BAllys Total Fitness ripoff Orlando Florida
IN 2002 soon after being injured in an accident I went to Ballys on S . Semoran in Orlando holding a free 2 week membership pass. I was given the whole sign up for a year spiel and agreed with the sales rep - I was all for it IF my injury allowed me to work out as I wasnt sure I was ready or able to work out just yet. I just wanted to get in the gym, Get at it and go on with my day. Eh no problem he says - just sign this please? - So I signed what I was told was a voidable aggrement- went ahead and had my work out - was told by my doctor to give it some more time before I began serious exercising- beyond the physical therapy I was already getting.
5 months later I get a phone call from Ballys Billing Department saying I am late on my dues. WHAt dues?
According to them I owed somewhere in the neighborhood of $200 on a contract for well over a Thousand Dollars! After several calls from Ballys and physically recovering well enough to begin exercising regularly - I got dressed and went to the Ballys gym with my wife to exercise-
I paid my $200 and when I went to enter for my work out was told Your no longer a member sir, so you need to pay the daily rate to enter. I was denied access couldnt work out. SO my wife and I left.
3 Months later I get a call saying I owe money for late payments on the past three months?? I tell em to shove it. They turn me into a collection agency.
A total of 5 Collection agencies have pestered me until I got calm enough to explain to them the situation where upon they droped it.
Now I got a new Attorney based collection agency taking me to court Tuesday the 30th of Jan 2006 to sue me for collection. We've been thru mediation and they are taking it all the way. So here we go.
I' d like some help if anybody has any ideas on how to beat these rip offs please contact me thru this forum asap.
Alan
orlando, Florida
U.S.A.
8 Updates & Rebuttals
Michael
Coral Springs,Florida,
U.S.A.
Re: BAllys Total Fitness ripoff Orlando Florida
#9Consumer Comment
Thu, March 16, 2006
I have been dealing with a similiar situation with Bally's since 1995. I started with Premier Credit and am now on my 7th credit agency. After not hearing anything for about 4 years, I received a phone call from yet another agency yesterday. The person on the other line was abusive and threatening. I told him that it is against the law to call people and harass them. I then told him that I was not going to pay the debt unless Bally's was willing to re-instate my membership. He told me to get real, pay the debt and move on. I asked him if he would pay for a service that he never received, he quickly became hostile and yelled at me again. I frustrated him to the point where he hung up on me.
I got the company name and his name.
Phillip
Las Vegas,Nevada,
U.S.A.
Give them the same treatment
#9Consumer Suggestion
Wed, February 01, 2006
If they or another collection agency messes with you again don't do anything (such as mediation) other than telling them to **** themselves, challenging them to meet you in court, and reminding them that if you are sued that you WILL be filing a counter-suit. Their threats to take you to court are nothing more than scare tactics; if you threaten a counter-suit they almost surely won't show up because they know they'll be paying you.
Phillip
Las Vegas,Nevada,
U.S.A.
Give them the same treatment
#9Consumer Suggestion
Wed, February 01, 2006
If they or another collection agency messes with you again don't do anything (such as mediation) other than telling them to **** themselves, challenging them to meet you in court, and reminding them that if you are sued that you WILL be filing a counter-suit. Their threats to take you to court are nothing more than scare tactics; if you threaten a counter-suit they almost surely won't show up because they know they'll be paying you.
Phillip
Las Vegas,Nevada,
U.S.A.
Give them the same treatment
#9Consumer Suggestion
Wed, February 01, 2006
If they or another collection agency messes with you again don't do anything (such as mediation) other than telling them to **** themselves, challenging them to meet you in court, and reminding them that if you are sued that you WILL be filing a counter-suit. Their threats to take you to court are nothing more than scare tactics; if you threaten a counter-suit they almost surely won't show up because they know they'll be paying you.
Phillip
Las Vegas,Nevada,
U.S.A.
Give them the same treatment
#9Consumer Suggestion
Wed, February 01, 2006
If they or another collection agency messes with you again don't do anything (such as mediation) other than telling them to **** themselves, challenging them to meet you in court, and reminding them that if you are sued that you WILL be filing a counter-suit. Their threats to take you to court are nothing more than scare tactics; if you threaten a counter-suit they almost surely won't show up because they know they'll be paying you.
Alan
Orlando,Florida,
U.S.A.
Last minute maneuvers -
#9Author of original report
Mon, January 30, 2006
As I was reading the information pvided by membership ( thank you vry very much) I was handed a letter that came in today s mail by my wife. it is a
NOTICE OF VOLUNTARY DISMISSAL WITHOUT PREJUDICE
notice.
This isn't OK by me - my credit is screwed up - I had a gentlemens agreement with the collection agency attorney Richard Battaglino from
ZAKHEIM & Associates a law firm in Orlando Florida.
When he called to collect I explaine that I wanted my day in court - he said I would have it-- we have already been to mediation - which means I losta day of work at $200 per day ? I filed a counter claim for lost wages at $400 to cover the two days I expected to loose from work while appearing in court.
I want my lost wages - I want my credit cleared - this VOLUNTARY DISMISSAL provides me with neither ^ IN fact since its without prejudice - this essentially means Ballys can hand it over to another collection agency in the future!
Screwed again.
Lorraine - Geek Consumer Advocate :-)
Phoenix,Arizona,
U.S.A.
Inside info on Ballys
#9Consumer Suggestion
Mon, January 30, 2006
Not sure if this will help you or not, but Ballys has as an employee, in their Toledo, Ohio store, a personal trainer, who is the ex cult leader of the 2nd largest religious cult in the USA.
This man was fired from the cult after the cult was sued by former members, due to the habit he had of molesting the young female members, married and single. The ones he couldn't con into sleeping with him, he would still 'get' by way of getting them drunk or drugging a drink he gave them. This is all in the court records in Ohio.
I posted on this before, but had the city wrong, I had written Dayton and meant Toledo. I have talked to former cult members and it's been confirmed he is working in a Ballys in Toledo as a personal trainer. Makes sense to me. A man who is on record for molesting/raping women being allowed to work with them one on one in a health club.
There have been 3 court cases so far against this man from women he abused sexually and there are more to come. The Way International, the cult he was the leader of for many years after the original founder passed away, is based out of New Knoxville, Ohio, so Ballys could have easily checked his past and found out his history.
We aren't talking a few women here, we're talking hundreds if not thousands. He destroyed their lives and many are still suffering decades after getting away from the cult and his abuse to them.
If you can work this info in when you go to court, it should help you to show the quality of people they chose to hire to work for them. Very scary! They don't care about their members, only the money they can get and it's obvious they don't care who they hire to work for them, nor do they care if the person has a questionable history and could hurt members who aren't aware of it.
Cory
San Antonio,Texas,
U.S.A.
Strange. Going to a gym "soon after being injured in an accident" goes aganist all logic.
#9Consumer Comment
Mon, January 30, 2006
I would think you would have asked your doc before heading to the gym and getting his opinion, not after. Bally's is infamous for coming after people years later for dues they didn't know about. You may be able to make a case for the time you were injured until your doc released you.