Gym membership advice

fin7

Apologies if this is the wrong place for this to be.

I'm after some advice on behalf of a friend. She joined a gym last year, they were advertising a cheap 3 year membership, they claimed at the time they had the full backing of the the change 4 life thing, seems c4l allow gyms to use their leaflets, this gym actually claimed that c4l were helping towards the cost to make cheaper memberships available. We've since found out that that was all lies.


Anyway, a few months after paying £300 for the membership they sold the gym. The new owners have said they aren't honouring the membership, they said its allowing people to use the gym for free. But my friend joined with another friend, now my friend payed the £300 in cash because they said you saved the £50 administration fee, her friend has taken a contract out to pay £12 (i think) a month for 3 years and she's been told she can't end the direct debt and will have to pay this for another 2 years. They joined to use the Zumba classes, classes were free to members, the new owners have said everyone has to pay between £3/£4 a class, they used to go a few times a week and now can't afford to.


I don't think there's going to be anything they can do, it just seems unfair, same membership deal as her friend, she's lost her money and told she can no longer use the gym, her friend can't afford to pay it and cost of classes on top.


Fin

unholyangel

The one who's paying monthly, is she paying a credit provider or the old owner of the gym or the new owner? She should be ok.

The friend who paid cash (was it definitely cash and not card? sorry, i know you said cash but just checking as it would make it easier if it were card).....who was her contract with? Does that entity still exist? For example was it a limited company and if so, has the company been wound up or is it still trading?

Can you give dates and details as well please. When exactly did they sign up, when did the gym close (or when did it change hands), what was the name of the old gym, whats the name of the new gym, have they written/spoken to either the old or new gym owner, is it the new owner who has said they will not be honouring existing contracts?

fin7

unholyangel wrote: »

The one who's paying monthly, is she paying a credit provider or the old owner of the gym or the new owner? She should be ok.

The friend who paid cash (was it definitely cash and not card? sorry, i know you said cash but just checking as it would make it easier if it were card).....who was her contract with? Does that entity still exist? For example was it a limited company and if so, has the company been wound up or is it still trading?

Can you give dates and details as well please. When exactly did they sign up, when did the gym close (or when did it change hands), what was the name of the old gym, whats the name of the new gym, have they written/spoken to either the old or new gym owner, is it the new owner who has said they will not be honouring existing contracts?

Thanks for the reply, it was definitely cash. Her friend wants to stop her membership because of the fact they are now charging for classes on top of the fee, as far as I can gather she was told that if she stops paying it'll go to a debt collection agency. The gym has the same name, they paid for memberships last year and the new owners took over in about November


I'm surprised that change 4 life aren't concerned about the fact that their leaflets were used in a fraudulent way, they definitely said that the cheap membership was being run by change 4 life.


No one knows where the previous owners has disappeared to.


Fin

unholyangel

If its just a new owner and its the same company etc, they should be providing what was contracted for at the agreed price.

Essentially, the contract cannot be binding on your friends without also being legally binding on the company. If the company wish the contract to remain binding then they have to provide the service that was agreed for.

Even if there is a term in the original contract allowing them to appoint another supplier, if that same term could be used to bind the consumer to reduced benefits (under the contract), again....its covered by unfair contract terms.

If your friends have legal cover on their insurance, they may benefit from contacting them for advice. Or asking if any solicitors in the area will give them a free half hour consultation that specialise in contract law.

First things first, they need to look at what documentation they actually have. Terms and conditions are not always legally binding (if they are unfair terms, they are legally unenforceable) but its always a good idea to read over the terms anyway to get a better idea of your position and also get an idea of whether any of the terms can be challenged as unfair.

arcon5

Anything about a 12 month term has already been deemed unfair by a judge... It was an OFT versus Ashbourne or something like that. If no credit agreement is in place, thus not reporting to credit agencies, give them te contractual notice and then cancel it. Keep proof of postage for the notice and let them pursue it.

bris

It's also a breach of contract to expect you to keep paying the membership and the extra fee for the classes on top.
I would write to them explaining that you expect the same level of service as before and failure to provide it would be classed as a breach on their part.
Tell them you would then cancel the membership and expect a full refund for the time that they failed to provide the services. Give them a bill and take it from there.

Remember debt collection agencies have no teeth, if any of them write to you, write back explaining the debt is in dispute and that only a court can sort it out, so not to bother you again unless it is in court.