Complaints

This profile includes complaints for National Fitness Center's headquarters and its corporate-owned locations. To view all corporate locations, see Find Local Branches.

close

Find a Location

National Fitness Center has 8 locations, listed below.

*This company may be headquartered in or have additional locations in another country. Please click on the country abbreviation in the search box below to change to a different country location.

BBB accredited

Near

Country

USUnited States

Please enter a valid location.

Filter

• 

  National Fitness Center

  8511 Walbrook Dr Knoxville, TN 37923

• 

  National Fitness Center

  950 Dolly Parton Parkway Sevierville, TN 37862

• 

  National Fitness Center

  2934 Alcoa Highway Knoxville, TN 37920

• 

  National Fitness Center

  3030 Tazewell Pike Knoxville, TN 37918

• 

  National Fitness Center

  1644 West Broadway Maryville, TN 37801

The complaint text that is displayed might not represent all complaints filed with BBB. Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:07/12/2022

  Type:Customer Service Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  On March 6, 2021 My Spouse and I went into the Oak Ridge National Fitness Center looking to sing up for a membership. We were placed in an office with an employee by the name of RAYON and offered 2 options only. The Fitness Plus option for $84.90/month & the Lifestyle Fitness option for $94.90/month. We went with the Lifestyle Fitness option as it included all clubs owned by NFC along with some other perks such as: Red Light Therapy(which we now know they don't even offer at Oak Ridge), 10% off all pro shop purchases (which we have never gotten despite the fact that we have made multiple purchases), and other features like unlimited 10 min Hydromassage's in a Hydromassage bed(this machine is down a lot due to poor maintenance). At the time, the NFC in Oak Ridge was boasting on the Beach location at Court South on Alcoa Highway. They advised us that we would only have access to this facility if we did the "Lifestyle Fitness" option as it included all clubs. We were also advised by the employee, RAYON that we could always downgrade our plan at a later time if we decided we did not want to continue using any of the other features or facilities. Therefor, we decided to go with the Lifestyle option. Summer rolled around and we later learned that the "Beach" location at Court South on Alcoa Highway was no longer a feature they were offering. Immediately we started trying to downgrade our plan. We got pushed back and forth between the Oak Ridge facility and the Corporate offices for months until I was able to reach out to the VICE PRESIDENT RANDY ******** at *********@courtsouth.com. Long story short, on 06/30/2022 (a year later) he got in touch with me & asked me to write an email requesting why I wanted my account to be downgraded & stated he would take it before the board for review. I heard back from him on 07/11/22. NFC denied my request & advised me that I needed to move more than 20 miles away from one of the facilities in order for them to downgrade our account.

  Business Response

  Date: 08/10/2022

  Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2022/07/20) */ Thank you for your correspondence. Please be advised that we have reviewed the **** Family's membership. They currently have a financed Term Agreement valid through the date of 3/6/2024. The early cancellation option requires relocation of residence and employment as indicated on the Agreement. The membership cannot be downgraded while it is In Term. The three membership packages available for that location were outlined on a presentation sheet and that information has been attached for verification purposes. Amenities do change from time to time and the time for equipment repair is reliant on the availability of parts and shipping time. NFC makes a tremendous effort for any equipment that becomes out of order to be repaired as quickly as humanly possible. Options for their membership: 1. They may transfer the membership to another person(s). They are responsible for finding the person(s) to transfer to. There is a transfer fee involved of $195.00. The remaining account balance must be paid in full at the time of signing at the then current rate, as we are unable to transfer the financing. 2. They may also pay the balance in full and no longer have a monthly payment obligation. $2231.77 (as of 7/20/22) Failure to resolve the past due balance on the account before 8/15/2022 will result in NFC obtaining a Third Party for resolution. Consumer Response /* (3000, 7, 2022/07/26) */ (The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.) To whom it may concern: Please be advised I am writing in response to complaint XXXXXXX filed with the BBB on 07/11/2022. I do NOT agree with the response from the business, National Fitness Center that was given on 07/20/2022 as it contains many falsehoods. The Business responded, "The membership cannot be downgraded while it is In Term. The three membership packages available for that location were outlined on a presentation sheet and that information has been attached for verification purposes." I was unable to locate the attachment via the BBB website which the business, National Fitness Center is referencing in their response. However, I have the ORIGINAL document I was presented with during my interview and I am uploading showing the 2 memberships that were offered to us by the employee, Rayon. The employee, Rayon marked through the first option and advised us that the option was not available at the time. The employee, Rayon then went on to advise us in order for us to have access to "The Beach" location at Court South (which they were promoting at the time), we would need to sign up for the Lifestyle Fitness option at $94.90/month. The employee, Rayon also advised us we could downgrade our plan to any lower membership being offered at the time if we chose to do so. He even wrote it on our paperwork and advised us it was not an issue if needed. We later found out the company no longer provided access to "The Beach" facility. Hence, the reason we started trying to downgrade. Not only that but, we also found out Rayon, the employee, had been released from the company due to providing inaccurate information to the facility members upon signing up. I was informed by the Oak Ridge Club PT Trainer T.O. Filani as well as, the club Manager, Josh Vandergriff, they have had multiple issues in the past with members coming to them with inaccurate information which was provided on behalf of that particular employee, Rayon. The managers advised me that, "this is not the first incident in which an employee has lied to sell a membership to a consumer in an attempt to get paid a larger commission." They advised me to contact the corporate office to get help with the incident as they had zero control over the ability to downgrade or cancel memberships. That is why I reached out to the Vice President, ***** ******** at *********@courtsouth.com. He refused to help resolve the issue and only offered to take our complaint before a board of directors who later advised us they would not cancel or downgrade the membership and we would need to obtain an attorney to represent us if we failed to make our plan payments. We filed this BBB complaint after the board advised us of their decision. The business also responded to our complaint XXXXXXX on 7/20/2022 with 2 options to resolve the membership dispute but, we do NOT agree with either of the presented options. I wish to cancel this membership altogether moving forward due to the dishonesty of the business, the misrepresentation and fraud of the employee on behalf of the business, and the inability for them to be able to offer "The Beach" location which they aggressively advertised in an effort to persuade the consumer to sign up for the largest package. Please see the options below the business, National Fitness Center provided us. We do not comply with any of the following options. " Options for their membership: 1. They may transfer the membership to another person(s). They are responsible for finding the person(s) to transfer to. There is a transfer fee involved of $195.00. The remaining account balance must be paid in full at the time of signing at the then current rate, as we are unable to transfer the financing. 2. They may also pay the balance in full and no longer have a monthly payment obligation. $2231.77 (as of 7/20/22) Failure to resolve the past due balance on the account before 8/15/2022 will result in NFC obtaining a Third Party for resolution." We anxiously await your decision. Consumer Response /* (3000, 9, 2022/07/26) */ ***Document Attached*** Business Response /* (4000, 11, 2022/08/03) */ The Board of Directors has indicated their previous response shall stand as their final offer for resolution. Amenities as well as equipment does vary from time to time and does not effect the validity of the Membership Agreement. Additionally, any service that has a separate monthly charge would be adjusted accordingly should that service no longer be offered.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:05/23/2022

  Type:Billing Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  Good afternoon. My husband and I signed up for a family membership with National Fitness Center including a package for personal training sessions. We had to move to Morristown and were told that we could transfer our PT sessions to the Morristown branch. As soon as we settled in we started trying to speak with the person in charge to finalize our transfer and schedule our sessions. After several attempts we finally caught Chad H. in his office, who assured us everything would be taken care immediately. Unfortunately, for the past 9 months we haven't been able to get our PT appointments scheduled. Nevertheless, both our regular membership along with the personal training package have been charged to our checking account monthly. So we have been paying for a service that hasn't been provided to us. We are very unhappy and it seems we are stuck on a two-year contract, even though we haven't been able to hold them accountable for their end on this contract. We even have been wondering if there is any legal action available for us.

  Business Response

  Date: 06/27/2022

  Business Response /* (1000, 7, 2022/06/08) */ We reflect that Mrs. Matos has appointments currently scheduled with our Personal Training Department. She has the ability to schedule an appointment for each session she has paid for.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:05/23/2022

  Type:Customer Service Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I went to this gym to look at the amenities and do a tour and was told numerous times that I was overweight and that if I didn't exercise and weight train daily that I would die young. They made remarks about my weight numerous times and made me feel really insecure and then used a sales pitch to get me to buy a membership. They never told me I had 3 days to cancel and I was never told that it would be a 3 year contract. They left out important details about the services provided and made me feel uncomfortable the whole time.

  Business Response

  Date: 06/27/2022

  Business Response /* (1000, 7, 2022/06/08) */ We have reviewed the file of Madison Christopher. The membership chosen was a 36 month membership agreement. It contains a Three Day Buyer Right to Cancel clause stating that the membership may be terminated before the Third Business Day of signing the Agreement via Registered or Certified Mail. Once the Three Day Buyer Right to Cancel period has lapsed, we do not have the capability of cancelling the membership unless the member relocates and meets the eligibility requirements to cancel. There are 3 documents in her file indicating the length of the membership agreement and are attached for confirmation. However, we are not seeing a spot to upload those documents to. Consumer Response /* (3000, 9, 2022/06/08) */ (The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.) I feel as if I was rushed into signing the papers and they used my weight against me. They Made fun of me the whole time and would barely let me say no to them. They used tactics on me to get me to buy a membership without me agreeing to the length of the membership and not knowing that I wouldn't be able to cancel.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:04/27/2022

  Type:Order Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I have paid $49.95 a month for about 1.5 years because they will not cancel my contract. We moved last April to a camper while we sold our house. The place we lived was 33 miles away from the nearest store. The house we bought in September of last year is 23 miles away from the nearest store. In my contract it states that if you move further than 20 miles away from the nearest location, the account may be canceled. I have been begging them to cancel it for over a year based on what the contract says. They keep denying it and I don't know what else to do to get it canceled. Their website said it could be canceled with a cancelation fee but they won't even give me that option. I have already paid them $599.40 since the first time I asked them to cancel because I live to far away. The map attached shows the distance from National Fitness Center Oak Ridge to my house in Harriman.

  Business Response

  Date: 05/06/2022

  Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2022/04/27) */ Ms. Edgemon lived in Harriman, TN at the time of joining NFC. Her new residential and employment addresses provided in Harriman are not of greater distance than the mileage she had when she originally joined. Her membership is deemed non-cancelable at this time. Consumer Response /* (3000, 7, 2022/04/27) */ (The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.) I should have been able to cancel my contract last April when I moved to 799 anglers Cove Road that was 33 miles from the nearest facility. They would not let me cancel because I could not provide proof of residency because I was using a p.o. box. I feel that by not going there and still paying for a full year, I should bow be able to cancel the contract. We were in the process of purchasing a home closer to Kingston, however all houses were out of our price range at that point and we ended up buying in Harriman again. It is still outside the 20 mile radius that is stated in the contract. Business Response /* (4000, 9, 2022/04/29) */ We have reviewed this file in great detail. Ms. Edgemon could not provide any proof of physically living at the address on Angler's Cove and the employment address remained in Harriman as well. The new addresses provided are approximately the same distance as the addresses provided when joining. Our finance company has, again, denied the request to cancel at this time.