are no phones lying around, and no phones was handed in. I also took a drive to the gym to have a look myself, but saw nothing. On Sundays, there are not many people at gym between the times of 13:15 and 15:15 when we realized phone was gone. It just seems the required efforts are not being put in from Virgin Active side. Toni who assisted with my membership (And please note I am only a member of the gym for a week now), advised he has been in contact with head office as we have not yet used the Adidas voucher sent to the phone number [protected], but they keep sending him from Pillar to post. Please assist in retrieving the Adidas voucher or send a new Adidas voucher code as I would not be a happy client if I was to lose my phone and the R750 Adidas voucher. There has been no email correspondence where I have been mentioned in, but Toni at Virgin Active advised he sent email. Please refer to Toni at Virgin Active as well as myself for any urgent feedback. Thanks

I was at the club now today 08/06/2017 @15:00 as I want to join the gym but after waiting 15 minutes for a sales person and finding the reception lady incredibly rude I walked out. And this is after I phoned she said to me that all the sales people are busy, I must phone back.

Really?! What happened to customer service - please can I have your number and as soon as a sales consultant is available they will phone you back.

Very disappointed !

Management in this gym in pathetic. They move gym classes as they want without communication with members or even their instructors. My family joined the gym knowing what the gym offered to us. At that point the gym was everything we needed. I don't know what happened by it suddenly changed over thevlsst year to be the worst gym I have ever trained at.in fact I have stopped training from last year september. My whole family shares the gym frustration as their classes were also taken away. Weights get thrown down after sets, weights does not get re-racked, cell phones is being used while people occupy the machines and the cross over machines is always occypied by people using single arm movements. No dicipline is being enforced by who is obviously not doing anything but stuffing up awhat was a good gym. I have send an email a week back and got no response from the club. All I need now is cancellation forms from virgin active three rivers to cancell my families membership as the club took away what I joint for. Please also note that I will not be paying any cancellation fees as I did my part but the club did not. I will be joining all my fellow ex-virgin active friend at the neighbouring gym that knows how to manage a gym and how to listen to their paying gym clients. Lastly I want to thank virgin active for messing up what used to be perfect gym for me.

Recently the grid class was taken away on Tuesday's 16:30 for no reason and the instructor was told infort of the gym members her class was taken away. We used to have 3 Grid classes per week in thr evenings now there is only one per week.Classes are being shuffled and​ taken away without even asking or considering what the member's want! The weights was also taken out of our Saturday morning spinning classes for no reason.

I'm annoyed! Joined Multiply 3 months ago. Trying to link my dependants on Virgin Active Durbanville. I'm a member but the consultant cannot find their ID's when trying to link them through Momentum Multiply on the Virgin Active system. Just spoke to Multiply and they confirmed ID's are loaded on their side. Now what? Virgin Active, Paarl won't allow them inside the gym although we already paid. And both parties are now throwing their hands in the air! I don't know who to contact anymore. Heidi

Good day.

I have cancelled my membership in May 2017. The consultant gave me a penalty amount to be paid because of early cancellation of R594.94.

The following day R 926.90 was deducted from my account.

May subscription fees were deducted from my account on 30 April 2017.

Firstly the wrong penalty amount was deducted from my account.

Secondly on 1 June 2017 another R371 was deducted from my account for club fees. How on earth is that possible if I cancelled my contract in May 2017 and paid way more penalty that I originally should have?

Please sort out your accounts department, refund me and sort out your mess.

My ID No is [protected] - Eugene Steyn

Cell no : [protected]

email : [protected]@erlocksmith.co.za

Thank you kindly

Virgin Active are employing people who do not take accountability or ownership of an issue.
I should be a corporate member for virgin active Twickenham, but they have failed to action this. This has cost me over £300. When I asked at Virgin Twickenham I got excuses after excuses. They employ idiots. I am going to join different gym(not Virgin) I may be paying more but at least they will employ adults.

I do not know if it is incompetence or just arrogance of a big organisation who just simply doesn't care because they are too big?

My advice, "Never join Virgin Active"

Hi

I'm a national member of Virgin Active Health Clubs. I've recently learned that someone has been trying to access the club with my ID number or Gym card. I kept having issues at reception every time I tried to enter the club. A notification appeared on the screen which was an instruction to call the manager. This happened a number of times before they eventually stopped me and requested Identification. Fortunately I had my licence at the time and was able to confirm I am indeed the card holder after answering a series of questions. After a discussion with the manager at the Foreshore Gym, he assured me it was resolved and I wouldn't have any further issues. The problem did subside for a while (1 month) until recently. Obviously the issue was not resolved and although the Foreshore manager was very helpful compared to the rest of the clubs, it's clear to see that nothing was done.

I have lost count of the number of times I have been pulled aside at the gym and had to wait whilst the person on duty tried to figure out what the issue is. I'm a premium member even though I go to the same club 80% of the year and my account is always up to date and I find it absolutely unacceptable that Virgin Active has been so slack and inefficient in resolving this issue. This not only eats away at my training time but it's also not pleasant to be pulled aside almost every time as if I'm not a real member or a defaulter. My understanding is that this process should be very simple and easy to carry out. I swipe my card, the person on duty confirms that the account is paid up and that the photo corresponds with the holder. I do not understand what the complication is!

This has been going on for almost half a year and I am now exhausted from trying to resolve this in the clubs. I've been understanding enough to not complain all this time but I've had enough. To top it all off I called your call center last week Thursday and lodged my complaint with Tohiera. She promised to call me back urgently and needless to say today is Tuesday and there's still no resolution or follow up call. One of the club managers suggested that I might have to carry my ID card every time I attend which I told her "absolutely not". I am not prepared to carry identification to the gym every time I go. This is an internal issue which should be resolved without my involvement.

Can I kindly ask that you please resolve this issue urgently. If you are unable to, please let me know so I can start looking for alternative gyms.

Kind Regards,
Mzimasi Poswa

On thursday evening the 25th of may 2017, I attended the weekly shape class given at the wembley square virgin active in gardens, cape town. This class is held between 17h30 and 18h30 every thursday evening.

On the 25th, about a quarter into the class, I noticed a 30 year old man, in gym clothes sitting on the floor outside the studio looking at his cellphone held right up in front of his face, pointing through the glass into the studio. We are 90% women in this glass doing exercises such as squats and lunches. I found this very uncomfortable and went downstairs where I could find the only floor staff. I told them exactly what was happening and one of the staff went upstairs to investigate, however, when he went up, the man had swiftly moved past us on the stairs and left the club. It was too late to question him as he had already left, but I am quite sure he was videoing us in the studio and as soon as he saw a threat he left.

Even though this might seem like an insignificant thing, it is a form of sexual abuse where women are being filmed by men in a club where the expect to be in a safe environment. I believe it starts with the staff at the club who need to be aware of these incidents as they are extremely common, happening in shopping malls and public spaces everywhere, and take action as soon as they notice suspicious behavior which in this case was very obvious. I pay a lot of money for a safe, healthy environment and it is not my job to be vigilant about these things, it is up to the staff to ensure the safe environment is kept up.

I left the club feeling violated by perverted men and disappointed in the staff who spend most of their time in front of camera screens looking at the activities happening in the gym and did not notice this.