April 19, 2021
Do you allow members to put their membership on hold or to freeze their account? Is this standard practice or case by case scenario?
We highly recommend that each facility have a policy in place. Here are some examples of what other facilities have as policies:
- Up to 2 months (with an annual paid membership) and the hold is free
- Up to 3 months with a $10 p/mo fee
- Up to 3 months with a $5 p/mo fee
- Up to 4 months, 1 time per year, with a one-time fee of $35 total
- Up to 5 months, 1 time per year, with a $10 p/mo fee (30 day notice must be given)
We realize there are exceptions and 2020 taught us all to be flexible when needed. Because of COVID, some centers allowed freezes up until April of 2021 without a fee. Again, this would be an exception due to unforeseen circumstances and was a blanket offer to members.
Having a policy in place allows the facility to continue to have stability in book-keeping. Once the freeze/on-hold period is up, the membership goes back to a paid and active membership versus trying to bring the member back from a cancelled membership. We will also always recommend you have open communication with your members; never shy away from the phone to make that personal connection. A personal touch goes further than you may expect.
