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

richchestmat

The savings in year 2 and beyond outweigh the setup cost in year 1. In the case of Virgin Active it's still cheaper on year 1.

It isn't that hard to get the extra points.

QQuaver

It's not for the super busy, but for me, it worked out extremely well, especially as I reached platinum in 7 months, and my gym is outside M25:cool: My 2nd year starts next month.

cheeky

IMO the idea is that you make a lifestyle change for the long term not just a year. This rewards long term relationships for all parties and is still great

My partner and I joined late June. We have gone 15 times each give or take a few per month , jumped thru the "hoops" on the website and have just passed 2250 points. This month 70 + 300 for next month gym, add in 350 for the missus doing a assessment/goal, some ebaying, sainsburys and a few articles = 3000 points in 4 months. Easy as. From Nov we will be paying £8pm @ Virgin (£55 usually). And our premiums will also fall from £90 (inc 2 boys).

Still happy here and i would be happy to start under the new scheme too

kennedy_grant

QQuaver wrote: »

It's not for the super busy, but for me, it worked out extremely well, especially as I reached platinum in 7 months, and my gym is outside M25:cool: My 2nd year starts next month.

Hi, i just wanted to advise you that you are in the same position as I am. Because your new year will commence in October, your points balance will be cleared and you will then have one month to achieve 2000 points to achieve the new scheme. I contacted Pru Health and found that because my new scheme started in September I would now have to pay approximately total £61 - £38 more each month.

Good Luck!!!!

QQuaver

kennedy_grant wrote: »

Hi, i just wanted to advise you that you are in the same position as I am. Because your new year will commence in October, your points balance will be cleared and you will then have one month to achieve 2000 points to achieve the new scheme. I contacted Pru Health and found that because my new scheme started in September I would now have to pay approximately total £61 - £38 more each month.

Good Luck!!!!

No, Platinum status stays for another year (Oct 08 - Oct 09).
Points will be cleared, but not the status;)

whowants2brich

Yeah, you hit status in year one, and keep it for year two, unless you increase a status (eg from gold to platinum) in which case the increase is immediate.

At the end of year two, you'll change to whatever status you've achieved in year two for your third year.

My policy year ends next week, I've got over 3000 points this year (don't ask how, long story), and so will maintain platinum status for the next year. £1.50 per month premium, £0 for gym membership, and very cheap Eurostar journeys... I'm just happy I started with 6 months free gym, which got me most of the way to platinum in the first 6 months of my first year, which I've kept ever since...

It's not that difficult, really. Oh, and if you sign up via Quidco etc, you get enough cashback to pay for your first 3 months of gym membership - but as some have mentioned, it may be best to put off the gym for a few months til you're at least silver status. 1000 points in 3 months shouldn't be too difficult (you can get a fitness assessment at a gym without joining, not smoking, etc) then get the cheaper gym rate for the remainder of the year...

Bluelion

Hi! I am definately going to join a gym this month. I spotted the pruhealth 'trick' and was wondering with the recent changes to the plan coming up, is it still worth me signing up? Ive been trying to work it out myself and am a little confused with the costs and even if I could make silver in time, is it cost effective? Pruhealth quoted me £30 for the core plan and I was thinking of joining LA fitness which is £70 / month I believe. Can anyone shed some light on this for me?

QQuaver

kennedy_grant wrote: »

they have made it EXTREMELY difficult for the avarage person to even get the reduced monthly fee and limited the gym acquired points to just 1500 per year

Just get one of those free screening at Boots (200 points), No smoking declaration (150 points), register at the member zone (50 points) and do Vitality review on the site (100 points) and you can still make it;)
Don't know if you can un-cancel though...

alsy

I disagree that new members are losing out. I joined my local Virgin Active gym two weeks ago knowing that the deal changes in November.

I get my health care from my employer, so don't have to pay anything to PruHealth in terms of annual premium. This will obviously not apply to everyone.

I had been paying £52 a month at my previous gym and now paying £40 a month as a bronze member. This is an instant saving of £12 a month.

Two weeks into the gym membership and I've worked out that I'll have silver status by mid October and gold by the end of the year. I should then be paying £22 a month from the beginning of the year.

The next step to Platimun will take a little longer as by the end of the year I will have completed almost every method possible of collecting points; fitness assessment, health check, category 1 and 2 sports event etc.

I spent quite a bit of time working out the points system and made a phone call to PruHealth to check that my calculation of points was accurate.

I like the added incentive of collecting points which encourages me to go to the gym etc.

TooNice_2

alsy wrote: »

I disagree that new members are losing out.

It's probably as wrong to say that 'all new members are losing out' as it is to say that 'no new members are losing out'. It all depends on individual circumstances. However, I do reckon new members would often be better off under the old policy than the new.

I would like to ask again if anyone has used the RoadtoHealth screen. It is the cheapest screening available, but I still wonder if it is as good as the basic screening offered by the Diagnostic Clinic (which only costs 5 pound more once I reach Silver).

Cheers.