Business of Well-being

Onsite Fitness And Wellness Centers Do Not Have The Warranty They Think They Have On Their New Fitness Equipment

Onsite fitness and wellness centers across America are having problems with the warranty on their brand new fitness equipment they purchased for their onsite fitness center.

This is how the Onsite Fitness and Wellness Center Problem Plays Out.

You decide to upgrade or start a brand new onsite fitness and wellness center. Your management purchases brand new fitness equipment that comes with a 3-year warranty. This fitness equipment warranty covers 3 years on the fitness equipment frames and drive motors, two years for all electrical and mechanical parts, excluding wear items such as the running belt and deck on a treadmill. And the fitness equipment warranty covers one year of labor. This is generally a typical fitness equipment warranty for onsite fitness and wellness centers and it seems fair, right?

The Problem Hides In the Fine Details Of The New Fitness Equipment Warranty Inside Your Onsite Fitness and Wellness Center.

It starts with your fitness center management's confusion over the one-year labor warranty that is included with your new fitness equipment purchase. This labor included in the warranty for one year is only to fix a fitness machine that has broken down.  


This labor included in the warranty does not include the labor required to perform regular preventive maintenance on the fitness equipment inside your onsite fitness and wellness center. The new fitness equipment warranty explains that your warranty is void if you cannot prove, with evidence, that you have paid for regular preventive maintenance of your onsite fitness center and wellness's fitness equipment.

As With Any Commercial Fitness Center, The Fitness Equipment Must Have Routine Preventive Maintenance Performed By an Experienced Service Technician to Keep the Fitness Equipment in the Best Mechanical Function Possible.

If your treadmill running belts are not properly lubricated every 150 hours of operation, then the treadmill running belt will wear down.  Once the treadmill running belt begins to wear the extra friction created will heat up the motor controller electronics. That will then cause all types of negative symptoms and repair problems. If your cardio bikes and elliptical cross-trainers are not regularly cleaned of dust and grime and lubricated monthly.  Then they will have technical issues that will render these fitness machines out of order.

When Your Fitness Equipment Starts Giving You Problems. You Call  In Your Warranty Claim to Your Fitness Equipment Manufacturer's Customer Service Department.

The fitness equipment manufacture service tech comes to your onsite fitness and wellness center to see what your warranty problems are. After he inspects your fitness machines he tells you this problem is not covered under warranty. He explains that what he found makes it very clear; you have not performed regular preventive maintenance on your fitness equipment.  He then explains this is why your warranty is void.


Then you start the argument that you have a one year labor agreement in your fitness equipment warranty.  So it must be covered and this should not cost you any money to fix the fitness equipment problems. Your onsite fitness and wellness center will always lose this argument and it is time to start writing checks for fitness equipment repair costs that were not included in your fitness and wellness center operating budget.


I see this scenario time and time again, and it is the reason I am writing this article.  You see, once you purchase your new fitness equipment your vendor makes all his money upfront.  It is not his problem to make sure you pay for regular preventive maintenance inside your onsite fitness and wellness center.

It Becomes Your Onsite Fitness Center and Wellness Center's Problem Once You Sign on the Dotted-Line.

Of course your new fitness equipment vendor does not explain this extra maintenance cost to you when he is closing the sale.  Telling you about the extra costs of preventive maintenance makes the sale look more expensive. Now I'm alerting you to the real costs of buying brand new fitness equipment so you can calculate the total costs of operating your onsite fitness and wellness center.


I am doing this because I have 25 years of experience in this industry and I want goodwill from my clients. The facts are just facts, and it is important that your management team knows the total cost of buying new fitness equipment.  So you do not get surprised by extra costs that were not added into your operating budget.


Don't get discouraged about budgeting your onsite fitness and wellness center.  Just make sure you know your absolute costs that will not change.  Look into all your options before you make that final decision to purchase new fitness equipment as compared to renting your onsite fitness and wellness center.  


And at least get your vendor to include regular preventive maintenance in your warranty contract before you give him a check and sign your invoice.

About The Author

Steve Paterson is a board member for The Rent Fitness Equipment Company and has been in the Health Club industry for over 23 years. Mr. Paterson studied corporate fitness and wellness back in the 80's and has been a business operator in the fitness and wellness industry for over 20 years. He can be reached at RentFit@gmail.com

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