Zoo Health Club closes unexpectedly, customers say

Zoo Health Club closes unexpectedly, customers say.

Gym customers looking for a workout are getting worked up instead after a gym closed unexpectedly in suburban Lake Worth.

Members at the Zoo Health Club on Jog Road say they were charged their monthly gym fee on Friday, May 1st, right before the workout spot closed its doors over the weekend.

Surrounding businesses say the health club was open Friday, and then shut down Saturday. As of Tuesday, there are no signs on the doors letting customers know what happened.

Many members paid in advance for a 12 or 18 month membership. Some say they’ve tried calling the company’s billing number on the back of their membership cards but haven’t been told whether they’ll be given a refund for the dues they paid in advance.

“You took my money,” said Kelly Reilly, a member who says the gym charged her for May on Friday, “It wasn’t that much money, but now I don’t have access. You’re a parasite. You’re taking something that’s not yours.”

NewsChannel 5 tried calling Zoo Health Club’s corporate office, but no one answered and our calls have not been returned.

“Just honor people’s membership to the rest of what they paid for it somewhere else,” said Mary Loughborough, who paid for an 18 month membership in advance at the start of the year. “That would be really nice. Because everybody came in with good faith, good money, everything, and I think that would be the proper thing to do.”

The Zoo Health Club on Lake Avenue in east Lake Worth, which is under different ownership, says it will honor what Jog Road customers have paid. However, if what they originally paid is less than what the Lake Avenue location charges, the customers will have to make up the difference.

The Better Business Bureau says those who paid for their membership with a credit card may be able to get their monthly or even advance payments back. They just need to check with their bank on its policy for situations like this.