Tennis Club charged full price throughout lockdown

sand_hun

Hi @Mickey666 - in this case your assumption about the pricing structure is incorrect. There are no court fees, just an annual payment. 

@Undervalued yes, I think the 20% discount they've offered is reasonable. I may or may not renew after I've reviewed my current financial situation.

Billy_B_North

MalMonroe said:

Mickey666 said:

sand_hun said:

Undervalued said:

As I have said in similar threads relating to golf, if the course (courts in your case) were covered with snow for three weeks in a harsh winter would you expect three weeks subs back?

Hello. If the courts were covered in snow and I was unable to play for 3 weeks I would not expect any compensation for that, due to the fact I would still be able to play in many of the remaining weeks of the year

However, due to the pandemic I've only been able to play a handful of times, despite paying the full annual fee - which will shortly be up for renewal. As mentioned previously, they had a huge influx of members in the last 12 months. The income from those fees would more than offset any ongoing maintenance costs. The clubhouse itself is little more than a glorified shed within a private estate.

Seems like you've done as much as you can by asking the club about a subs reduction.   The only other thing you can do to apply pressure to the club is resign your membership, but with a "huge influx of members" it seems unlikely they'll care.
You basically have no influence at all.

That's a bit of a defeatist attitude. I'd at least have a go at getting something out of them when I'd paid my hard-earned cash for nothing.

But if it’s a not for profit enterprise what does that mean? The fees will cover rental, staff costs, business maintenance etc. Where is this money to come from; a loan to pay the members compensation with, which these same members then have to repay?

marrenflynn

The same thing happened to me. I joined on Oct 28, paid nearly £200 for a six-month membership. Because of lockdown I never got to use the club, even once. Asked them to roll that 200 into the renewal fee as of April 1 and they said no. Now (after multiple emails from me) they have offered a refund to anyone who joined after Oct 1, but the refund is only for Jan, Feb and March. It adds up to £76. But the kicker is - you only get it if you renew. Full year fee is £305, which because of losing my livelihood to the pandemic, I can't do. My question is - if they have offered it to some (those renewing), do they not have to offer it to everyone? 

Undervalued

marrenflynn said:

The same thing happened to me. I joined on Oct 28, paid nearly £200 for a six-month membership. Because of lockdown I never got to use the club, even once. Asked them to roll that 200 into the renewal fee as of April 1 and they said no. Now (after multiple emails from me) they have offered a refund to anyone who joined after Oct 1, but the refund is only for Jan, Feb and March. It adds up to £76. But the kicker is - you only get it if you renew. Full year fee is £305, which because of losing my livelihood to the pandemic, I can't do. My question is - if they have offered it to some (those renewing), do they not have to offer it to everyone? 

Who are "they"? In other words what is the structure of your club? Is it a genuine club, owned by its members who elect a committee? Or is it a profit making business? Please read the comments I made earlier in this thread.

Was the club open for play between 28 Oct and the end of December? I realise it will have been closed from 1 Jan until Monday this week?

If "they" are not legally obliged to offer a refund then yes, they can make a gesture only to those renewing if "they" so choose.

marrenflynn

Undervalued said:

marrenflynn said:

The same thing happened to me. I joined on Oct 28, paid nearly £200 for a six-month membership. Because of lockdown I never got to use the club, even once. Asked them to roll that 200 into the renewal fee as of April 1 and they said no. Now (after multiple emails from me) they have offered a refund to anyone who joined after Oct 1, but the refund is only for Jan, Feb and March. It adds up to £76. But the kicker is - you only get it if you renew. Full year fee is £305, which because of losing my livelihood to the pandemic, I can't do. My question is - if they have offered it to some (those renewing), do they not have to offer it to everyone? 

Who are "they"? In other words what is the structure of your club? Is it a genuine club, owned by its members who elect a committee? Or is it a profit making business? Please read the comments I made earlier in this thread.

Was the club open for play between 28 Oct and the end of December? I realise it will have been closed from 1 Jan until Monday this week?

If "they" are not legally obliged to offer a refund then yes, they can make a gesture only to those renewing if "they" so choose.

I think it's fairly obvious that "they" is the administration of the club. 
Between 28 Oct and the end of Dec, the club was only open for play for 3 weeks, but only in a limited capacity - you could only play with members of your own household. Those of us who live alone could not use it. 

Undervalued

marrenflynn said:

Undervalued said:

marrenflynn said:

The same thing happened to me. I joined on Oct 28, paid nearly £200 for a six-month membership. Because of lockdown I never got to use the club, even once. Asked them to roll that 200 into the renewal fee as of April 1 and they said no. Now (after multiple emails from me) they have offered a refund to anyone who joined after Oct 1, but the refund is only for Jan, Feb and March. It adds up to £76. But the kicker is - you only get it if you renew. Full year fee is £305, which because of losing my livelihood to the pandemic, I can't do. My question is - if they have offered it to some (those renewing), do they not have to offer it to everyone? 

Who are "they"? In other words what is the structure of your club? Is it a genuine club, owned by its members who elect a committee? Or is it a profit making business? Please read the comments I made earlier in this thread.

Was the club open for play between 28 Oct and the end of December? I realise it will have been closed from 1 Jan until Monday this week?

If "they" are not legally obliged to offer a refund then yes, they can make a gesture only to those renewing if "they" so choose.

I think it's fairly obvious that "they" is the administration of the club. 
Between 28 Oct and the end of Dec, the club was only open for play for 3 weeks, but only in a limited capacity - you could only play with members of your own household. Those of us who live alone could not use it. 

But what is the structure of the club? If you read my earlier posts in this thread it will be obvious why it is relevant. Is it a profit making business or is it a club (in the proper sense of the word) owned by its members and run by a committee they elect?

Regarding your point about living alone....

Given that "only your household" was a government requirement and not something dreamt up by the club I don't think there is any obligation on the club (whatever its structure) to differentiate for that reason.

Billy_B_North

marrenflynn said:

Undervalued said:

marrenflynn said:

The same thing happened to me. I joined on Oct 28, paid nearly £200 for a six-month membership. Because of lockdown I never got to use the club, even once. Asked them to roll that 200 into the renewal fee as of April 1 and they said no. Now (after multiple emails from me) they have offered a refund to anyone who joined after Oct 1, but the refund is only for Jan, Feb and March. It adds up to £76. But the kicker is - you only get it if you renew. Full year fee is £305, which because of losing my livelihood to the pandemic, I can't do. My question is - if they have offered it to some (those renewing), do they not have to offer it to everyone? 

Who are "they"? In other words what is the structure of your club? Is it a genuine club, owned by its members who elect a committee? Or is it a profit making business? Please read the comments I made earlier in this thread.

Was the club open for play between 28 Oct and the end of December? I realise it will have been closed from 1 Jan until Monday this week?

If "they" are not legally obliged to offer a refund then yes, they can make a gesture only to those renewing if "they" so choose.

I think it's fairly obvious that "they" is the administration of the club. 
Between 28 Oct and the end of Dec, the club was only open for play for 3 weeks, but only in a limited capacity - you could only play with members of your own household. Those of us who live alone could not use it. 

It wasn’t obvious at all, but if they are simply managing it for you, the members, then it’s up to the members to decide how it needs to work.

Thrugelmir

MalMonroe said:

I'd definitely try to get some of my money back, or an extension of membership. How dare they keep it when the club has not been available to members? What have they been doing with the money collected if the club has not been open?

Have you ever been involved in managing an organisation financially?  Might be an eye opener for you. 

sand_hun

marrenflynn said:

The same thing happened to me. I joined on Oct 28, paid nearly £200 for a six-month membership. Because of lockdown I never got to use the club, even once.

Sorry to hear that. I've opted not to renew my membership for the year ahead.

shadesofali

marrenflynn said:

The same thing happened to me. I joined on Oct 28, paid nearly £200 for a six-month membership. Because of lockdown I never got to use the club, even once. 

I'm stuck with a gym membership and i haven't been able to go since it's been open for only 3 weeks in the last 6 months. What they're doing is still taking the monthly membership by DD, but adding a month to the contract and not charging that month. 6 months free and counting.......