Health club certification is to be adopted in Austria and Germany, following the success of the scheme in Switzerland.

German company TUV will now certify health clubs in Germany and Austria on behalf of health insurers and has signed a license deal with Premium Certification Solutions (PCS). PCS has a similar agreement with Qualitop in Switzerland which certifies around 40 per cent of Switzerland’s 700 health clubs.

Under the deal with PCS, TUV will receive consultancy on the certification of health clubs as well as a license for the software which accompanies and supports all the processes and procedures of certification.

PCS is working on similar deals in Belgium, Norway and Rhode Island, USA, where health insurer Blue Shield/Blue Cross has recently launched a pilot project for senior policy holders.

The company will pay up to 80 per cent of membership fees for those clients over the age of 65.

As managing institution of the project, the International Fitness Club Network (IFCN) is currently in discussions with PCS regarding the credentials of those health clubs involved in the project.