Wondering if anyone can help me, I signed up to a 12 month La Ftiness contract back in January, Cancelled my direct debit mid September this year as I had not used the gym since the end of July. I did try to ring the membership team and explain my circumstances but had no luck. My dad also tried to ring the payment team but because it wasn't me phoning they hung up on him (even though the money was coming from his bank account.) He therefore went and cancelled the direct debit. The most recent letter I have received states that I have an outstanding balance of £72 and they have added a charge of £40 to my account. They then go on to say that if this payment is not received within 5 days they will pursue all outstanding amounts in full (including the remaining months) through the debt collection agency, ARC Europe. Bearing in mind I'm 17, will they take action if I don't pay? Advice is appreciated! Thank you

Hi, I was a member with DW sports on a month to month contract, started in the summer of last year. I cancelled my membership with them I believe just after new years 2012 by phone, then a month later cancelled the direct debit. Last week I received a letter stating I owe 53 pounds including a 15 pound penalty fee. Today I have received a letter from them about passing it onto their solicitors. How do I take action to resolve this?

Hi guys, My partner has just been direct debited £160 for a second year of membership at Helio Fitness - http://www.heliofitness.co.uk Initially she only signed up for 12 months. However, because the direct debit was in place, they're refusing to reimburse her claiming that she 'should have cancelled the direct debit'. In the terms, we can't find anything relating to annual charges not being refunded. Can anybody help? Terms and conditions from Helio Fitness' website - > PRINCIPLE TERMS > 1. This agreement commences either: If you are on the club’s premises, once you have indicated your acceptance in the Declaration section of this web sign up process. > OR > If you are not on the club’s premises, once you have indicated your acceptance in the Declaration section of this web sign up process and then either entered the clubs premises or after a period of 7 days has elapsed, whichever is earlier. > 2. Your membership starts immediately. > 3. You will be entitled to all the rights and privileges exercisable for the Type of Membership chosen. > 4. You cannot transfer this agreement to anyone else. > > FEES AND CHARGES > 5. The Total first payment amount is due from you to us, is due immediately and is payable on the 1st Direct Debit Payment Date. This amount is not refundable in any circumstances. > 6. The Direct Debit Payment Amount is due from you to us. You are obligated to make the Minimum Number of Direct Debit Payments stated with the first one being paid on the 1st Direct Debit Payment Date, the second on the Second DD payment date and then every month thereafter. For the avoidance of doubt, you are obligated to make every Direct Debit Payment regardless of non attendance, whatever the reason for non attendance may be. > 7. If you fail to pay any monies due under this agreement or if any Direct Debit is returned unpaid or any cheque is returned unpaid or if any other form of payment is not honoured for whatever reason, you shall pay us on demand an administration fee of £25. > 8. You agree to advise us immediately of any change to the Members Details provided. > 9. If you fail to pay any amount due under this agreement for a period of more than thirty days, then we may pass the debt to a third party company for collection. The reasonable costs incurred in employing the third party company will be borne by you including costs in tracing you should you have changed your address without telling us. > > RENEWAL > 10. In order to extend your membership after completing the minimum number of Direct Debit payments, we will automatically continue collecting the Direct Debit Payment Amount every month. Your membership will be cancelled immediately you cancel your Direct Debit. Each payment made is not refundable under any circumstances. This Renewal Direct Debit Payment Amount may only be amended if we advise you in writing giving 30 days notice. Please note – If your membership included the benefit of a Free Period then we will stop making collections during that Free Period and recommence making collections when this free period has finished. > 11. During this Renewal Period the only way to cancel your membership is by cancelling your Direct Debit Mandate directly with your Bank. > > GENERAL TERMS > 12. You agree to comply with the Rules of Membership which are displayed prominently in the Club and relate to opening hours, use of facilities and your conduct. We may make reasonable changes to these Rules at any time provided we give you advance notice of the change. > 13. If we take no action or let you off any breach of this agreement or give you extra time to pay or comply, it will not stop us enforcing the terms of this agreement strictly at a future date. > 14. We may assign the benefit of this agreement and our rights thereunder to a third party on notice to you. Your rights under this agreement will not be prejudiced. > 15. This agreement is governed by English Law. > 16. We may terminate this agreement with immediate effect on notice to you if you are in breach of the Clubs Rules. In this event you will not be liable to pay any further Direct Debit Payments, provided such breach is not deemed by us to have occurred primarily in order to qualify you for a refund. > > Yours sincerely > Harlands Many thanks for your help, Jim

Under the advice of the good members of CAG, I recently made an enquiry of the OFT and received a response which made be of help to others. A bit of background for those who are not aware - in order to carry out Bailiff activities, Bailiffs (or their companies) need to hold a consumer credit licence. To hold such a licence, the holder needs to prove that they are "fit" to hold a licence and this is tested via a "Section 25" test. If their fitness is called into doubt, the OFT can investigate and potentially remove the licence. SO, they sent me a link to a document which will make interesting reading for anyone who has received communication from, or who have dealt with, a bailiff http://www.oft.gov.uk/shared_oft/business_leaflets/consumer_credit/OFT664Rev.pdf misrepresenting your powers, misrepresenting outcomes, not being clear on charges, adding charges not legislated for, failiing to accept a reasonable offer of payment, etc etc ALL REASON FOR COMPLAINT AND REGARDED AS UNFAIR PRACTICE [email protected] is the email address you'll be wanting. They will not give you advice, but they will take your complaint against any licence holder and either investigate, or keep it on record pending an application to renew a licence.

I joined my local Total Fitness Health Club in May and happily attended for 2 months until one day I was denied access and told to go and see one of the membership consultants. He then informed me that I had not paid for the previous two months and asked if I could pay straight away. Mortified I asked him to check why no payments had been made and apologised profusely. then he tells me that it is because the girl who signed me up had not bothered to send my bank details to head office! Now they are telling me I have to either pay £60 straight away to cover the two months lost, or add £30 to August and Septembers payments to cover it, making that £60 for August and September. Obviously I hadn't planned for my gym membership to cost that much & paying this is going to severely affect me for the rest of the month. I called head office and spoke to some nameless employee whose lacklustre apology did nothing to curb my annoyance, and who basically told me that I do indeed have to pay for their mistake. I am so frustrated by their disappointing customer service skills, and frankly quite alarmed at what was done with my bank details if they were not sent to head office!? According to Total Fitness I have no leg to stand on in this situation and they have done nothing to help.

Hey there everyone. I took out a gym contract with la fitness for 3 months and then i could cancel at anytime after that. Well that's what i was told by the salesman at la fitness. I signed up at a computer inside la fitness at their website. I also used a pen and signed the touch sentitive screen. I didnt read the terms and conditions because the salesmen just kept blabbering on about how great the deal was. When i wanted to cancel they said i must pay £500 which is more than the whole contract is worth in the first place. I refused and told them that i am on a 3 month rolling contract. There is even a big banner out the front saying about it. Anyway i now have arc europe chasing me for about £500 pound. My girlfriend has made a £20 payment to these people because she doesn't want them trashing my credit report. I have checked my credit report experian and call credit and nothing is listed. Can i send a cca request to them even though it isn't a credit agreement? Its a contract never the less. And even if i did sign a 12 month contract does this mean that the sales man mis sold it to me? I am just dreading this landing on my credit file and ruining it. Thanks for any help

*Noticed the title has a misspelling* Hello, I am currently a member of LA Fitness along with my wife. We are both on a 12 months contract which I pay monthly. When we joined LA Fitness we registered both of our names on the screens and was sent a Membership Agreement (Fixed-Sum Loan Agreement regulated) with our signatures which states a sum of £672.00 x 2 which is to be paid by 12 installments of £56 x 2; which is £112 for the both of us which I pay from my account. Note: A terms and conditions page was sent without our signatures. We are both 4 months in our 12 month contract. During our visits to the gym I have made a number of complaints and calls to clean the changing rooms as they are always dirty; thick dust on the air con, mold in the showers, broken gym equipment which increases the risk of injury (squat rack) and loose dumbbells which could at any moment come apart and land on you. None of my complaints were addressed or confirmed and nothing was done about it. A few days ago I was using one of the dumbbells and one end of the dumbbell came loose and landed on my knee; seems I have bruised it and will be seeing the GP as it's quite painful. I will be going in today to take any pictures of broken equipment and dirty facilities. I am now pursuing a way to cancel both of our contracts. My wife has her own contract with LA fitness which I pay for. Does anyone have any advice on what is the best way of going about doing this?. Attached is my agreements and terms and conditions. Personal details have been removed. Membership Agreement (remove spaces) http: //dl.dropbox.com/u/460884/1.jpg http: //dl.dropbox.com/u/460884/2.jpg Thanks. terms_and_conditions.pdf