[Alert] Seattle Sun Tan: Suspicious & Unethical Billing Practices
It's come to my attention through several consumer complaints--including my own experience--that Seattle Sun has been called out for suspicious and unethical billing practices on several counts.
Besides numerous complaints found at the Better Business Bureau, Yelp, Google My Business, Facebook, and more, Seattle Sun continues their same outdated billing policy that rips off consumers. How this plays out is outlined below and it starts with the corporate office having poor back-end process compliance that needs a severe audit. This consumer thinks it's intentional. Here's why...
When someone tries to cancel their membership, they must walk into a salon in person and sign on the dotted line. One issue is consumers are signing on a tablet in which the script is filled with legalese that's hard to read, so unsuspecting consumers won't see this simple text that appears in small print:
"If an error was made by a Seatle Sun employee while processing cancellation and freeze requests the clients must present a copy of your completed and submitted Cancellation or Freeze Form as proof within 30 days of the date billed to be eligible for refunds. No adjustments can be made on accounts incorrectly billed past 60 days,"
So did you catch that? They automatically assume their own staff will make an error and they won't back it up or take responsibility for it. While this may be shocking, what's worse is that there are reports going years back of this scenario: consumers are canceling and their corporate office keeps billing their method of payment on file--unauthorized.
There are multiple complaints where the same corporate lackey continues to say they won't refund and that's how it is--even though they are the ones pulling funds from people's accounts unauthorized past the cancellation date.
So who's fault is it: the salon staff or the corporate office? From my personal observation (and commentary from salon staff), when you sign on the digital platform, the information allegedly gets transferred electronically to the "higher powers that be" in the corporate office. Because this issue has not been corrected year after year, it tells the story loud and clear: they may have no intention to fix the issue, and billing continuance past the cancellation date has become the norm for Seattle Sun Tan.
The sad thing is that the salon staff are great and while I'd love to give them five stars for being amazing, I have to say the business model sucks and thus they'll have to take a hit on the star rating. My personal story in summary is that I canceled my membership on January 22, 2024, and they continued to bill my credit card for six additional months. When I performed my biannual review of credit card transactions, I caught their error and thought they'd make it right. NOPE. They stood their ground and pointed to their tiny print below a signature that even if they made a mistake--it was too bad, so sad. Essentially, they gave themselves "legal" permission to steal consumers' money. Then after my persistence, they tried to throw membership credit to me. (Do you really think I want to do business with you after this?)
Thank God for my credit card company coming through and reimbursing me four months' worth of charges with commentary that this scenario is typical of "suspicious and unethical billing policies". I'd love to see a lawyer go after them since there appear to be so many consumers facing this same issue. For my part, I'm here to warn others and recommend ANY other salon. My go-to is Slick Rock Tanning Salon--their corporate office seems to be aligned with what's fair and right, showing they care about their members.
So long, Seattle Sun Tan--and fair warning to anyone who tries to cancel. It seems it's crucial to babysit the incompetence behind the curtain. Cheers to the salon staff, though... five stars just for you. read more