GymFlex: COVID-19 General Information: Updated 17.07.2020



We understand that many of you have questions over your gym membership arrangements and how things will be handled as the industry begins to reopen. Gyms have already been given the green light to reopen in Northern Ireland and gyms in England from 25th July. It's not yet been confirmed when gyms in Wales or Scotland can open.

The following FAQs should help answer some questions and explain what may happen over coming months. We'll aim to update these weekly to provide the most recent updates possible:

Payment & Salary Deductions

  • How does the payment for GymFlex work? Your gym membership is an annual paid upfront agreement. Your company has purchased this for the year and recoups the cost back via your salary each month. GymFlex is not responsible for your salary deductions: these are made by your company in line with the salary exchange agreement you committed to when selecting the benefit. The majority of companies have continued with payroll deductions during this time. Therefore, you'll stop paying after the consecutive 12 months but will have gym access until the end of your extension (see point below). However, if your company has frozen your payments then please expect these to recommence in line with the memberships being reactivated.
  • I'm on furlough - what does this mean for my payments? This needs to be discussed with your employer as GymFlex is not responsible for your salary deductions.
  • I'm being made redundant or leaving my company - what happens? The arrangement with anyone leaving their company is for the membership balance to be deducted from your final pay. This will allow you to continue accessing the gym with the GymFlex discount until the end of your extended membership term. If you are facing redundancy then we're sorry to hear this, your redundancy package will be advised by your employer.

Membership Freezes & Extensions

The majority of gyms have put in place membership freezes and extensions by default. Essentially, this means if the club was closed for 4 months then your membership renewal date will be extended by 4 months.

  • What if the freeze period is not a clear 4 months? Gyms are planning for this scenario and varying offers will be made available to ensure employees are not missing out. It's likely your gym will contact you directly over these arrangements and subsequently update GymFlex with any new renewal dates. For Northern Ireland and the UK, extensions are being processed to extend a renewal date by 4 months. You do not need to take any action to ensure this is put in place. For Wales and Scotland, a further decision will be made once reopening dates are confirmed.
  • What if my membership was due for renewal during this time? If you have a monthly enrolment, you'll be able to renew your membership after the extension has finished. For example, memberships expiring at the end of April will be extended to end in August. You can therefore renew in August for your membership to be effective from 1 st September.
  • My company only runs one annual enrolment window - will an extension mean I cannot renew? GymFlex is working on finding solutions to accommodate this issue. As gyms have been closed and their staff on furlough, we've had limited opportunity to develop these plans. We'll be liaising with your company on the next steps and you'll be updated in due course.

Gym Safety

Memberships will recommence when your gym reopens, your club will advise you on their opening dates and the measures they're taking to keep you safe. There may be some changes to the way your gym needs to operate. Please support your gym by adhering to their recommendations and rules. We would like to reiterate that hygiene measures will be significant. This guide highlights some of the main steps the leading gym chains have put in place to keep everyone safe: https://gymflex.turtl.co/story/welcome-back-from-gymflex/

GymFlex Availability

We're working with all our clients to re-open GymFlex selection windows at the right time for them. It's likely that many of the monthly enrolment windows will recommence in August for September memberships. If you access GymFlex via a benefits platform then please check your platform to see if GymFlex has been reactivated. You can only select a membership once it is live on your platform.

Cancellations

Now that gym staff are returning to work, we're starting to get a clearer picture with regards to any cancellation rules. An important point to note: your gym membership selection required you to agree to your employer salary exchange and the gym's terms and conditions. Any cancellation request must be submitted by your company to GymFlex, who will liaise with your gym to seek approval from them. The gym holds the final decision. Some general guidance to help facilitate any cancellation requests follows:

  • Double check whether your gym has any information on their website with regards to cancellation rules
  • Submit your cancellation request to your HR & Benefits team with accompanying evidence to support the request:
  • Medical cancellations require a doctor's note which states you're unable to exercise.
  • Relocation requires proof of your move, either new home address or a letter from your company to confirm your work relocation. Note that gyms who allow cancellation due to relocation normally have a minimum move distance. Additionally, should your gym have another club within their chain which is nearer your new location then a club transfer will be provided.
  • Allow us some time to manage everything. Please remember there are numerous parties involved with the setup of your membership and due to COVID there is a backlog of queries. We will address everything as soon as possible but there may be some delays handing requests. We do apologise and would thank you for your patience.

Continuation of Membership Freezes/Local Area Lockdowns

Some gyms are offering an extension to the membership freeze to accommodate those who might not be ready to go back straight away due to school holidays or personal preferences. Your gym will communicate any options available to you with regards to being able to extend your freeze for a little longer. We're hoping it might not need to happen but there is a chance we'll see some further local area lockdowns: if this occurs then gyms will advise on their closures and the relevant extensions once more.

Membership Transfers within chains

We're seeing a lot of gyms open up their access to multi-club to provide some more flexibility around where people can work out. Check if there are other clubs in your area which may be accessible and review your gym's policy on multi-site access.




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