Linford Christie, the man whose ice cold stare and lengthening stride took him all the way to the top of the sprinting world, is calling someone out on social media. Britain’s greatest sprinter is rolling around on the floor, laughing his rather compact arse off. It’s enough to pique my interest and as I start to forage further, asking more and more questions, a curious picture starts to emerge. The subject of Linford’s hilarity is a story of incredible audacity; a tale in which Christie (amongst other sports stars) is unfortunately and unwillingly involved. It’s one that reveals a desperately unregulated industry and a man prepared to do almost anything to take people’s money. Welcome to the unbelievable world of Scott Francis.
Francis is a difficult man to pin down, and it doesn’t take much research to find out why. On the face of it, he is man obsessed with weight loss and personal fitness, who also seems prone to exaggeration. Dig a little deeper and you discover gymfuls of distrust and anger aimed at a man who has spent a large amount of time making things up.
The personal trainer world is competitive. People are increasingly turning to experts to help them get fitter. The fitness business sector is worth billions and every quarter there is a new fad explaining how you will lower your body fat % quicker. At the top end, there is high intensity weight training and bodybuilding. As you would expect, it’s a world crammed full of bare chested selfies, narcissism and hormone-fuelled jealousy. Claims and counterclaims of personal achievements are two a penny, and shameless self publicity is a necessary evil. Scott Francis however, takes things to a whole new level. Back in 2013, Scott Francis aka Dutch Scott made some pretty sizeable claims on a popular muscle and fitness web forum. It’s worth a read; it’s the sort of thing that would make Jay Cartwright from ‘The Inbetweeners’ blush:
This is such an incredible missive, it needs breaking down. Scott has been asked with whom he has worked. He begins with a list of three rugby players and refers to them all as internationals. David Flatman tells me he’s never met Scott Francis and Matt Banahan points out that since turning pro at 18, he has never been allowed to train outside his club’s strength and conditioning professionals (he has no idea who Francis is either). Ian Davey was never a full international, he was let go by Bath after a handful of first team appearances. He had a couple of successful seasons at Bedford Blues and subsequently flew off to play in Spain. But this is just a start.
Next on Francis’s list of clients is Boudewijn Zenden (I had to look up how to spell this so I’m not going to draw attention to the fact he gets it wrong). This is my favourite. Lovely and exotic sounding, yet played in England for Middlesbrough. Both he and fellow Dutch international Michael Richard (who?) were personally trained by Scott. The inaccuracy of this second name (does he mean Reitziger?) casts shadow on the claim that either has done so much as a push up in front of Francis. But that’s not going to stop our man. A trio of Bristol Rovers players and Bristol City’s Lee Trundle (since of Swansea) were all helped by Francis’ expertise. Scott was at one time based in gyms around Bristol so maybe this has returned to the realms of possibility but remember what Banahan said: contracted players don’t tend to stray too far from their club’s S&C. It’s not long before things get doubtful again.
Francis suddenly becomes integral to the British Olympic team. Yep, this is the motherload; he’s using capitals. Our silver tongued friend reels off the aforementioned Christie but also Marlon Devenish (sic), Ato Bolden (sic), Darren Campbell and Jamie Baulsch (sic). These were some of the world’s finest fast men. All ‘personally overseen’ by Francis. He gave them tuition. Christie’s reaction to him via social media is pretty conclusive. I think we have someone stretching the truth here, not people’s hamstrings.
Linford Christie responds via Twitter
And international athletics is just one of many sports to which our man has turned his hand. MMA, British Jujitsu, Cage fighters, British Boxing Heavyweight contenders have also supped from Francis’ cup of plenty. How does he fit them all in? Time for something a little left field… The cast of Skins? You know, that programme on E4 starring um, er, it doesn’t matter. Apparently all of them came to him for nutritional advice. Right, he’s starting to sound like that loud bloke down your local, on to his fifth pint.
Scott is now getting forgetful. He starts leaving out famous people, because there’s like, so many (I would have left out the Skins guys out btw). We get painfully self-aggrandising yet grammatically awkward phrases like ‘I was the ****ing man with whom had multi facets’ and ‘I pi55 excellence’, and lastly ‘I’m elite, I’m classed as elite, I’m elitely qualified’. Having got himself all horny with such talk, Scott finishes a la Cartwright. As if his sports star shoulder-rubbing hasn’t sealed the deal, perhaps who he has ‘nailed’ will do the trick. No less than 413 HB10s (Hot bitch 10/10s) including some notable prize winners (he is careful to include the elite plus size ladies). Luckily, our man refrains from posting a naked picture of himself (I think JW was after something slightly less homoerotic when he asked for your credentials, Scott) and signs off safe in the knowledge that all questions have been answered.
We all like to big ourselves up. It is natural; when you’re with your mates, you extend the truth. Stories of personal endeavour, triumph, encounters with the opposite sex, sure, we’ve all lied to impress. I’m sure there are thousands of examples of people talking themselves up online, perhaps with lines better than those of Francis. But when your lies start to con money out of people, things start to get a little dark. It doesn’t take long to find some of Francis’ dissatisfied customers. People who, after reading and hearing about his clientele, gave Scott their hard earned cash in the hope of receiving some top notch advice and training.
Back in May 2015, Kezia Ficicchia didn’t place as well as she should have done at the World Body Fitness Federation Pro Competition. She had seen Francis’ boastful claims on Instagram, and even though she recognised his methods were a bit extreme, she reached out to him.
“I followed him on Instagram and saw his client list. I left my old coach and got in contact with Scott and asked him to prep me. He asked for money upfront which, regretfully, I gave him: £800 for a 16 week course. He said he’d send me an email with my prep on it, things I needed to buy and eat. He’d been quite communicative previously, but once he had my money he dropped off the radar. The start date was approaching (16 weeks out from the competition) and I emailed him asking where my prep was. Nothing. I found it all a bit weird as my previous coach had been very good at keeping in contact. It got to the Saturday and I still had nothing from him so I tried a stronger approach. Still nothing. Sunday came and went and the deadline for me to start had passed. I still hadn’t heard anything from him. A few days later (31st) I then got an email from him. He forwarded me an email he’d supposedly sent on the 24th July with my prep on it.”
“The whole thing was so badly written, phrases and sentences not really making sense, and I had the distinct feeling he’d copied and pasted someone else’s plan and just changed the name. He was telling me to lift weights and do exercises I was never going to be able to do because of my size. At one point the prep just said ‘abs’, no other instruction, just the word abs. I thought I was getting a personal and detailed service, yet I felt like an afterthought. It seemed like a complete cop out. So I wanted my money back.”
Kezia chased Francis and again met with silence. He evaded her for weeks and eventually informed her she wouldn’t get a refund because he’d sent her the plan; he’d done what she had asked. She took it to the small claims court and they found in her favour. They concluded that Francis legally owed her the money back. She is still chasing him; the address Francis gave is no longer where he is based.
Arfon James knows that. He went there in person chasing the £450 Scott owed him after a very similar encounter. “The people that are now there said he disappeared six months ago and they’ve had a lot of people asking. I was one of many who’d visited apparently.”
James had asked for a ten week plan and again, felt the Francis love right up to the point where he parted with his money. “I just didn’t hear anything from him for ten days. He eventually came back and sent me through a plan of sorts. He’d completely ignored the lengthy questionnaire he’d asked me to fill out. He wanted me training on days I already did an hour and a half of Jujitsu and down on less than 2000 calories. I tried it but I couldn’t; I ended up at the doctors. His plan made me ill. I asked for my money back and even though he took my bank account details, I never heard from him again. I tried his social media channels but he just blocked me or deleted my messages. I know it’s not mega money but it was more the principle. I felt he’d taken me for a ride. I went to the business address to try and confront him but he’s long gone. I’ll have to pay more to take it though the courts. I don’t think I will. Maybe this is what he is counting on.”
Jamie Wagland did get some money back. He also signed up for a ten week course with Francis. “It was only £100 out of the £450 I’d given him but it was something. I was lucky I suppose because someone I was training (Wagland himself is a personal trainer) was a lawyer and he helped me; told me what letters to write. Scott avoided any contact for so long that it was the only avenue left to me. I could see him continuing to brag on social media and I felt he’d completely pulled one over on me. I attacked him via those channels because I wanted to try and warn people about him, but now I’ve moved on; you have to. He conned me out of money but I couldn’t waste any more time. The plan he sent was an embarrassment. In the questionnaire I specifically laid out that Thursday morning was impossible for me because of other commitments. What did my plan say: a huge workload on Thursday am. Also, the exercises were so vague, anyone with just a small amount of knowledge would see they weren’t right.”
Francis claims involvement in a disabled athlete’s training, but the reality is very different
Jamie Sutton was someone given excuses by Francis. Having chased him for his paid for plan over two weeks, all Sutton got in return was ‘Sorry, I’ve been on holiday, I’ll send it through soon.’ There are others who claim Francis has had family members die or been involved in car crashes to avoid dealing with people. Again, Sutton wanted his money back and again a lot of chasing ensued. “Eventually, after numerous occasions where he said he’d sent the money without sending anything, I got £100 back. I’m obviously after all of it but at least I have something.”
“Unfortunately,” continues Sutton, “There’s no real regulation in the fitness industry to prevent stuff like this happening. And the amounts aren’t quite big enough to take proper court action and get the bailiffs round.” And that’s just it, it’s a cute game. Francis doesn’t seem to upset the top layer of the sport. Far from it, there are top level pros condoning his work. He must keep them all very happy, using his time and knowledge to good effect. But this secondary and tertiary level of person, people happy to spend hundreds perhaps thousands of pounds on his advice, he takes their money and runs.
Francis is a slippery fish. He claimed, via social media, to have a first class degree in Biochemistry. Teesside University confirmed that Francis, in 2014, was only awarded a Certificate of Higher Education in Public Relations. Goodness knows what possesses him to claim such study, especially as it is so easily checked. Maybe he feels it would give him standing in the dangerous world of Performance Enhancing Drugs, which so clutter the world of extreme fitness and bodybuilding. There are rumours flying around the web that Francis allegedly got involved with a body builder and put him in hospital because of what he told him to inject. The man named online as having had that happen to him refused to confirm anything and wanted nothing to do with my article. He messaged “He’s a waste of space and isn’t worth the time… There’s nothing positive that can come from being involved with Scott Francis.”
Even more worrying is the presence of an alleged ‘charity’ GiveBack. This was supposedly set up by Francis to help people fighting cancer but it seems to have provided him with only more avenues to lead people along. There has never been a charity set up by Francis in this name. At one point he tried to suggest he was helping the disabled, as well as helping those with fighting devastating illnesses. But there seems little to suggest anything other than the fact that he was just riding a wave. At one point on twitter, a qualified personal trainer questions the idea of working with those suffering; Francis’ response is bizarre.
The final words of this piece go to Francis. I made contact with him explaining my article. I told him the claims people were making and that I wanted to give him chance to speak. I contacted him via an email address I knew would work, there are many that don’t. I gave him a week, after all, I wasn’t going to chase like so many before me. I asked him to respond in some way, laying out the questions we had. He didn’t reply. Not in any shape or form. And yet, I know the email address is active because at the same time, he gave it to my cousin who posed as a punter, wanting some ‘help’.
Here is a man more than happy to talk rubbish. Happy to take credit for the work of others. Happy to claim serious qualification when he has no such thing. Happy to take honest people’s money. Happy to avoid all consequences, evade questions and take no responsibility as someone providing a professional service. Happy to exist in an industry which will allow him to get away with this sort of confidence trick. Scott Francis is happy to live a life which is a lie. Which, all in all, makes you feel really quite sad.
Sam Roberts © 2016. (Text only). All Rights Reserved
Double Dummy Scissors 
god franny, chris spearman now paul corkery all on the register, who will be the next fitspo conman to fall!?!
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pretty sure hes used some of the thousands hes mugged off to have a really bad hair transplant. he was looking 35 going on 50 this time last year. now he looks like like a BO SELECTA sean penn puppet with a wayne rooney thatch barnet :’)
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the most insecure man ive ever met. paranoid. obsessed with past images of supposed greatness. hes the online fitness version of that wanker in the pub who once ‘had trials’ when he was a schoolboy but pissed his life away. still desperately clinging onto to anybody half his age who will listen like a mid life crisis dad whos bought a new bike and a horrible lycra onesie. pity this tragic man whos never had a real job in his life
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i read the gibberish he posts. sad inconprehensible stories supposedly throwing shade on his instagram adventure. the same stolen repostef videos of the same 2 athletes stupid enough to still give this chode money and believe his bullshit. every post boosted by a thousand fake likes hes sad enough to pay for because he thinks it gives his insanity legitimacy. whos stupid enough to fall for this??
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hes trying to make out he came back from a debilitating lung condition now. hes always complaining of injuries which he gets because he doesnt understand the slightest thing about training. he might actually be the most pathetoc male specimin ive had the misfortune to be involved with. hes lives in the same peter pan world of mixhael jackson minus the talent.
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I read all this and cannot believe this is the same Scott Francis i know. The boy lives with his sister in Bristol. i dont even think he has a room there. i guess he sleeps in their garage, after living in his old mans garage for years. the boy has no money. no business. his car was bought for him by his old man, and he used his old girlfriend to get a credit card for him because he has nothing. he gives advice on being succesful, and he must be one of the poorest excuses for a person out there. no qualifications. never had a job. has run from ccjs has had 10’s of companys struck off. here they are https://www.endole.co.uk/company/09168818/give-back-uk-ltd
The best news is that FrancisDiet his brand has a second strike off notice from company house 29/09/2016 Second notification of stike-off action in London Gazette (Section 652). (GAZ2)
https://www.companysearchesmadesimple.com/company/uk/09551200/francis-diet-ltd/
he has failed in every aspect of life. girlfriend left him and his daughter lives with her mam and her step dad and sister. scott doesnt have a house or room to bring her to. hes in his late thirties and not a pot to piss in. how can this be a guru in anything but how to fail at life. hair plugs and fake cars. it was only a year ago he was posting about his porsh (it was a hire car, again fake) and his boss clothes (with selfies in his mams bathroom). how anyone can look at this ridiculous cartoon character of a boy and not laugh at how embarrasing he is.
People still follow him? I get he has a good physique but he has never trained any winners. none. but who is taking advice or respects a guy who has never done anything but defraud people, lives with his sister in stoke gifford at 36, no credit, no money, a stream of creditors chasing him from home to home and no future. its amazing how he has any friends.
Here is how a conversation would go.
Admirer- you must be the famous Scott Francis of FrancisDiet. thats amazing. so where do you live? i bet you have a penthouse flat somewhere in cardiff bay
Scott- no, i live on my sisters floor in stoke gifford. before that i lived in my dads spare room, before that i lived in a squat and had to leave because my ccj’s caught up with me.
Admirer- oh. thats not very amazing. so how much money have you ammased with all this sucess i see on twitter?
Scott- none, i leased a posh car once. took some photos of me in it, but had to give it back when my gf left me as i was a deadbeat with zero future. i also cant get a credit card because i owe everyone.
Admirer- so, what about your biochemistry degree?
Scott- no. made that up too. i have an nlp qualification that admittedly a cat can get from the internet.
Admirer- so basically, you have no real job, no money, no credit, a ton of ccj’s, no house and have been living on your parents and sister setee for years, you have no qualifications and i heard you set up a fake charity to get clients.
Scott- yep. but i do this facebook live video advising girls how to get guys. like me. its great.
Admirer- so you are like a homeless person. an aging, homeless body builder.
Scott-
thanks Sam for getting this out about him.
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He conned me out of £700. Exactly the same things happened to me as did those people in the article. Difference being I know where he resides (he’s hiding). Anyone needing to know, please reply & I will send you his address in Bristol.
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owes me £400 as well
payed for plans no send
address please??
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Danny, I will collate the relevant information of all of this in order to make sure people are aware of his tactics. He owes me my money back too!
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Wooow just woow!!! I didn’t Think anything can shock me anymore and then when I’m just about to pay 450£ to him I come across this!!! I’m just glad I’ve found this article on time! And I’m even more glad that I don’t trust ppl and always do my research!!! I think it’s gonna take a while for me to get over this!!! From my hero to zero in 5 minutes!!!😱😱😱
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Joanna, in a way I’m sorry this has happened. But I’m very glad you found this article in time. The issue remains with the industry. It is unregulated and allows people to take advantage like this. Doing your research is crucial.
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And now even thought I’ve blocked him everywhere he’s just proving what an utter asshole he is getting his junkie mates harassing me all over social media that I’ve wasted his time! Seriously???? I’ve just wasted a year and a half of my life following you on Instagram, thinking that you are actually a somebody! You bragging daily about respect and how so many ppl are pretending to be someone they are not! No shit??? Think you must definitely be an expert it that!!!! 😡😡😡
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joanna its worth posting this article to your db and social media to stop him doing it to.more people. he is a freak. hell soon start threatening you pretending to have family in the police snd knowing all the judges in competitions. he really is a pathetic old man who has to keep moving every few months amd hang around a constant stream of children because everybody in fitness knows what a joke he is
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Why are people still following this cretin. He is a man in his thirties living on his sisters setee. He fails at everything. His insta account is ridiculus https://www.instagram.com/francisdiet/?hl=en. His facebook even worse. The other day my mate sent me a screenshot of a post when he talks about not using insta or snap until you have sorted your life out. LIVES ON HIS SISTERS SETEE. NO CREDIT. NO FUTURE. DEBT COLLECTORS CHASING HIM. LIES ABOUT EVERYTHING. He is a joke. Wonder if the debt collectors know his new address in bristol? It is somewhere near stoke gifford i know that much. anyone have any more information?
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Hes in warrington now, i came across this post before getting in touch with him, thankfully… could of been worse for me.
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I am currently still waiting for my refund, he is a complete fraudster and never sent me any Diet Plan as promised. I WILL get my refund in one way or another. I am fully aware of his situation after some research. Great to see all the other comments, i will use this in my case against him.
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Keep at it mate.
I paid for his services, got injured. Asked for a refund to which he said he smells a rat so he will refund me…..that was in April! Just got the refund today.
Its within his terms and conditions that if you get injured then he will refund you. I only saw this website in around may. I provided him with physio letters, a letter from bupa showing the date I had an MRI scan yet he still was refusing to send the money.
The threat of small claims court etc isn’t anything when the amount is so small. He tried saying I was acting fraudulent, wasn’t injured and that he was going to try and sew either me or my physio if we were lying. I messaged him laughing calling him a daft cunt. Once I started putting shit up on his Instagram, he started cooperating more and finally got my refund!!!
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All I can say is thank you, I’ve followed him on Instagram for a while now and I was considering emailing him for online training/diet but after a quick google and reading your article I know I’ll need to reasearch someone else not just someone on Instagram.
Thank you, I could’ve potentially wasted a lot of money for nothing!
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Hi Jenna, Mathew Tofton got me in superb shape he was recommended to me by a competing bodybuilder he has an Instagram prepoedbytofton where you can see his transformations.
Hope this help
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Unfortunately I got scammed by Mr Francis as well. The plan I received was absolute junk, you couldn’t follow it. It was so poorly written, a collection of screen shots and random emails he forwarded.
He refused to give a refund as he had delivered his services, I took to social media and barraged him a little. He threatened with legal cation, was going to tell my employer. It was all junk. Eventually he said he would refund, he gave back about £350 of £450, after he said he would send it all back.
I couldn’t be bothered to keep talking to him for the rest, someone said he needed to find someone else to scam before he had the money to give me.
What a sad life.
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He’s a complete fraudulent wanker! He took £180 off my mate for a diet/training plan.. He sent my him a copy and pasted email of a plan which had some other geezers name on it.. nothing made sense as he can’t string two sentences together and it was a shower of shit. When my mate called him up on it he couldn’t handle the fact he’d been rumbled and said he would refund him as he didn’t want to work with him. 3 weeks later still no refund and my mates emailed him every day since. The guys nothing but a crook! He’s got it coming to him though his address is all over the email tracking.
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He got me and my wife in amazing shape. Very blunt to the point but from the masses of information he leaves via screenshots and client pics with their name tagged, I counted hundred this year alone , that he does what he’s paid to do. I see countless people praising him and he’s openly addressed his plans and anyone who has issues with it . Got sent here via a link
And all I see is a small % who clearly he pissed off. I was but I can see overwhelmingly he’s one of the best at this job or his insta wouldn’t be chocked full of people he coach’s. He’s marmite but I scrolled for ages and he clearly does some amazing work. Sour grapes here . What’s awkward is some of you got refunded . I’m a solicitor if I’d put pen to paper like it or not your paying . Just don’t go back.
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I’d love to talk to you if possible as you are the only satisfied customer who has come forward. Perhaps you’d be good enough to get in contact via email if you’re not keen on leaving your details on an open forum. I don’t doubt for a second he does work with some people and I’d like to talk about how he worked for you. I’d also like to explore what you say about not going back. If you went into the Song shop and paid £500 for a TV and they sent you, a week later, a 40” square piece of cardboard with the words ‘This is a TV’ on it, your approach would be to not go and get your money back, but just never use Sony again?
Your ability to write worries me too. I wonder if you’ll get in contact re email?
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He’s got me as well paid him for a plan and after chasing him for 4 weeks still no plan guys a fraud mate.
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Scallymaca writes just like Scott used to on TM.
Surely a solicitor could manage basic grammar.
Hi Scott xox
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I applied to him for a plan two weeks ago and got it through after 3 days (as her said he would). Yes its format is basic but its based on pushing your training & diet boundaries. No complaints from me and I’m already seeing changes.
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I feel I’ve just been scammed by this Scott Francis Diet guy! He’s urged me to pay him £125 for a 6 week plan for someone who suffers with anxiety and depression which i stupidly did in the desperation & hope he could help me. I had to then chase him about what happens next but then that same day I discussed my circumstances with the hospital which I’m currently under and they advised me not to follow any diet plans as I suffer with my skin which when I explained to him he started the ‘riddles’ via wots app. Nothing made sense, he said he’d refund me on the basis I could send him the relevant proof of my appointment/doctors notes which I did the following day and still chasing him for my refund. He’s rude, obnoxious and can’t string a sentence together. I’m really annoyed and I’m going to see if he can be reported – I hope he gets stopped one day.
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He’s just left a comment on social media, showing he did pay you back ,with screenshots so this is a lie ? Yes . You can’t be scammed my dear , if you got paid back , and the screenshots you sent him look bogus , so that’s audacious.
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Great to have you with us Dean. Scott seems to have changed his ways with this latest adjustment. Any chance he could address all of the people he ‘hasn’t scammed’ – just hasn’t given them their money back yet.
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Scott, for fuck’s sake, learn how to use punctuation. I won’t be so bothered with how many people you rip off if you can get to grips with commas and full stops.
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I bought a 6 week plan from Scott. He has dropped me after 4 weeks as I have allegedly “violated” his terms by helping out my local gym where I train for a photo. I had bought a block of PT sessions before I was with Scott and I wanted to use this up, I also wanted to ensure the exercises I was given I was doing correctly so to not injure myself. I feel I have been treated unfairly and dropped so quick with no communication or explicit explanation or discussion on this matter. I find it disgusting how we can take someone’s money this way, who have given their hard earned cash to this man!!
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I’m sorry you didn’t see this article before committing to Scott. He has few, if any, scruples. Not surprised he’s done what he’s done…
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OMG I came soooo close to asking him for a plan, but, I am typically a person that digs a bit and soo glad I did here, Keep going with this as people like me need to know before they turn into one of these poor unfortunates. I also like many women now have been pulled in by his lovely girlfriend who has really shaped up and looks fab. She is pursuing a training cert I hope she is on the level. What are your thoughts on this??
Thanks so much!
Melanie
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I wanted to say thank you for the information on Scott Francis and wish i had read your page before i sent him money. Unfortunately it still seem’s like he is doing the same scamming as you have mentioned before. I paid him £280 on the 16th of September and received nothing but a ridiculous form to fill in and told to send him starting photos.
I have been in touch ever since and asked for a full refund which i am told i will get, that was on Friday just past and still haven’t received anything. Contacted him again via Instagram and was told by “Sami” that he is the admin of the page and he will pass on to Scott, so i am not holding my breathe for a refund and only wish i had done my research sooner.
I just wanted to get in touch so others can know that this is still going on and hopefully they will not find themselves in the same situation. Please do not send this idiot money!!!!
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Just wanted to let everyone know that i made a fraud case through my bank against this guy and got my money back, so if it does happen to you there is a slight solution.
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Damn I didnt know this waste man was still ripping people like this. He got me back in 2013. Glad to see karma was giving him some payback but it’s a shame hes not really learned his lesson. Maybe he’ll do it to the wrong person one day.
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I signed up to the plan 3 weeks ago. I told him I had osteoarthritis in my knee however the excercises he gave me are not possible and have been advised by a physiotherapist that they will make my knee worse.
I did follow the plan for 2 weeks but each time I “checked in” with my photos and weight I was ignored. When I asked for feedback I got a screenshot telling me I was breaking the rules by sending a second message before he replied to the first one.
I asked if he would prefer not to work with me due to my knee injury but was again initially ignored. Sami is really rude. Each time I have asked a polite simple question the reply is quite nasty.
I have been promised a refund. I asked when I should expect it and was sent a screenshot of a refund policy. TBH I’m annoyed at myself for not checking this out before parting with my money.
Fortunately my workplace provide legal support so they will assist if I don’t get a refund.
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Hi all,
I should have dug!
Don’t know if its of any use to anyone but he has 19 failed businesses including Francis Diet Ltd and I Gave Back Ltd (assuming that was his charity attempt?).
He currently operates through the following:
Filterless Fitness Ltd
Unfiltered Fitness Ltd
Filterless Fitness No1 Ltd
Filterless Fitness R US Ltd (lol really)
Filterless Ltd
Filterless 1 Ltd
All registered to a building in London that is quite well known for fraud apparently (ha!)
My husband is in credit and had a look. Don’t worry this is all public knowledge.
You can also report him to trading standards!
How can he still be going. And how many people has he fucked over 😦
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This guy is in grappenall area now in warrington. Hes clearly moved on from Bristol how is he still working under the same name?
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He lives in Warrington with a girl I am friends with on Facebook. She actually publicly shamed him last year for having a gay affair and shared all his text messages before getting back with him.
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Hello, I have also had a terrible experience with Scott and found this group on Facebook – might be worth joining to share experiences online as it seems he has taken himself away / off any social media platform that can provide reviews. Facebook group page is: BEWARE SCOTT FRANCIS / FRANCIS DIET FRAUD.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/253513829019338/
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I have had an awful experience with him I managed to get my money back luckily via PayPal but waited over 10days for a plan after I sent payment photos etc and never heard a thing from him. I then started a refund through PayPal and surprise surprise he messages me vile abuse how I’m wasting his time and I’m rude !! Blocks me from everything and I had to chase him for my money back after a lot of abusive messages !
What an actual scumbag !
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I wish i dug into this a little more. Envious of all the girls he posts on his Instagram under @francisdiet i paid £125 for 6 weeks, followed all the expectations he set via email and a week later still nothing, when i asked him ‘i know your busy but how long will the wait be as it has gone over the 6 days?’ i was completely ignored. after 2 weeks i requested my money back.
so annoying i wasted my time and energy, very disheartening
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Did you get your money back? How long did you wait?
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Send me the text messages!
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Company Details – https://app.datagardener.com/company/09168818/Give-Back-Uk-Ltd
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I signed up last week following my original message in June. I’ve questioned what the timescale was for the plan and then he started saying I lost my place in the queue which will delay it longer and the email states how the system works. I questioned the email saying it didn’t clarify timescales and then he got his hair off and offered me a refund which I agreed. He states it will be processed tomorrow so let’s see if it comes to fruition? I felt like I was keen to use him following his posts on anxiety and depression which I felt would be helpful to me but obviously not helpful for him. He put a big post on insta after I originally messaged him about how he loves to help people in my situation but that was in June and now we are In September. I will keep you posted on the refund.
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Did you ever get your refund!? I’m in the exact same situation…
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Did you get your refund!? I’m in the same situation…
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Did you ever get your refund!? I’m in the same situation…
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Did you ever get your refund back!? I’m in the same situation..
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I got a reply eventually and a partial refund.
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this is hilarious https://www.ladbible.com/news/uk-fitness-trainer-calling-on-people-to-snitch-on-people-who-cheat-20200928.amp.html wonder if the journalist knows about the background.
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I know where he currently lives, Thelwall Warrington Stockport rd.
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I know where he currently lives, Thelwall Warrington Stockport rd.
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Seeing girls on facebook falling for his bullshit again, the lambo is back up on his IG. There has been another 3 page thread in uk muscle about people he has mugged off
this summer
People need to get it out of there head that Scott was ever a good coach. Nothing close. He has always been schizophrenic and suffered from multiple personality disorder. Get out. Warn your friends to.
He succeeds because he has a small following of drug addicts who didnt need his help to begin with but who his tall tales get onside. He uses these people to sell and spy on people. The guy is like a walking psychiatry ward of grafting #101
Remember hollyoaks and cardiff city none of whom had ever heard of him. Training Linford and Jamie Balsch!
If you can find the stories it was proved he was a spoilt rich kid living in the shadow of gis brother who worked in tv polics and his sister who was a lawyer. Scott never maxe it past his high school basketball team and concocted an elaborate fantasy life whilst still living with his parents. Sad
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Absolute arsehole of a man who’s just fleeced and then bullied my best friend!!! How on earth is he allowed to behave this way!! Just shows the dangers of so little regulation. Sad really
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Surprised he is still doing what he does . Twitter banned him and hes not on Facebook any more . maybe time for another article update .
His girlfriend is @its_sophielew on insta . Unbelieveable that she doesnt know about all this ?
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its also bloody comical that you can find this blog via FrancisDiet.co.uk .
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I’ve just paid £400 for 4 screen shots from fitness pal and been told I should set the same food everyday for a week, no training plan, then researched and found all this. I can’t believe I have been scammed so gutted. Would be very grateful to hear whether anyone has approached trading standards, I have told him he’s got 24 hours or I’m going to them.
It’s quite a horrid feeling to send such intimate photos then be scammed. I’m really upset about it.
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Surely that Lamborghini he has posted on Instagram is not really his? He must have conned a lot of people – that’s his modus operandi though. Seems a really unpleasant person to me. Best steer clear.
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It is a G Wagon now. #zerofinance #wotajoke . He bought his wife one so he says .
Incredible. Still don’t know why more people aren’t seeing through this idiot .
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I have just requested a refund from him having paid for my plan in August 2021 .. I hope i get it back.
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Looking for some advice on this. Plan given to me after a two month wait. In the questionnaire I outlined that I wanted his help and advice with a diet/fitness plan that dealt with fertility issues (as this has been claimed on socials).
I have not strayed off plan and yes I have seen good changes, my first check in has been ignored so I have zero guidance and support on how to progress.
Now my issue is, as it’s well documented, during the 2 week waiting period for a woman, strenuous exercise, especially weights is not advised as well as certain foods etc. at not one point have I been asked where I am in my cycle in order to tailor the plan to myself, especially in regards to exercise. So I am now in a situation where i have absolutely no will to be pursuing an exercise plan that is clearly not designed or tailored personally (that’s what I paid for). The scary thing is that if I do carry on with this and still be ignored, it could be detrimental as opposed to properly providing me with a structured and healthy plan for the specific issues that I addressed. If I don’t stick to the exercise plan, I will be kicked off (according to welcome pack). Any advice ?
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I am not a medic/ doctor or expert in this area, and I hate to say it, I don’t think Scott is either, but it sounds as though you need to follow your gut. He is not looking out for you specifically, he is ignoring you and continuing to take his ‘business’ onto other people. I’d back away as quickly as possible and find someone with genuine know-how and insight into this side of things. I am so sorry that yet again, another person, has fallen foul of his confidence trick. I wish the industry was regulated and we had someone to go to about his behaviour.
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I sent £400 for the plan it was old screenshots from someone’s my fitness pal and no exercises I actually thought it must be a joke I was shocked and felt so stupid for falling for this through Instagram stories. But in the advice of a FB page about people he had scammed I am now getting a full refund. I just hope someone who is thinking of paying sees this. Especially younger girls that wouldn’t know how to fight properly to get their money back.
I hope he is eventually shut down.
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