I know i missed my exercise class but so what?

[notacooldad]

I pay in advance for my Pilates class. It is £30 a session
You can cancel the class as long as you give 24hrs notice, if not you lose out.
Quite reasonablely you can't be more than 5 mins late.
On Thursday I had an appointment before my class which over ran significantly, on top of that I encountered three lots of temporary lights and traffic has backed up.
By the time I got to the car park I was 10 mins late. There was no point rushing, I'm late, I've missed out. There isn't a reception where I could have explained this to, just the instructor doing her thing with the group.
I went home.
I got an email which was,imo , quite snotty, telling me i should have let them know if i wasn't going to turn up so they could have given that place to someone on the waiting list.

My feeling is I've paid for that space, whether I was there or not.

If they gave it to someone else they would have had £30 from them as ' as a place has become available '
I wouldn't have got my money back as it clearly says no refunds if you are late or a no show.
Therefore, I feel like the sharp tone of the email is a bit ridiculous. The company hasn't lost out and as far as I can imagine, most people want to turn up and don't deliberately miss classes once they've paid for them.

What do others think?

Just reply and tell them sorry you were stuck in traffic and that you have taken note of the procedure but was nothing you could do and would appreciate it if they take note of the fact that you are aware of the policy

I would have pre-empted that email by sending one myself at the time explaining what had happened and apologising

YANBU i often just pay up for small things for the convenience of having them if i want them.

YaNBU if you’ve paid for it then it’s up to you whether you use it or not.
Last minute issues happen all the time. Do
they know where you were? You may have been in hospital or attending a ill relative.
How were they planning to replace you when the class had already started?

£30 per session???

Missing the point of the thread but £30 for one Pilates session??

.

My pilates teacher is way more chilled. !

Also thinking £30 is a lot. Mine is a lot cheaper, though you have to pay for all sessions even if you miss some.

I'm a Pilates teacher, it's frustrating when someone doesn't turn up and doesn't let us know. An email out of courtesy is polite to apologise for your absence.

I’d have sent a text or dropped an email when I got home to apologise for being a no show as it’s just polite. The rest of your post I agree with, but messaging to say sorry would have gotten you ahead of her snotty email

I would send a snotty email back, suggesting that they review their policy on latecomers if they don't want this to happen.

Why? Their policy on latecomers isn’t an issue, OP agrees with it.

What would have happened if you had tried to go to the class or banged on the doors

I'd be really fed up if I paid £30 and then couldn't join because of a hold up which does happen

Well, maybe it's just me who would be frustrated at an arbitrary 5 minute cut off. The OP could easily have slipped in at the back ten minutes into the class without disturbing the others.

Bloody hell OP!! £30 a session is daylight robbery. I pay £18 for group classes, £50 if it’s a private and that’s more than enough.

Why should they??

You wouldn’t be allowed in. It’s your responsibility to arrive at class on time, which I agree with.

Even if they’ve paid £30. What’s so frustrating about a paid-for empty spot? Same money, less work.

They have lost me at £30 a session!

At £30 I would have just walked in regardless of the policy.

It's not like you were deliberately late!