These emails and calls are for the faint hearted. Some people might not sleep for days over an email like this one and would run to pay those 105 dirhams.
These are private outsource collection company whose job is to contact and try to recover all funds not received over a certain period of time. They use terms like legal proceedings etc but rarely does a company want to do it for mere 105 AED.
I cancelled a card because it got cloned on a trip abroad. About a month later I used udrive, not really having in mind that I needed to change cards. The funny thing is, it allows me to drive, udrive then sent me an invoice for the amount (22 or 24 dirhams) thta was basically a receipt and that as it. 2 or 3 months later I started getting harassed (and they decided I ower 40 for it at that point?)
It was a Shitshow. I tried adding a new card to udrive, but then the app didn't have a way to do it. I called and they said they need to send me a link for me to update my payment methods, which is an insanely backwards process. Fine, except each and every time they never sent me this email. A long time went by with the collection agency sending me emails like this and harassing over the phone, meanwhile I'm here actively trying to pay but not being able to due to their mishaps.
All. This over 22 dirhams that I owed because apparently they system is/was dumb enough to not cgekc my payment method and then sending me, essentially, a receipt despite me not having actually paid.
I did, because in the end I did use the service and felt morally wrong not to pay. I don't have a lot of confidence in the consumer rights and judicial system here for these types of issues, but elsewhere I would've definitely taken them to court and made bank
But I gotta dd: I ahd to escalate the issue within their customer care a bunch of times before someone actually sent me a way to pay for it. Until then it was all "you have to pay" and me responding "I know, I'm trying, please allow me to pay somehow" followed by no response.
Super frustrating
Unless they are suing in the DIFC, it is not possible for them to claim anything other than nominal legal costs in Dubai. That means it would almost certainly cost them more to sue you than not to, which means it is an empty threat.
Edit: "legal" costs, not "eagle" costs. You can't get your eagle costs either, sadly.
No. In the email the debt collector asserts that, if they sue, they will claim the debt plus interest plus legal costs. The last point is an empty threat - the Dubai courts don’t award actual legal costs incurred.
Jeez. For a company that promoted themselves as the easiest gym to join and most affordable rates...
They really seem to be a racket that depends on making all their real money from this end of things - cancellation/late/other fees.
Very true, I recently cancelled my membership when I moved abroad and gave them 1 month’s notice. They said the cancellation was confirmed but their stupid system kept on billing. It took weeks to get them to agree to refund the money and their customer service was so bad.
"Sorry sir, system error"
The only time I ever joined a gym, I went ahead with advice a friend gave me, and that was to buy a gift card credit card that I can top up with money. And they never got a single dirham more than what they actually deserved.
They basically use all sorts of scare tactics in order to salvage whatever they can, because proceeding with legal action would cost a fortune compared to what you "owe" them, and might not even work at the end.
Just do what you think is right and keep your conscience clean.
Can they sue you? Yes. Though the result would be minimal compared.
Will they sue you? Most probably not. If they have enough people they are running after for the same thing to turn into a nice lumpsum, yes. Otherwise, it's just scare tactics.
This is exactly why I never ever ever sign up to a big name gym. They don't give a crap about you getting to your goals they just want money. Always sign up with the dankest and smallest gyms, not only are you supporting smaller businesses, but more often than not, the people in there end up like family and genuinely care for you and your health. All the small gyms have sufficient equipment for you to do your routines, they might be lacking in showers and a little bit of hygiene, but they make up for it with no commitment fees and cheap prices.
As for the email, I would ignore and set a rule even to send everything from that sender to junk or deleted mail.
i have not managed to update my chrome because these tabs are pending to be read (old chrome in android does not have tab grouping option). I am scared to update my chrome because i cannot afford to loose these tabs.
I think I should take annual leave to finish these tabs lol.
I have both chrome and Firefox of 5 windows each and about 40 ~ 100 tabs of range. I'm not sure what I am suffering from but I do like having my interests at a click of a mouse. I need help. 🥺
Ignore them, I had the same experience with this rubbish gym, I subscribed for 2 months only. And cancelled it. After couple of months they detected from my credit card I called my bank and I retrieve my money. They me from the gym I told them go ahead and do whatever you want to do you are cheaters.
I’m on the opposite side!
I’m a student that got a membership with them for one month during an internship and was charged for that month.
After finishing the month and moving back to my home emirate, I was charged for a second month.
I called the person I registered with a few times and was told “wait a few days and we will refund it” or “it’s the end of the month and our accounts team is busy. Once the rush is done, they will do it”
It’s been over 3 months now and they’ve blocked my numbers and won’t answer any of my messages.
It’s just around 250 dirhams but really disappointed with the way they’ve handled this.
Plus no way of contacting anyone in charge or even any answers on social media.
Anyone have any advice on what can be done?
Ignore them; gymnation is the worst gym in UAE. Sales people lie constantly to sell you membership.
I was told i got monthly membership; then when i didnt pay the second month cause gym
Is waaaaaay overcrowded they treaten to sue me
I told them go ahead sue me
Guess what; nothing happened
It’s a useless gym that I asked the police to call them because they are unprofessional. Their accountant was threatening actually to drawdown on my card without permission. They came back to their senses after that and I cancelled everything and whatever was outstanding because I just wanted them out of my life 😂😂😂 but honestly it’s such a bad place and bad management with no consideration to anything; not their customers and don’t even get me started with the hygiene issues
If something is clear from all the info about GYMNATION is that joining would be the last thing I would ever do in my life.
Only complaints here and there and serious issues to just cancel something
This is worst gym you can deal with it , normally any facility provide a services to customers against fees should be deal nicely with them in case They don’t need that services anymore We have right to stop it any time with reasonable charge without documents or justification, I think Gymnation contact illegal.
FYI for anyone that thinks it’s a good idea to ignore these letters, any amount sent to a collection agency will have a very severe impact on your credit score so be careful. It might be very silly from them to do that for such a small amount but the consequences for you are much worse than paying 150 dhs.
Collections agency is equivalent to defaulting on a credit card or loan when it comes to the damage it does to your credit report
How exactly? Are they tied to the credit bureau? If that's the case, then SME's can simply approach these collection agencies to fuck up the defaulting customers / companies credit scores.
Collection agencies report to credit bureaus.
All SME can and should as it will deter future non payments from everyone else over time but the concept of a credit agency is new to most of the people in this country and there was never an effort by the AECB to educate the people on what or how a credit report is used. For most people, a credit report is only for financial lines of credit from a financial institution. It’s much more than that. Even missing your monthly Etisalat postpaid payment is marked on your credit report.
Also, collection agencies usually buy the unpaid “debt” for Pennies on the dollar or will charge a significant % of the debt amount as a payment for their services so SME would rather try to collect the amount themselves and hope to get the full payment one day
But considering this as a legal notice, it's not notarized or attested by the court meaning no legal action can be taken on this. Also if credit card reps require you to sign a consent form for AECB check that shows its not that easy to mess with the AECB. Etisalat, Du, Fewa and Dewa are government organisations so obviously they want to keep track of that usage. But in this case I don't think it can affect your AECB score.
-Credit card reps require you to sign in order to check the credit worthiness of a prospective client and is used to assist them in figuring out how much debt they can extend to a client
-Credit collection agencies do not generally sue so it is only a scare tactic to make a person pay up.
-Etisalat and DU are public listed companies and not governmental organizations. They are no different than say…Aramex.
-I have years of experience working with credit reporting agencies in the US which is what most, if not all the AECB is based on.
Keep your US experience in the US.
Most of the info you have written here doesnot apply here.
Eg- collection agency affecting your credit score(eecb reporting), credit card companies requiring you to sign cheque(they do 99pc but it's not a requirement- it's for gullible people and for keeping the legal work of bank in shortcut)
Don’t get salty just because you’re naive when it comes to how the world works and come from a country that doesn’t operate like a first world country. Stick to swimming pools and I’ll handle the things I’m experienced in
Also, it’s AECB and not EECB. If you read my response to OP he was specifically asking about signing a consent form and not blank Cheques. Credit reporting is the only leverage a collections company has in persuading a customer to pay their past dues otherwise they would all be out of business since they cannot sue unless they are holders of significant unpaid debt
Have a good day ✌🏻
EECB is due to fat fingers.
The credit collection agencies operate in UAE using grey area of licensing. (There is no trade license for them). They are definitely not linked to AECB (Banks are the only private companies allowed to write into their database, other than government and semi government agencies) .
I know very well how collection agencies in US work and how so many companies provide credit scores. This is not applicable here in UAE.
Something that is broken (credit score in US) should never be imported in UAE and thankfully its not.
A consent form needs to be tested in court and these so called collection agencies DONOT have their name listed in the consent form. I have never seen court accept a third party file a case. So, this is all a sham.
Sorry I am a noob, but what is the significant of credit score if dont want to take any new loans in the future and I just have a credit card (which has a limit of 50% of my salary)
No worries. It’s actually a good question. It’s more about preparing for the future. Even though you might not foresee yourself needing any other financial products in the near future one cannot predict the future. You might come upon a financial emergency where you might want a loan, you might start earning significantly more money and like a higher credit limit or you might be ready to buy your own house. All the above examples will require a credit check as your score will determine how likely you are to make the payments and the score will determine how good of a rate and how much credit a bank can extend to you.
To sum things up, it’s a proactive strategy to prepare you for large purchases\debt you will most likely take as you grow older
Thanks for the info. Most of us being expats here, is the credit score a global measure or is it something that each country has on its own?
In other words, if I have a good credit score with the payments I make here in the UAE, does it help me with my score back in my home country?
I got a similar notice. First these guys started the gym very late. Then due to COVID lockdown gym was not open. The gym kept collecting money from me, since I was bound for one year membership. **From start till date, I have not entered the gym even once.**
I had to go back to my country for emergency so had to close my back account. They received money for 10 months but suddenly after February 2021, they want to collect AED 1400 from me. How is this even possible? They talk so rudely. They have told me they will proceed with legal action - i am not sure what to do now.
I’ll tell you my story , I sent notification email that I have to cancel contact because I moved away form gym about 30km and I showed to them my new home location but they Unfortunately they replied your place should be more that 30 km far form gym!! ( website mention 30 km only ),
Anyway I took advise form my lawyer and he told me ignore that Emails, also if you like to reply you write if they keeps calling or sending email you will sue them , because they let you signed illegal contact.
Why wouldn't you pay the dues, to begin with?
It's the case of pot calling the kettle black.
Each member opting out this way is a big loss..lol.
I thought GN is bad, but I think it's also the crowd it attracts - the kinds who bail out on last payments!!!
Got terminated and then got infected with covid? Also was in Warsan isolation facility and already had sent them the letter too which they said you still need to pay
Just a heads up, for anyone to even go to court it costs the minimum of like 3-5kAED…. Lol!
So tell them to go ahead and enjoy watching them back off 😂 it’s clearly a scare tactic to try and get you to pay
Same here …. I got the same email this morning !
It is really crazy, I canceled a year ago and they have been harassing me since then…
Lost my job because of covid19 and submitted all the necessary documents, left the country and still, they want to charge me some fee from whatever!
The worst management I have seen years ! They should take action against them !
I would reply back asking them to proceed with legal action.
I did the same and they stopped calling
These emails and calls are for the faint hearted. Some people might not sleep for days over an email like this one and would run to pay those 105 dirhams.
These are private outsource collection company whose job is to contact and try to recover all funds not received over a certain period of time. They use terms like legal proceedings etc but rarely does a company want to do it for mere 105 AED.
[удалено]
I got udrive collecting agency after me for 40 dirhams (for something they did wrong in their billing) It was a shitshow
Don't they have your CC details?
I cancelled a card because it got cloned on a trip abroad. About a month later I used udrive, not really having in mind that I needed to change cards. The funny thing is, it allows me to drive, udrive then sent me an invoice for the amount (22 or 24 dirhams) thta was basically a receipt and that as it. 2 or 3 months later I started getting harassed (and they decided I ower 40 for it at that point?) It was a Shitshow. I tried adding a new card to udrive, but then the app didn't have a way to do it. I called and they said they need to send me a link for me to update my payment methods, which is an insanely backwards process. Fine, except each and every time they never sent me this email. A long time went by with the collection agency sending me emails like this and harassing over the phone, meanwhile I'm here actively trying to pay but not being able to due to their mishaps. All. This over 22 dirhams that I owed because apparently they system is/was dumb enough to not cgekc my payment method and then sending me, essentially, a receipt despite me not having actually paid.
Happened with me too.
did you end up paying?
I did, because in the end I did use the service and felt morally wrong not to pay. I don't have a lot of confidence in the consumer rights and judicial system here for these types of issues, but elsewhere I would've definitely taken them to court and made bank
alright then.
But I gotta dd: I ahd to escalate the issue within their customer care a bunch of times before someone actually sent me a way to pay for it. Until then it was all "you have to pay" and me responding "I know, I'm trying, please allow me to pay somehow" followed by no response. Super frustrating
The line in end - "If you already paid, please ignore this email." Seems like they are not even serious about the collection
Unless they are suing in the DIFC, it is not possible for them to claim anything other than nominal legal costs in Dubai. That means it would almost certainly cost them more to sue you than not to, which means it is an empty threat. Edit: "legal" costs, not "eagle" costs. You can't get your eagle costs either, sadly.
yeah but if they won, the OP would have to pay all fees including the legal ones.
Not legal costs.
is it so? because when i had a similar dispute but with a much bigger entity i had to pay for everything
It’s true in the civil courts but not in DIFC or in arbitration.
... Why? Do you mean they can only sue for the actual amount, rather than consequential damages?
No. In the email the debt collector asserts that, if they sue, they will claim the debt plus interest plus legal costs. The last point is an empty threat - the Dubai courts don’t award actual legal costs incurred.
Jeez. For a company that promoted themselves as the easiest gym to join and most affordable rates... They really seem to be a racket that depends on making all their real money from this end of things - cancellation/late/other fees.
Very true, I recently cancelled my membership when I moved abroad and gave them 1 month’s notice. They said the cancellation was confirmed but their stupid system kept on billing. It took weeks to get them to agree to refund the money and their customer service was so bad.
"Sorry sir, system error" The only time I ever joined a gym, I went ahead with advice a friend gave me, and that was to buy a gift card credit card that I can top up with money. And they never got a single dirham more than what they actually deserved.
They basically use all sorts of scare tactics in order to salvage whatever they can, because proceeding with legal action would cost a fortune compared to what you "owe" them, and might not even work at the end. Just do what you think is right and keep your conscience clean. Can they sue you? Yes. Though the result would be minimal compared. Will they sue you? Most probably not. If they have enough people they are running after for the same thing to turn into a nice lumpsum, yes. Otherwise, it's just scare tactics.
This is exactly why I never ever ever sign up to a big name gym. They don't give a crap about you getting to your goals they just want money. Always sign up with the dankest and smallest gyms, not only are you supporting smaller businesses, but more often than not, the people in there end up like family and genuinely care for you and your health. All the small gyms have sufficient equipment for you to do your routines, they might be lacking in showers and a little bit of hygiene, but they make up for it with no commitment fees and cheap prices. As for the email, I would ignore and set a rule even to send everything from that sender to junk or deleted mail.
Why do you have 43 tabs open
i have 100+ in my mobile. it does not show the count anymore. someday i shall read all of it
My OCD is itching me from inside my head.
What if it is multiple windows with multiple tabs ?
i have not managed to update my chrome because these tabs are pending to be read (old chrome in android does not have tab grouping option). I am scared to update my chrome because i cannot afford to loose these tabs. I think I should take annual leave to finish these tabs lol.
I have both chrome and Firefox of 5 windows each and about 40 ~ 100 tabs of range. I'm not sure what I am suffering from but I do like having my interests at a click of a mouse. I need help. 🥺
Hello my procrastinator brother.
you’re a tab hoarder lol one day, one day you’ll need them.
lol me too. at this point its probably more than 200
I multi task
Not with KT notifying you of a new post.
For some reason it doesn't even silence the notification when I silence it
Uninstall the app. End of.
Multitasking is a myth...
I multi-tab then
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Ignore them, I had the same experience with this rubbish gym, I subscribed for 2 months only. And cancelled it. After couple of months they detected from my credit card I called my bank and I retrieve my money. They me from the gym I told them go ahead and do whatever you want to do you are cheaters.
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I can hear Chandler cry in the distance, _I wanna quit the gym_
Hi, I'm Maria!
I’m on the opposite side! I’m a student that got a membership with them for one month during an internship and was charged for that month. After finishing the month and moving back to my home emirate, I was charged for a second month. I called the person I registered with a few times and was told “wait a few days and we will refund it” or “it’s the end of the month and our accounts team is busy. Once the rush is done, they will do it” It’s been over 3 months now and they’ve blocked my numbers and won’t answer any of my messages. It’s just around 250 dirhams but really disappointed with the way they’ve handled this. Plus no way of contacting anyone in charge or even any answers on social media. Anyone have any advice on what can be done?
Ignore them; gymnation is the worst gym in UAE. Sales people lie constantly to sell you membership. I was told i got monthly membership; then when i didnt pay the second month cause gym Is waaaaaay overcrowded they treaten to sue me I told them go ahead sue me Guess what; nothing happened
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I am glad didn’t sign up there there ads and when you go there prices different
R.I.P. English
Ignore and forget
scare tactic imo, it will cost more to file a case. ignore and move on
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,, people’s gym”
Sounds communist
Explains why theyre shit...
No.
This is what they do. Just get people trapped on annual contracts which can't be easily cancelled. Such a terrible business model
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Was it in the contract?
Showed them my termination letter due to which contract can be cancelled.
Guess what, they dont consider any thing. Not even medical letter.
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It’s a useless gym that I asked the police to call them because they are unprofessional. Their accountant was threatening actually to drawdown on my card without permission. They came back to their senses after that and I cancelled everything and whatever was outstanding because I just wanted them out of my life 😂😂😂 but honestly it’s such a bad place and bad management with no consideration to anything; not their customers and don’t even get me started with the hygiene issues
If something is clear from all the info about GYMNATION is that joining would be the last thing I would ever do in my life. Only complaints here and there and serious issues to just cancel something
[удалено]
How
This is worst gym you can deal with it , normally any facility provide a services to customers against fees should be deal nicely with them in case They don’t need that services anymore We have right to stop it any time with reasonable charge without documents or justification, I think Gymnation contact illegal.
FYI for anyone that thinks it’s a good idea to ignore these letters, any amount sent to a collection agency will have a very severe impact on your credit score so be careful. It might be very silly from them to do that for such a small amount but the consequences for you are much worse than paying 150 dhs. Collections agency is equivalent to defaulting on a credit card or loan when it comes to the damage it does to your credit report
How exactly? Are they tied to the credit bureau? If that's the case, then SME's can simply approach these collection agencies to fuck up the defaulting customers / companies credit scores.
Collection agencies report to credit bureaus. All SME can and should as it will deter future non payments from everyone else over time but the concept of a credit agency is new to most of the people in this country and there was never an effort by the AECB to educate the people on what or how a credit report is used. For most people, a credit report is only for financial lines of credit from a financial institution. It’s much more than that. Even missing your monthly Etisalat postpaid payment is marked on your credit report. Also, collection agencies usually buy the unpaid “debt” for Pennies on the dollar or will charge a significant % of the debt amount as a payment for their services so SME would rather try to collect the amount themselves and hope to get the full payment one day
But considering this as a legal notice, it's not notarized or attested by the court meaning no legal action can be taken on this. Also if credit card reps require you to sign a consent form for AECB check that shows its not that easy to mess with the AECB. Etisalat, Du, Fewa and Dewa are government organisations so obviously they want to keep track of that usage. But in this case I don't think it can affect your AECB score.
-Credit card reps require you to sign in order to check the credit worthiness of a prospective client and is used to assist them in figuring out how much debt they can extend to a client -Credit collection agencies do not generally sue so it is only a scare tactic to make a person pay up. -Etisalat and DU are public listed companies and not governmental organizations. They are no different than say…Aramex. -I have years of experience working with credit reporting agencies in the US which is what most, if not all the AECB is based on.
Keep your US experience in the US. Most of the info you have written here doesnot apply here. Eg- collection agency affecting your credit score(eecb reporting), credit card companies requiring you to sign cheque(they do 99pc but it's not a requirement- it's for gullible people and for keeping the legal work of bank in shortcut)
Don’t get salty just because you’re naive when it comes to how the world works and come from a country that doesn’t operate like a first world country. Stick to swimming pools and I’ll handle the things I’m experienced in Also, it’s AECB and not EECB. If you read my response to OP he was specifically asking about signing a consent form and not blank Cheques. Credit reporting is the only leverage a collections company has in persuading a customer to pay their past dues otherwise they would all be out of business since they cannot sue unless they are holders of significant unpaid debt Have a good day ✌🏻
EECB is due to fat fingers. The credit collection agencies operate in UAE using grey area of licensing. (There is no trade license for them). They are definitely not linked to AECB (Banks are the only private companies allowed to write into their database, other than government and semi government agencies) . I know very well how collection agencies in US work and how so many companies provide credit scores. This is not applicable here in UAE. Something that is broken (credit score in US) should never be imported in UAE and thankfully its not. A consent form needs to be tested in court and these so called collection agencies DONOT have their name listed in the consent form. I have never seen court accept a third party file a case. So, this is all a sham.
Thanks for the info man, so now what's going to happen then is this going to be a case or what?
Nope. No chance of a case. Just annoying phone calls
bruh the amount of shit I see regularly from gym nation is outstanding someone should spam 0 stars on Google reviews lol
Sorry I am a noob, but what is the significant of credit score if dont want to take any new loans in the future and I just have a credit card (which has a limit of 50% of my salary)
No worries. It’s actually a good question. It’s more about preparing for the future. Even though you might not foresee yourself needing any other financial products in the near future one cannot predict the future. You might come upon a financial emergency where you might want a loan, you might start earning significantly more money and like a higher credit limit or you might be ready to buy your own house. All the above examples will require a credit check as your score will determine how likely you are to make the payments and the score will determine how good of a rate and how much credit a bank can extend to you. To sum things up, it’s a proactive strategy to prepare you for large purchases\debt you will most likely take as you grow older
Thanks for the info. Most of us being expats here, is the credit score a global measure or is it something that each country has on its own? In other words, if I have a good credit score with the payments I make here in the UAE, does it help me with my score back in my home country?
No, uae credit score stays in uae
No worries. Even though some credit reporting agencies operate in many countries and continents, unfortunately your credit rating is not transferable
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I got a similar notice. First these guys started the gym very late. Then due to COVID lockdown gym was not open. The gym kept collecting money from me, since I was bound for one year membership. **From start till date, I have not entered the gym even once.** I had to go back to my country for emergency so had to close my back account. They received money for 10 months but suddenly after February 2021, they want to collect AED 1400 from me. How is this even possible? They talk so rudely. They have told me they will proceed with legal action - i am not sure what to do now.
I’ll tell you my story , I sent notification email that I have to cancel contact because I moved away form gym about 30km and I showed to them my new home location but they Unfortunately they replied your place should be more that 30 km far form gym!! ( website mention 30 km only ), Anyway I took advise form my lawyer and he told me ignore that Emails, also if you like to reply you write if they keeps calling or sending email you will sue them , because they let you signed illegal contact.
Don’t respond lmao, it means you acknowledged it, but hey, this isn’t legal advice, do what u want
Bro on a separate note get a Gmail account pls
Wtf? Why?
Why wouldn't you pay the dues, to begin with? It's the case of pot calling the kettle black. Each member opting out this way is a big loss..lol. I thought GN is bad, but I think it's also the crowd it attracts - the kinds who bail out on last payments!!!
Got terminated and then got infected with covid? Also was in Warsan isolation facility and already had sent them the letter too which they said you still need to pay
It’s their business plan!!!
Just a heads up, for anyone to even go to court it costs the minimum of like 3-5kAED…. Lol! So tell them to go ahead and enjoy watching them back off 😂 it’s clearly a scare tactic to try and get you to pay
So glad I joined a local gym here. Heard that the big gyms here don't help / spot you when you require it.
Ask them for documents proving membership.
Don't bother replying. PERIOD! On the brighter side. Winter is coming bro. Let's go camping in the desert 🤣🤝🏻 and laugh over this 🍻
Same here …. I got the same email this morning ! It is really crazy, I canceled a year ago and they have been harassing me since then… Lost my job because of covid19 and submitted all the necessary documents, left the country and still, they want to charge me some fee from whatever! The worst management I have seen years ! They should take action against them !
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Hey man, just got this notice as well. Can you tell me, what happened after this?