Pruhealth scrapping its free/discounted gym loophole in November. Discussion

Bargain_Rzl

SmileY

Have a look at my recent post, #104 on this thread

QQuaver

What's a 'polar heart rate monitor'?

camaj

QQuaver wrote: »

What's a 'polar heart rate monitor'?

Polar is a company that makes heart rate monitors, which strap to your chest and measure your heart rate and send the data to a receiver such as a watch. Measuring your heart rate is a way of making sure your working out at an optimal rate. Supposedly more fat burns in a particular range of heart rats.

It seems that Pruhealth will let you use a monitor that transfers data to a computer and use it to measure your activity, much in the same way as fitbug

Rukomo

There is no way I can reach platinum having joined in May. I go to the gym 3 times a week and live a healthy lifestyle (as reflected in my health insurance premium), I can't believe how much my gym premiums are going to jump. I didn't jump through all those online hoops when I joined as I know I live a healthy life, eat well etc, no need. All I had to do was go to the gym as normal, my status didn't matter, because my gym membership didn't depend on it. The deal they advertised.

THey aren't rewarding you for being fit and healthy at all if you already are, eg without trying to be gross, smear tests get you 150 points, but only if you had it during your policy, mine was 2 weeks before I signed up so it doesn't count. How is that rewarding people for taking care of their health? I am up to date. Should I waste NHS money and get another, pay privately to have another completely unecessarily (and lets face it it is hardly fun)?

I signed up while they were still heavily advertising the deal and I have more than kept my end of the bargain, I was mis sold my policy and gym deal and will be financially worse off than I was before even if I leave, as I will have to pay a joining fee, even to go back to my old gym, the one i left to join the Pru deal. I think they should have to honour the agreement we made, I have. I appreciate it is better for some people if you have been with it long enough and that is great. But it is impossible for those of us they deliberately reeled in more recently to get there.

I didn't sign up to be told where to do my food shopping (Sainsburys a further 20 mins from home), to jump through hoops, read articles about salt/sugar/fat levels that I already know, you can't get any 6 month check ups as they only gave us 4 months notice of the changes and I have wasted I don't know how many hours fillng in my weight and waist measurements/stress tests/bloody meal plans to get the points all of which come back, "you are doing great" which tells me absolutely nothing and still will still not get me to the points I need.

I am massively disappointed, they were still advertising this deal when they were planning the change in terms and conditions.

I hope the advertising standards agency, consumers association and Watchdog are onto this, because I'm pretty sure that more people who signed up during their heavy (and apparently misleading) advertising campaign will loose out than gain. I know 3 of us who did it this year and we will all lose financially whether we stay or go. Hurrumph

Lornie_2

Hi
My partner joined the scheme in April, he goes to LA Fitness in London 5 times per week (Seriously!!!) yet he's still not going to reach Platinum status by November.

As a genuine gym user, he feels cheated by the change of terms, especially as this was not the deal he originally signed up for and the whole point of the scheme for him was to save money (We are on a tight budget!) not to pay an over the odds memberbership of £50 per month!

Are there any ways of boosting his vitality points without wasting money on health checks or Fitbugs? He only has 750 points so far despite training 5 days per week!!!!

Are Pru Health able to change their terms so dramatically AFTER a customer has signed up to the deal?

£50 per month isn't even competitive especially as Fitness First can offer him membership for £35 per month.

QQuaver

Lornie wrote: »

Are there any ways of boosting his vitality points without wasting money on health checks or Fitbugs?

Has he done the free fitness test at his gym? That's 300 points.
Also has he done stuff on the PruHealth website?
See this post:
http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showpost.html?p=12839015&postcount=778
Going to the gym 5 times a week = 150 points (should be 200, but there's a monthly cap). He'll gain 450 points for Aug, Sept, Oct.
That'll be 750 + 450 = 1200. He needs 800 extra points.

Fitness test = 300
Stress centre = 50
Meal plan = 50
Reading self help articles 30 points X 3 month = 90
Not smoking = 150
Personal Health review = 100
Online activation = 50
Guide to routinetics = 10
That's 800 points...? Unless he has already done some...
Do you shop at Sainsburys?

He could cancel his gym come Nov, and re-join once he has reached Platinum.

brownbabygirl

QQuaver wrote: »

Guide to routinetics = 10

I cannot find this. Please point me in the right direction. I must say the pruhealth website is not very good for finding stuff unless you know. Thanks

QQuaver

brownbabygirl wrote: »

I cannot find this. Please point me in the right direction. I must say the pruhealth website is not very good for finding stuff unless you know. Thanks

Can't find it either:think: It was there when I last checked back in Jan. I think it was somewhere right on the Nutrition page... Perhaps something went wrong when they revamped the site?

Bargain_Rzl

camaj wrote: »

With the monthly ones, I believe you can do 3 on the last week of jan and 3 in the first week of feb.

With half-year ones, I believe they have to be at least 6 months apart, otherwise they'd say twice a year.

Hi camaj,

Thanks for answering my question - just to add to this, I've been on the phone to PruHealth today about something else, and I asked about the 6-monthly activities and was told the following:

Within any given policy year, the two activities have to be six months apart, but crossing into a new policy year you can do the first of the two activities as early as you like. So if my policy anniversary is 29th September (which it is), I could theoretically have a fitness assessment in September and another in October and they would both count. But if instead of having one in October I were to wait until January, I'd then have to wait till July for the next one.

Hope that clarifies things for somebody

Oh, and in response to the more recent question: I don't know where the Routinetics thingy's gone, either.

dottigirl

Thank you for all the tips picked up above.

Does anyone know if it's worth joining now at all? Or would it be a waste of time/money? I'd be a very frequent user from now on.

I gave them a call but it looks like it'd be cheaper to join my local (luxurious) gym at £58pm than Pru!

(I live near Cannon's Richmond.)

(I tried to join back in February but they sent me an additional medical questionnaire which I didn't chase up. Have been trying to do stuff independently but it always fizzles out whereas I know gyms work for me for the long term.)