Buzz Gym freezes membership fees

Buzz Gym, which has a branch in the Westgate Centre, announced its decision following the Prime Minister's statement on Monday night.

It comes after one gym user complained last week that the company had not frozen fees automatically after Oxfordshire was placed into Tier 4 restrictions, meaning that people could not go to gyms.

Instead, at that point, the company had given users several options: to pay their membership and get the time back if they choose, to freeze their payments or cancel their membership all together.

However, following the Prime Minister’s announcement, Buzz Gym CEO Adam Stowell confirmed that all memberships will be paused for free until there is a confirmed reopening date.

ALSO READ: Teacher-student romantic and sexual relationships could be banned

Mr Stowell had argued that gyms were ‘part of the solution to this pandemic, not the problem’ and added that the Government had done ‘very little to support the leisure sector’, despite enforcing five months of closure on the industry.

This is why the CEO urged people not to cancel their memberships and instead, continue to support the business.

Mr Stowell said: “Here at Buzz Gym we have proven on our reopening since the first lockdown that we are safe and can operate safely adhering to social distancing and with our regular cleaning our members and staff can continue to exercise safely.

“We have already seen operators close due to this pandemic.

“Many more operators will be forced to close permanently as the Government has done very little to support the leisure sector, despite enforcing five months of closure on our industry.”

ALSO READ: 'Prisoners should be first in line for Covid vaccine'

While some members complained their fees were not stopped, others were happy to continue paying.

A 23-year-old woman from Oxford, who wanted to remain anonymous, commented: “I really like using Buzz Gym and I am happy to pay while it is shut because I would not be going at the moment if it was open.

“I would also like to keep paying for the things I do not want to close when the pandemic is finally over, like the personal trainers wages who I know will not be happy with the news that gyms will be staying shut.”

Buzz Gym Westgate

Lockdown restrictions during the coronavirus pandemic have frequently seems gyms told to stay closed.

According to a survey by RunRepeat, just 31 per cent of gym members have returned to their gym this year.

Even more, 60 per cent of the 5,055 people surveyed said that they had cancelled or were considering cancelling their memberships.

ALSO READ: 'Covid outbreak' at Morrisons branch

Feel Fit Gym at Templars Square also resorted to drastic measures in December.

The business started a public fundraiser to raise ‘much-needed’ £10,000 for its facilities as its revenue got ‘painfully slashed’.

A statement explaining its appeal said: “Gyms are a place where we find community, family, growth and purpose and we need our gyms to still be around, so we have set up this GoFundMe page to help raise some needed extra funds.

“If you are able to make a small donation separate from your membership, or maybe you have visited us before and appreciate what are are trying to achieve.

“Any donation big or small would be most appreciated.”

Keep up to date with all the latest news on our website, or follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

For news updates straight to your inbox, sign up to our newsletter here.

Have you got a story for us? Contact our newsdesk on news@nqo.com or 01865 425 445.