Am I in the wrong for demanding a PT refund after constant gym scheduling issues and cancellations?
Hi everyone, I need a reality check. Am I being a Karen, or is this gym completely unprofessional?
I recently signed up for a 10-session personal training package at a gym chain. Their official advertisement explicitly promises "Flexible Scheduling" and states that the 10 sessions must be completed within 30 days.
I paid my deposit, but it has been a disaster from the start:
Week 1: My assigned coach was unavailable. I was told they would discuss a schedule with a replacement trainer on Tuesday, but I was completely ghosted. I even messaged the HQ number for help and was ignored for over 24 hours. Out of frustration, I physically drove to the gym just to get an update, only to be told, "Sorry, can you just start next week?"
Current Week: We finally scheduled 3 slots. I managed to attend exactly one session. I couldn’t make it to the second session because I had a sudden allergic reaction. However, the last session was cancelled at the last minute by the coach because she had a group class to conduct instead. The ironic part? She was the one who chose that specific time slot for us, but only bothered to tell me about her conflicting group class on the actual day of the session.
Next Week: My coach is going to be unavailable again. Her solution is to have the replacement trainer train me instead—the exact same replacement trainer who was supposed to contact me during Week 1 but completely ghosted me.
Given how long it takes them to reply and their track record, I have zero confidence this will get better. Because of their unavailability, it is mathematically impossible for me to finish my 10 sessions within the mandatory 30 days stated in their written T&Cs.
When I brought up the 30-day rule, they verbally tried to pacify me by saying, "Oh, it's okay, we can just extend it past 30 days." But their written contract explicitly says "No carry forward of unused sessions." I don't trust a verbal promise, and honestly, an extension just means stretching out this frustrating, inconsistent service over two months instead of getting the dedicated momentum I paid for.
Am I in the right for wanting to demand my money back despite their "non-refundable" policy, or should I have just accepted their verbal offer to stretch out the timeline? Anyone have experience dealing with Malaysian gym management?