Q&A Gym refused to cancel my membership and has appointed debt collectors. What should I do?

Q:      I joined a gym after moving into the area. I had to sign up to a year’s membership, but after 2 visits in 2 weeks decided it wasn’t for me as I was less fit than I’d thought. I asked to cancel the membership but my request was refused. I queried the ‘cooling off’ period but was told it did not apply because I had already used the gym. I was really upset and cancelled my standing order, but now I have received a notice from debt collectors. What should I do?

A:       The attitude of the Gym seems very unreasonable since you only visited twice, and especially as you wanted to cancel because you decided after trying it out that it was too physically challenging for you. However, what you should not do is ignore the debt collectors as this could result in more serious problems.

You should write to the Gym Manager/owners stating all the circumstances surrounding your decision to cancel, i.e. your health concerns and the fact that you made the decision to cancel after just two weeks. Say that in line with the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) guidelines you are challenging their contract as unfair because it appears not to allow for cancellation due to changed circumstances.

Meanwhile, you should respond to the debt collectors in writing, stating that you firmly dispute the debt for the same reasons as stated to the gym manager. If they start to harass you without resolving the issues, you can report them to Trading Standards.

If both the gym and the debt collectors fail to resolve the issue to your satisfaction you should request from both of them proof of the debt and evidence that their terms were fair and not misleading. Under the terms of the Consumer Rights Act 2015 such contract terms must be clear and not unfairly weighed against the consumer. If necessary, seek further advice from a solicitor or Citizens Advice.

This question has been answered by James Denton, a Solicitor with GHP Legal.  If you would like to speak to someone about this or any other legal matter, please visit our website www.ghplegal.com and use the contact us form, or call us on: Wrexham 01978 291456, Llangollen 01978 860313, Oswestry 01691 659194