ARC/Esporta

jlittle

Does anyone have much / any experience with a company called "ARC".

I used to have an Esporta membership, but moved jobs back in April and as I was no longer near an Esporta I cancelled the Direct Debit. I was told when I joined that as I was joining though my company if I was to leave the company I needed to give 3 months notice.

I gave this notice and it all seemed fine - canceled the DD after the extra payments and thought nothing more of it.

Then a few months later I got a letter from Esporta demanding £300 for the remainder of the contract - I tried to call at the time but couldn't get though to someone and stupidly didn't try again.

Not long after that I started to get calls and letters from ARC, who Esporta had appointed to get the debt.

I'm about to start Payplan, so could include this as a debt, but I really don't think I should have to pay it. I have checked the contract again and it seems that they only say 3 months if you are made redundant, which I wasn't - I wish I had been told this at the time of handing in the 3 months notice though..

Do you think ARC would really take me to court of take further action over the £300? I'm debating just ignoring it and hoping they give up - i've done this for a few months and heard nothing until a phone call that I missed yesterday from them.

:mad:

Any advice appreciated.

Cheers
J

sportbeth

I had a similar thing. I was told verbally by a sales guy that cancellation would not be a problem when I took the membership, on that basis I signed the contract.

There are two routes you can take to this. Tell the Debt collectors that you dispute the debt and any attempts to collect it will be considered harassment and reported to the FSA.

Then write to the Gym, tell them that you were mis-sold the membership and the conditions that you signed under. Tell them that if necessary you will defend the case in county court. Theres a legal reference that says that if a verbal statement that persuades you to sign an agreement then that verbal agreement is binding.

On the whole, Esporta will know if their sales guys tell fibs to get their sales targets up, and I think they should back down. Unfortunately I don't think that the legal case for an unfair term in consumer contract is strong enough for you to get out of it that way, although Gyms are getting a lot of heat for selling binding contracts that people can't get out of, so they might back off with a strongly worded letter.

If after all that you fail, go to your local rag and expose them. Chances are they'll let you off to look better.

jlittle

Excellent - thank you sportbeth!

enginelove

Esporta Gym , has again increased their membership at my local..

Jacuzzi was always out of action...gym equipment was not always cleaned after bums were on seats ...water fountain and costume dryer out of action....changing rooms with locks missing..

Staff on reception discussing private life not to mention , the abrasive manner , also admin , information, and communication within the branch left a lot to be desired..they just sign you up, and then you're on your own

Not bad for the £50 - £85 per month they ask for.....you could get piece of home equipment and work out when you want,use "Gillian's - You are what you eat, buy a Workout DVD and save the rest for a nice exotic holiday or a day at an Elemis spa..

So think twice and if contacting them take the name of everyone you speak to , including the date and time....

Merry Xmas to all :rudolf:

laceman

Thank you also sportbeth.
I to have had trouble from ARC/Esporta and am debating what to do.
When I joined in April because my works is around the corner I asked the question because I work for Jaguar Cars if I was to be moved location could I cancel my membership to which the sales rep at the gym said yes with written confirmation from my Manager. I stopped going to the gym in July but continued paying direct debits to August. I received my first letter beginning Nov, then another mid Nov to which I replied explaining what the sales rep said to me and if required can produce a letter from my Manager to confirm. This has fell on deaf ears and they have told me that I now owe £109 to this day and will have a balance of £322 up to April 08 to pay. If the DD is not reinstated then ARC will recover the debt through the county court. I have ten days from now to pay what I owe and reinstate the DD mandate.
Tomorrow I am going to give your suggestions a go and see how I get on!

Zane81

I gave a months notice to leave Esporta in August when moving, we'd been told that if moving then a months notice was all that was needed (when we signed up) I have since been chased by Esporta several times for more money, they are saying we need to pay up to the end of November.

I have spoken to the DTI they say that we can protest that the verbal contract made with the sales person has been broken, this will make the original contract void. But Esporta have just told me that they now plan to action ARC to chase for the money, which will be 4 months (4 X £10).

I have also found that the OFT have investigated the Esporta contract and do render the 3 months notice period as unfair.

Is anybody else going through a similar process with Esporta at the moment.

Also will ARC make any additional charges when they start chasing the debt? The DTI have advised that we pay under protest and then claim the money back.

Any thoughts are appreciated!

The Office of Fair Trading: Esporta Health & Fitness Club