Advice please

KatrinaC7

In January I joined a gym, in February I told them i was going to have an operation and wouldn't be able to use the gym for at least a month so they deferred my membership for a month, at the start of April i went in and told them I could not continue membership as I wasn't well enough & they told me to call DFC a direct debit company, I did this and explained i needed to cancel the membership, they said ok. I cancelled the direct debit but have now received an email asking for £52.56 which includes a £15 fee for late payment, as they couldn't collect this months fee.
Help!! I'm very disabled (more so since the op) and they have also added in the email they will add another £15 in 7 days & also try and collect again next month on the 14th

[Deleted User]

What do your terms say about cancelling the membership?

Cancelling the DD wouldn't have cancelled the membership, just the means by which you were paying for it, still leaving a payment due.

KatrinaC7

I'm not sure but I did phone and told them I was cancelling the DD as I would not be using the gym anymore and the guy said ok. He didn't say anything about paying for another 2 months and I only signed for 3 months anyway which would of ended this month so they shouldn't be asking for more next month

Aylesbury_Duck

As a priority, get a letter to them formally cancelling the contract in writing. There may be something in your terms and conditions stating that you need to give xx days' notice in writing to terminate the contract early. Make sure you get acknowledgement of your cancellation.

As zx81 says, you should not have cancelled the DD until you knew the contract was terminated.

Is the third month's payment in lieu of the delayed start date, perhaps? Did you sign up to a three month contract with no breaks?

KatrinaC7

Is the third month's payment in lieu of the delayed start date, perhaps? Did you sign up to a three month contract with no breaks?

It shouldn't be as I agreed too 3 months only and I paid in January and February so the last payment should have been March but they deferred it for me so last payment was to be April, I don't understand how they can charge me for a service they know I cannot use, I explained my condition will prevent me from using the gym and that was why i needed to cancel the DD

sheramber

So they are trying to collect the April payment that you agree would be your last payment. They did not get the payment so will try to collect it again next month if it is not paid before then.

You signed a contract for three months and are due to pay for that unless your contract included a clause that you did not need to pay if you were not able to use the gym.

You need to check your contract to see if you need to do more to cancel your membership beyond the three months. You may need to cancel it in writing.

Aylesbury_Duck

KatrinaC7 wrote: »

Is the third month's payment in lieu of the delayed start date, perhaps? Did you sign up to a three month contract with no breaks?

It shouldn't be as I agreed too 3 months only and I paid in January and February so the last payment should have been March but they deferred it for me so last payment was to be April, I don't understand how they can charge me for a service they know I cannot use, I explained my condition will prevent me from using the gym and that was why i needed to cancel the DD

As I see it you deferred March's payment with their agreement, then you cancelled the DD so they were unable to collect the March payment in April. They will try again in May and the various fees are presumably charges you agreed to in the contract for late/failed payment.

We can't see your contract so it's perfectly possible they CAN charge you for a service you cannot use. What did you sign up to, three months? Are you permitted to cancel early without charge? How are you obliged to cancel the contract if you wish to?

As explained, you should not have cancelled the DD before properly cancelling the contract. The first step is to cancel your contract in writing and get an acknowledgment. Then you can worry about disputing any charges or further payments but it's possible you owe them the money if that's what you signed for.