Virgin Active empty your locker

surveyor_101

Anyone else experienced virgin active emptying your locker and throwing your stuff away.

Colleague - left stuff for one night after being told she had to buy her own padlock. Being like most nob contractual/non legal people didnt read the terms but they state you can't leave anything over nmight in their lockers and they just emptied it and chucked her stuff.

She is bringing me a copy of the agreement to read

custardy

surveyor_101 wrote: »

Anyone else experienced virgin active emptying your locker and throwing your stuff away.

Colleague - left stuff for one night after being told she had to buy her own padlock. Being like most nob contractual/non legal people didnt read the terms but they state you can't leave anything over nmight in their lockers and they just emptied it and chucked her stuff.

She is bringing me a copy of the agreement to read

you mean like pretty much every gym then?
I would be surprised there isnt signage to the same terms.

Edit: Where do the members keep their stuff if everyone with a padlock simply claimed a locker as their own?

NYGiants

surveyor_101 wrote: »

Anyone else experienced virgin active emptying your locker and throwing your stuff away.

Colleague - left stuff for one night after being told she had to buy her own padlock. Being like most nob contractual/non legal people didnt read the terms but they state you can't leave anything over nmight in their lockers and they just emptied it and chucked her stuff.

She is bringing me a copy of the agreement to read

Theres a sign up in my local Virgin Active gym stating that any contents left in lockers overnight will be disposed of; I'm not sure of the legalaties of just chucking them away rather than keeping them elsewhere to be re-claimed, but that is standard practice for every gym.

There are a lot more people than lockers and you can't simply acquire one permanently by leaving a padlock on there; it's extemely inconsiderate and I hope all the contents were just chucked in the bin!

surveyor_101

I wont pay these prices so use the local leisure centre/road run. So wasn't aware this was standard gym policy.


There is no signage I think they rely on it being in their contract which she thinks they didn't give her a copy of.

Ok so the broke her padlock and removed the contents after being left for one night. Why throw all but her trainers away, cloths etc all gone.

custardy

surveyor_101 wrote: »

I wont pay these prices so use the local leisure centre/road run. So wasn't aware this was standard gym policy.


There is no signage I think they rely on it being in their contract which she thinks they didn't give her a copy of.

Ok so the broke her padlock and removed the contents after being left for one night. Why throw all but her trainers away, cloths etc all gone.

Why not? Typically you need a punitive action to stop people in this type of scenario.

What I would say (though it irks me as locker claimers annoy me) the online T&Cs actually state they hold the items for 30 days.
I dont know if theres a different set of T&Cs for in house sign ups.

FYI I wont pay their prices either,my gym is £16 a month and has the same locker policy.

helcat26

Same policy in my gym - notice on the wall.
Frankly I welcome it because as other people have said there are more members than lockers and if people start to take ownership of a locker it would be a pain.


Having said that did she have id in her locker to say the stuff was hers- if so they could have retained it and warned her not to do it again. If no id how would they know who to contact?

NYGiants

surveyor_101 wrote: »

I wont pay these prices so use the local leisure centre/road run. So wasn't aware this was standard gym policy.


There is no signage I think they rely on it being in their contract which she thinks they didn't give her a copy of.

Ok so the broke her padlock and removed the contents after being left for one night. Why throw all but her trainers away, cloths etc all gone.

They have their general Terms & Conditions online..

https://www.virginactive.co.uk/legals/club-terms

The pertinent Terms & Conditions for you are..

48. With the exception of any designated private lockers, lockers are available for use only while you are on a Club’s premises. Use of a locker (other than any designated private lockers) while not on Club premises is prohibited. If you leave your belongings overnight in a locker (other than in any designated private locker), Virgin Active reserves the right to open the locker (by force if necessary) and remove your belongings.

49. Your belongings, so removed, will be available for collection from the relevant Club’s Reception for a period of thirty (30) days, upon payment of the prevailing holding charge. If you do not collect your belongings within thirty (30) days, your belongings may be donated to charity.

jenniewb

I have been a member of a few different gyms over the years, I've never known it not be policy to empty out lockers and run frequent if not nightly locker checks to ensure things are not left behind.


Things get thrown away for a variety of reasons but one important reason being that there could be harmful, unhealthy or even illegal things kept in lockers and unless someone is renting the locker space themselves, once left behind it becomes the gym who is liable not the locker user.
Things that have any liquid in them are a risk for bacteria growth so bottles, wet towels...etc are all a risk and lockers need to be kept empty if they are communal so they have a chance to dry out if someone different is supposed to use the locker the next day.


I had always been told when I was at VA that they'd send all stuff left in lockers (not accidentally left but padlocked in if the space had not been paid for/rented) that they'd take all things inside the lockers to the nearest charity shop, but you can imagine how that may change if they felt the gym kit left behind was unhygienic or not something the charity shop would be able to sell on. They did though always say they'd give some grace by waiting until the end of each month to take any left behind kit elsewhere.


Sorry OP but I really don't think you have a case here, if not only because they often do offer locker spaces to rent and by taking a locker without paying for it on a very basic level isn't fair to those who do pay for the space.