Lava Tanning & Massage, Inc.

Review: My Husband and I both have a membership at Lava Tan. Since the end of September the store has been closed randomly. We visited the store often and no one was there during business hours, or the the lights were off and the door was open and no one was inside. We contacted [redacted] to Cancel our accounts and were told we had to cancel in person in the store. We have been going back and forth with [redacted] since October to cancel our account due to the fact that there is never anyone at the store when we go there. How can we cancel an account when the store is closed. We tried to call the other stores and the phones where disconnected. We finally were able to leave messages at Williamson Rd and no one ever called us back. While I was on the phone with [redacted] they would put me on hold and contact the store who stated they were open while I would be sitting in the parking lot and clearly no one was there! [redacted] said they would investigate. Our accounts were frozen temporarily, however money started being drafted out of our accounts again, and this store is clearly not open! I have recently visit the store where a young lady told me she purchased lava tan and they are under new ownership and has nothing to do with lava and cannot help me. I again contacted [redacted] where I conveyed the info I was given and was told again this store is still under investigation and they can not do anything about my account, I have to go to the store and cancel my account, and they would call me back. I never got a call back from [redacted] (###-###-####) nor have I recevied any communication from Lava tanning from messages left there. I contacted [redacted] again today, and they assured me NO MORE money would come out of my account this is under investigation, but can not assure me cancellation or a refund and a reason as to why or how money came out of my account while it was frozen. They asked me to follow up next week to assure my account would be closed pending their investigation. This company is stealing money from my bank account and they are not in business.Desired Settlement: We have not been to this salon since mid september, and afterward have attempted numerous times, almost everyday after work we pass by to see if anyone is there we can close our account. I would like mine and my husbands account to be cancelled and refund reflecting the $28 a month we each pay per person from October 2013 through today!

October $28 [redacted]

$28 Billy

November: Accounts were frozen

December: $28 [redacted] account somehow remained frozen

January: $28 [redacted] account somehow remains frozen

Total: $112.00 (Not including wasting my time and Gas)

Thank You!

Review: Hours of operation marked on the store front; however, on two occasions, I have found the business closed at least 2 hours earlier than posted hours. Unable to obtain services paid for. Tried calling between 8-5, but no one answers.Desired Settlement: Understand a small business may have difficulties with proper staff coverage and emergencies can happen. Need to post actual hours of operation on store front. If emergency closing, post such on store front.

Review: I purchased a 10 session tanning package sometime in October of 2013 from a very sweet employee named [redacted]. I shared with her that my only reason for purchasing these sessions was so that I could acquire a "base tan" prior to my upcoming trip to Cancun. I shared with her that I was coming to this salon specifically because their hours accommodated my irregular work schedule. However after my initial contact, I was unable to tan during the posted hours of business. On dozens of occasions, the shop was NOT open and I was unable to utilize my pre-paid sessions. There were no messages posted on the entrance stating "there was a problem of any kind, there was remodeling in progress, there were personal issues, etc. that would be an acceptable explanation of why the salon was not open during their posted hours of business.

On 11/23/13 I sent a certified letter ([redacted])to Lava Tanning voicing my concerns and desired outcome. However, at this point in time, no one at the salon has accepted or signed for this letter.

On 12/4/13 at 12:15pm, I phoned the salon hoping to verify that someone WOULD be there so that I could tan. When asking for this verification from the employee that answered the phone (they did NOT identify themselves) the employee responded with the following statement: "I'm not sure who put that sign up on the door (salon hours) but since I don't get many customers in the morning, that's MY new hours." When I questioned the constant changing of hours he responded "if you don't like the hours you can go somewhere else. How 'bout that [redacted] Then he immediately hung up on me.

I came into the shop @ 15 minutes later and there was an individual that identified himself as "[redacted]." He was bald/shaven head, had on worn jeans and a t-shirt. He spent most of his time sitting in a chair outside the salon smoking cigarettes. He said that the owner's name was "[redacted]" but would not clarify his last name.

He was very smug and had no interest in satisfying my concerns or questions.

This is TOTALLY unacceptable service and behavior. How DARE this individual speak to me in this manner not to mention the fact that I cannot even take advantage of my prepaid tanning sessions??!!Desired Settlement: I demand to be reimbursed for the FULL amount I initially paid in good faith assuming I would be able to tan during the salon's posted hours of business. I wish as well, to be reimbursed for my postage, gas, time, etc. while attempting to utilize my pre-paid sessions. I will settle upon a one time lump sum of $100.00. If this is not agreeable with ([redacted]?) the salon owner, I will pursue legal alternatives to achieve satisfaction for my time, inconvenience and lack of their inability to fulfill their legal obligations.

Review: I purchased a tanning membership at Lava Tanning that was to run until the end of this year, and it cost me $200 plus tax. A couple months ago one location closed in Roanoke, and then they began to sell off most of their tanning beds at the other locations, making it to where they could not fulfill our contract of unlimited tanning in all levels of beds. Now all three of their locations have went out of business within the last couple of weeks. They are not communicating with customers, they are not answering phone calls or responding to emails to let anyone know where to go from here.Desired Settlement: I would of course love to have a full refund since they did not follow through with the services that I paid for, but I do understand how unlikely it is to be reimbursed from a company that has gone out of business.

Business

Response:

We closed our Bennington Street location on June 30th. We put up a sign in February letting people know that we would not be renewing our lease and that any remaining sessions would be transferred to the other locations. We are in the process of relocating the Salem store to 29 E Main St which is still under construction. We placed a sign in the window months ahead of time at that location as well and let everyone know that any time lost will be added back on their package and they could tan at the williamson location until that time. We also informed everyone to watch our facebook page for updates or join our text club by texting "lava" to [redacted] for text updates. As for selling beds, we only sold the beds from the locatin we closed and have moved some around to make the existing stores better. We are restructuring the business to keep up with the new changes in the tanning industry as well as the economy so we are reducing our overhead to keep our prices down.

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the response offer made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.There are currently no locations open. The Williamson Rd location has been closed for over a month now, and shows no signs of opening. There were no signs posted to inform customers of any changes, and the facebook page remains unattended. I have paid for a service and I am not able to utilize that service, and so far you have offered nothing in return. Regards,[redacted]

Business

Response:

Williamson is open everyday. I just left there a bit ago and we had a full house. I think this customer is referring to the Bennington store which closed in june. All sessions transferred to the williamson store and proper notice was posted on the doors and counter months prior to us closing.

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the response offer made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.Lava Tanning claims that they are open on their Williamson Road location, but when I stopped by there last week during normal business hours they were closed. They claim that they provided notice of the other locations closing abruptly, but no prior notice was given. In fact, there was no signage on the doors or anything indicating that the location would not be opening back up, and the phones at all three locations were not being answered to inform customers as to what is going on. Their facebook page was filled with angry customers who wanted explanations or updates on the status of the business, and they simply deleted all of the comments and did not respond. I have been waiting for an actual update on their facebook page for months now, but there hasn't been one, and that appears to be the only possible way to communicate with them. I have heard directly from a former longtime employee that she had to leave Lava because she was not being paid, and she doesn't expect the business to actually stay in business any longer. If I cannot tan I deserve a refund of the services I paid for, and we shouldn't have to continue to go back and forth over blatant lies being told by Lava. Regards,[redacted]

Review: I purchased a year membership for tanning for 242.00. That was on 8/12/13. I have gone to tan on my lunch break on 3 different days since then that the doors were locked during business hours. One time I went and the door was unlocked but no one was inside. I stood there for a number of minutes and called out and no one answered. I was offered a "paper towel or napkin" instead of towels because the attendant said that they could not wash any fresh towels on another instance. This is not the kind of service that I expected when I purchased the year membership. I have been calling to cancel and no one has answered their phone and there has been no answering machine for which to leave a message. I contacted them through email, through their own contact form on their website and through facebook, only to be ignored. When I finally got through to an associate he informed me that the owner gets those messages but he could not promise me that I would get a call back from him. He said all he could do was relay the message that I called but that he didn't know if he would ever get back to me or not. I am very dissatisfied with the customer service and wish to cancel my yearly membership and be refunded for the time unused. I do not know how else to handle this but to go through the Revdex.com because I am having zero luck getting through to the owner for help.Desired Settlement: I would like to receive a refund for services not rendered and for my membership to be cancelled.

Business

Response:

Can you please find out which location she is referring to and the dates so that I may be able to find out details. I'm unaware of what she is talkin about. We are open everyday and the phone gets answered. The locations stay busy so maybe she tried to call when they were on the phone. We closed for some software updates a while back but it was posted on the door well in advance. I'm not really sure any more than that without knowing dates so please find out more info for me if possible. I don't even know which employee to ask about any of this without some dates.

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the response offer made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.It was the Williamson rd location - I bought the package the week between August 12&16 - the attendant told me I probably caught him when he had run next door to get a drink is why no one was there on both occasions - he was the same gentleman that offered me a napkin because they had no clean towels - he told me the owner would get the msg to call me back but I never heard from him -I tried contacting owner by phone, on website email and Facebook to no avail - I am only requesting my money back for time unused as this is not the service I signed up for Regards,[redacted]

Business

Response:

She stated in the first email that there were 3 occasions that she came to tan and the door was locked. The 2nd email only speaks of 2 times the door was locked. If and when someone runs next door to get a drink, the door doesnt get locked. We are in a strip mall and its just the next door down so it takes less than a minute and we don't lock the door. As for there being no towels. We wash them as fast as we can but on days when we have 240 people its hard to keep up with towels. That is just an added amenity that we provide but its just a luxury. It would be like someone complaining because the candy dish was empty. If she can get the dates that she claims we were closed, I can pull daily reports and payroll reports to show that we were open. Please find out the dates so I can try to find out more info. Thanks again.

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the response offer made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.I did not know that towels provided at a tanning salon was considered a luxury. I have asked for this to be taken care of by the owner and was told that my complaints went directly to his phone and he would be contacting me back which he has not done. I sent emails both through their facebook site as well as the website. The door was locked on one occasion and on the other it was unlocked but no one inside. I am not requesting a full refund as I did tan on two other occasions, but I am obviously not using the membership due to the total lack of customer service they are exhibiting. I have tried other means of communication but no one will get back to me. I purchased the package on 8/12 and that week and the following week was when these instances happened. the gentleman at the counter had a beard and shaved head, but I do not know his name. In the future I will make sure that the use of towels in a tanning salon is not a luxury and part of your membership before I purchase packages. This is not customer service.Regards,[redacted]