YM T
August 5, 2018 21:17
I went to this facility to play a league tennis match against a member. As soon as I entered, staff asked me to sign a "liability waiver". I said Sure, began to fill it out (on a tablet) and when I got to the "email" line, I said jokingly, "You're not going to send me emails are you?". The staffer said Yes. But you can just opt out of them.
I told him I didn't want to sign that. I was fine with the waiver, but not with giving them my personal info so they could advertise to me. He told me I would have to if I wanted to play my match there. I immediately left, to try to reach my opponent on the phone. I came back and there was another staffer at the desk. He assured me that it was just a standard liability waiver. He was friendly about it, and I was just about to sign when I actually read the full extent of what I was about to check "I agree" to. There it was in print: "I consent to receive texts, emails, and/or phone calls...."
This is deceptive and tacky. I've played league matches all over Atlanta at fitness clubs and country clubs, and have never been asked to sign anything. It isn't like I was a club guest who might injure myself on weight machines. I was there to play tennis.
This policy needs to change. Here's a suggestion: If a guest doesn't want to sign away their personal info, have another option - an actual liability waiver that simply requires a signature.
I would have preferred writing this directly to the club manager, but when I asked for a card so that I could contact the manager directly, the staffer said "Sure, but first I'm going to need you to go ahead and sign the form."
That's when I turned and walked out. We played at my home courts.