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  1. I signed up for a gym with a 3 year contract (dumb I know!). I had a back problem and was hoping this gym could help me as they 'claimed' they had a therapy pool. Ive been unhappy with the gym, equipment out of order for long periods of time, its smells unsanitised and the pool is definitely not as warm as it used to be. Since then, my back problem has progressed and Im now having problems with my leg and foot which is making walking painful. Im seeing a physio, podiatrist etc.. and during a chat with my doctor, he said he would be happy to provide a letter to cancel my gym membership. Im trying to find my contract but Im sure it said i could cancel on the basis of moving out of the area, redundancy or a doctors letter. Does anyone know how Harlands deal with this or will they be slippery customers and try to demand extra money from me (even though I havent used the gym in 5 months now due to my medical issues?) Thanks!
  2. Could anyone give me the email address to get in touch with Harlands Group re cancellation of membership? I have been a member of a gym whose direct debits are run by Harlands for a few years and wish to cancel but as I cannot find any information regarding the length of notice needed to cancel I could do with an email address Any help is appreciated Thanks
  3. Hi everyone, first time user here! I recently cancelled my direct debit with my gym (just on the basis that I could no longer afford it). I have read a lot of the posts on here about Harlands and how they have no legal powers to enforce the charges etc, but just wanted some advice as my scenario is slightly different to the rest of the posts on here. I only cancelled the direct debit when I was pretty sure there was no way I'd ever even entered a fair contract with my gym/Harlands. For one I was never told when I signed the contract at reception that it would be for a minimum of 12 months. I was only informed of this when I received a letter from Harlands about a week later. Secondly, I have never been given a copy of the contract and therefore have no idea what rights (eg a right of termination) I have? To be an enforceable contract surely each party should know of their rights and as a result I've been unable to provide the requisite month notice. As a result I've now received a letter from Harlands stating I should ring them to sort it out and resume paying my DD, if not an administration fee will be charged (which after reading this forum seems totally unenforceable). Just wondered what you think my step should be? And should I write instead of phone so I have everything in evidence? Thanks for your help!! Joe
  4. I took out a 12 month gym contract which is being dealt with through Harlands. I have called the gym and they just said 'no worries just give your membership card back and cancel your direct debit with your bank and call Harlands to cancel' but I fear it may be a little more complex than that??! My 12 month contract is until August 2014 but I have since been diagnosed with agoraphobia amongst other mental health conditions so, needless to say I cannot go to the gym. Im awaiting therapy but the wait is currently approx 15 months so my health is not likely to improve any time soon. So, I have emailed Harlands explaining my situation and advising them I can forward a copy of my letter from my Consultant Clinical Psychologist detailing the conditions he has diagnosed me with. My query... What are my chances of them cancelling the membership? Will I end up having to pay loads of money out? (Im not working due to my illness at the moment also so cant afford it either) And, If they tell me to go forth... is there anything else I can do or try to get out of the membership? Any help or advice greatly appreciated.
  5. Hi, I'm looking for some advice as Harlands seem to be saying I'm wrong at every point. When signing up for the gym I went into the store and asked: Can I leave the contract as I will be moving to uni late into it? Was told yes. Will there be any charges for leaving? No. Is there a way you can list these questions down on my profile so I have record of asking them? "Sure I'll do that now." So when I came to cancel as I had a chest operation in July, I was told I had to have a doctors form and send them £25 in cash/cheque, which I sent. And when I rang up today because they're to charge me £40 (my mum got a letter from them recently as I cancelled the DD months after sending the letter because I was thinking why am I still being charged membership fees?), they claimed to not have received such letter. I then told them that when I joined I was told there would be no fee and basically got told well there is and you have to pay it, so then I told them about what I was told at the gym (otherwise I wouldn't have actually signed up at all) and they then told me that I was lying as I applied from home - even though I did everything in the actual gym. What should I do? :/ Sorry if I haven't explained everything properly as I'm still fuming at them, feel free to ask me any questions. Tom
  6. Hi The charges that Harlands make £25 for a changed direct debit / failed collection - Are these enforceable in the county court. I would think the size of the fee is not legal . Whats everyone opinion of this ?
  7. Hi, When I went signed up for a Harlands group gym I was told I MUST set up a direct debit to attend their gym. However, I explained to the employee that I am going to university in September and that I would only be paying for a month. He said that I could pay for the month in cash but that I would still have to set up my direct debit and that setting up the direct debit was "policy". I cancelled this direct debit as I am no longer going to attend the gym and I only said I was going to pay for the month and I was not told I would be paying for nearly a years membership to go to the gym for a month. My friend goes to the same gym and he does not have a direct debit with Harlands at all. After I cancelled I was sent a letter saying that I must re open my direct debit with them or they will issue me with "an administration fee". Any help on what I can do would be greatly appreciated, thanks.
  8. Soo.... I've been asking a friend of mine to join the gym with me but says he can't due to cancelling the DD of a previous 12 month contract after 3 months due to injury but I don't think he informed the gym of this reason. This happened about 2 years ago and he received letters saying he owed around £300 of remaining fees. However he has not heard from them in the last 5 months. Would the charges come back if he joined another gym although the DD would be through Harlands or does the lack of post mean that it has been forgotten about? I have a feeling the answer will probably be the same as the other posts on here: to write to Harlands and agree to pay the remaining membership fees... Then again does the fact he's not heard from them since change anything? I guess he could try and use the injury as a way out but with there being no real evidence it doesn't seem likely... Thanks!
  9. Morning all, This is my first post (please be gentle with me!) My wife took out a gym membership (24 months) back in March 2012. In November 2012 she called the gym to say that she wanted to cancel the membership as she wasn't using it. The receptionist at the gym told her to cancel her direct debit. On the 13th Feb she received a letter from Harlands stating she owed £98. I told her to ignore the letter. On the 21st March she received a letter from CRS stating she now owed £646. What should we do? Her original agreement with the gym was £29 per month. I've no idea where they've got this £646 from. Please advise. Many thanks Gavin
  10. Hi everyone, first time poster here, and am drastically needing help please. Basically I joined my local your gym, in April last year. Come to November, and I hadn't used it for one reason or another for a couple of months. My husband, was going through the bank statements, and saw a DD to Harlands, didnt know what or who it was for, and then cancelled the DD. I then start getting letters off Harlands, from Nov '12 onwards chasing payment; they added £25 admin fee each time. We didn't respond to the letters (first mistake I know). I then receive a letter off CRS, stating that the balance due was now £195.45, which includes a £65.00 fee as CRS are now handling the case. I now know that CRS and harlands are one and the same company, and its probably someone sitting at a desk opposite, who work for harlands. So following slick132's posting in the other CRS/Harlands thread (sorry unable to post links), I sent them the same letter as slick first wrote. This went off to Harlands on the 6th March '13 recorded del. I hear nothing off anyone until today, when I receive the following letter. - See attached. Together with this letter is a whole heap of printouts from CRS, to do with the Ashbourne case. Everything can be seen on crs005 pdf. Now we know that we should of not simply cancelled the DD, and once hubby finding out what harlands was, to continue the DD. I have no problem in paying what I actually owe (6 months of the remaining contract). But what I do have a issue with, is paying either the £25.00 admin fee, not to mention the £65 recovery fee, or what ever its called. Could someone please put my mind to rest here, and inform me as to what I can do, as I am having many a sleepless night over this. I suffer from psoriasis, and this is making me even more stressed out... Thanks to anyone who can help. [ATTACH=CONFIG]42747[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]42748[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]42749[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]42750[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]42751[/ATTACH]
  11. I am having enourmous problems cancelling our gym membership and have had a major falling out with Harlands. The basic premise is that a DD payment was taken on the 8th February and we also gave 3 months notice (or as Harlands put it 3 further DD payments) on the same day - 8th February. I consider the 3 months notice would take us to the 8th May therefore the last 3 payments would be 8th Feb, 8 Mar and 8 Apr. I therefore cancelled our DD on 28 April. Harlands disagree and say notice being given on the same day as a payment means that the 8 February payment was taken before notice was given. Harlands therefore maintain that the 3 final payments are actually 8 Mar, 8 Apr and 8 May meaning our gym membership expires 8 June. Neither of us are budging and we've received the first debt collection letter with £25 additional fee. I am now expecting another letter (and admin fee) following a recent conversation. They are rude and obnoxious and i have no wish to make any further payment if that can be avoided. I have not put much in writing as yet. I did however reply to their original email saying that the final payments were 8 Mar, 8 Apr and 8 May. My reply said that i disputed this and (as stated above) I consider the 3 final payments to be 8 Feb, 8 Mar and 8 Apr. Harlands did not respond to this. I would appreciate any advice people have. I am now at the stage where i wish to put something in writing but would appreciate any guidance about what that should be. I'm also interested in whether members consider that my viewpoint or Harlands is legally correct (ie is notice valid on the same day as a payment is taken). Many thanks in anticipation of your help, unhappy_in_leeds
  12. Hi, I am Peter after being out of action for a year i started playing sunday league again. However the manager said i need to get fitter and requested i joined a to get fit first. I explained that i could not afford it because i was not working. he agreed to pay for two months. A player on the team is one of the gym instructors and said it would not be a problem. he said the minimum you can sign up for is 12 months but just cancel the direct debit after the two months. after the two months ended i cancelled my gym membership. Then i started to get harassed for money. phone calls, letters. i explained that i never had any money, i live at home with my parents and that i can't give them money if i wanted. i told them that i had signed up to job seekers allowance because i was struggling for work. i sent them a copy of the details. but they said because i signed a contract, i should be able to pay. i sent them a letter saying that letting them no that i ve not worked in over a year. i am currently on job seekers and that if they continued to harass me i would contact trading standards and the police. however, i have just received a letter from crs and struggling what to do. if anyone can help let me know. kind regards peter
  13. Hiya, (Sorry for the long text, I apologise, I’m not strong in concise writing) Where do I start. on 01 February 2012 I joined a kickbox gym and signed a contract. (part of Harlands) After 4 months of use, I’ve stopped. (Reasons my tinnitus which is medical, Having found an amazing girlfriend and spending time with her, and just doing enough sports outside the gym) I don’t really need a reason it's suffice to say I wanted to cancel my gym contract. Reading the contract back then I saw minimum number 36 of DD payments NO cancellation options. So (not knowing the current law and contract consumer proportional fairness) I wrote a letter to my gym asking if we could work something out. On which I never got a reply. I left it alone, courage sinking into my shoes that since the contracted stated this there was no way out. But every day I reminded myself that’s 120£ a month. (Yep quite a hefty fee) that is just thrown away. A month ago I got really upset about it and started reading and researching everything I could about contract laws and the recent OFT investigations and High Court rulings. Learning that my whole contract is largely unfair on almost every core term and thus void, non binding and highly likely unenforceable and in breach with the law. So I’m ready. I wrote another email a week ago to my gym stating my contract is to be considered unlawful and I want to immediately cancel my membership and direct debit. Obviously no reply, which I expected. Now I’m going to send the recorded letter. Couple questions. (Since I had no reply of my gym its almost sure they are not cooperative in any way) Do I send that recorded letter to both my gym and harlands, pre-emptive striking and showing Harlands, though I took the kickbox gloves off when I stopped going to my gym, I’ve put them now back on to knock their head into the next century? Since its a given it’s going to be passed to Harlands by my gym when I stop paying anyway? Or first the gym? My contract, due to recent and precedent court rulings is unenforceable and in breach with the law. However do I still need to abide by the 30days notice (which seems fair if I would have a fair contract in the first place) once I send my recorded letter stating them I cancel my direct debit and membership? (which would mean the difference of another 120£ for june) Or just cancel the direct debit after I've send my recorded letter and not even abide the 30days notice? And lastly, since its been advised by OFT and the court that gyms should change their contracts and INFORM their consumers of current unfairness. Do I bother investigating if I could get money back? I’ve payed 13months which totals 1560£. IF I would be crazy enough to take this to court, and attest they failed their duty and obligations (As set out by OFT and the High court recently in similar cases) of informing me that me not being able to cancel my contract is unlawful especially with contracts that exceed an minimum term of 12 months. Then my actual pay for 4months of use of gym +1month notice would be the only thing I would have payed. (which is 600), the only reason I payed more is because I thought my contract was binding. If my logic (is not totally insane which it very well could be) that means they could owe me 960£. To be fair I’m not out for the money. But I’m considering it if they play nasty. (Please tell me if this last point is total wack and I shouldn’t even consider it) Also I’m still thinking should I keep my recorded mail short, or list all the points that make the contract unfair. (Doing this to show I’m well aware of the law and possible pre-emptive stop the whole chain of empty threats that will follow) I’m planning to update my post here as it unfolds. (Not sure why the formatting of my post is broken. It was better when I posted?) :/
  14. I signed up for a 36 month contract with a local gym, not a chain, but Underground Fitness in Sheffield, in 2012. I broke my arm soon after and found that I couldn't attend. The relationship I had with the gym wasn't great to start with. The girl who was attributed to me as my personal trainer wasn't brilliant and I found that I didn't use the gym as a result of this. I have now been with them since June 1st 2012 and wanted to cancel in June of this year. I appreciate that I have an obligation for 12 months of the contract at least, but thought the High Court Ruling last year meant that the remaining two years would be unenforceable as the contract length was equivalent to an unreasonable contract clause. I contacted Harlands by email saying I wished to cancel as the service at the gym wasn't tailored as promised and they had under-delivered. I received a reply saying I had to pay to the end of the 3 year contract. I rang up and spoke to someone there and said that the recent High court ruling found that any contract over 12 months was unreasonable and therefore unenforceable. They said that this only applied to Ashbourne contracts. They said they were not bound by this ruling as they provided fair exit from the policies, ie if I moved, if I was injured or if I paid a fee. The fee came through today and is £273, the difference between the discounted gym membership I had for the year and the price of a full priced 12 month membership. I can't afford to pay this amount now and am struggling to pay the monthly sum of £18.00 a month. Having googled the issue, I found your website and borrowed some text from your standard letters. It was the message that cited the court case, so I sent this by email to Harlands. They've since sent me back a holding reply. Originally I'd seen this information on the Citizens Advice Bureau webpage and I spoke to someone there who said that as I'd signed a 3 year contract I'd have to carry on paying. I asked them about the high court ruling and they said they didn't know about it. I'm confused now. Is there any way at all of getting out of this contract without having to pay £273? Or am I stuck with it for the next 2 years? Hope someone can help!!
  15. Hello, I am a first year university student and I recently cancelled the direct debit for my 12 month contract at the lifestyle fitness gym in Stoke 3/4 months into the contract because I was told at the gym that if I did this I would only have to pay a £25 fee for cancelling the membership and then my membership would be over. However, after cancelling this direct debit I received a letter saying I had to pay this £25 but when I rang up the number it gave to arrange this I was placed in a queue/hold for a significant amount of time which wasted my money and never went through to anyone. I then rang my the local gym I was going to who said they could not do anything about this and I would have to ring the number given. The number I have been given is for Harlands Group. I have rang many times now and every time I ring the number "places me in a queue". I find it hard to believe that there is somebody at the office on their phone all the time in Harlands and the call also always rings a few times first before it puts me on hold. I then recieved another letter in the post saying I now owe them just over £40 because I did not pay the first £25. Now when I rang the local gym they told me this fee will be a penalty for cancelling my direct debit and I will on top of this have to pay for my 12 month contract which is 16.99 a month. I told the local gym that I cannot get through to Harlands but they refused to help, they were very unpleasant to talk to and were not empathetic to my situation in any way, and they said I would have to keep trying the Harlands number. I have also now sent an email to Harlands about my situation but after 4 days they have not replied, but within minutes of sending my email I received a confirmation email. I am worried that my "penalties" for "breaching the contract" will keep increasing and I cannot pay these or reinstate my original direct debit as the only number that will enable to do this is forever on hold meaning I will just keep losing money as it is 10p per minute. I don't know whether I will still have to pay for the rest of my contract when the reason I stopped it in the first place was because I was told I'd only have to pay a £25 cancellation fee. This seems completely unfair and I feel like I can't get out of this issue and it will only get worse. Please give me some advice on what to do and what I should have to pay. Any help will be really appreciated. -Jak
  16. I have been with them for 8 months, and have previously missed one direct debit, which I was charged an exorbitant fee of £25 for, but which I grudgingly paid. However, I recently missed another payment due to a confusion over the direct debit date, and they levied another charge to my account, but did not in anat way inform me of this, nor did they inform me they would then attempt to take the original payment plus this charge out a mere week later, which resulted in the payment bouncing again and a further charge being levied. They are now attempting to contact me through a credit company called Credit Solutions LTD, which appears to be Harlands themselves under a different name. I can't help but feel these charges are unjustifiable and so I do not wish to pay them. Do I have any legal justification for this? Any help would be greatly appreciated. Many Thanks. Regards, James
  17. hi. about a year ago i developed a ulcer on my big toe on my left foot.with being diabetic. around september i joined a gym by harlands in bideford devon.just after siging the contract my ulcer got much worse and i ended up with another ulcer on top of my left foot. reason i thought id join was because i thought light excercise may help with circulation.so when all this happened i was unable to go to the gym,as i couldnt walk properly and couldnt work or wear a normal shoe. i never attened the gym at all or had my induction,even though i paid the fee when joining "£47" had letters from harlands about paying them for time i had been a member.come the following january 2012 i ended up having my big toe amputated.which madfe life quite crap really,trying to get about etc. harlands passed their annual fee of £525 to CRS. they sent me a form which i had to have signed by my doctor verifing what had happened to me. they still want me pay the £525 as they said the ulcer started in july and i signed contract in september. i refused to pay them,and i told them to take me to court,which all his reply was "i hear your words" also i have moved from the area where the gym is in bideford and im now in southampton. im just wondering what will happen ? will they take me to court ? and will i ahve much of a chance of winning ? because of my illness,operation etc ? any advice or help would be nice thanks
  18. Hello Like many others I am having trouble cancelling my Membership with Harlands. In February 2012 they were running a campaign via my local gym. I went along and was told to join quickly as there were only 100 memberships up for sale and they were going very quickly. Stupidly I didn't take the cancellation rules before signing. Shortly after this my situation changed through no fault of my own. My relationship had broken up and I was asked to leave the house we both shared. I when to stay with my Mum (who lives in Spain) for sometime. I wrote to Harlands explaining the situation and that I would be cancelling my membership. They wrote back to say I needed proof of my address, ie utility bill, bank statement. I replied saying that because my move was temporary, I had not changed my address and my post was being redirected. In June I came back and I am currently living with friends until I find a permanent home. I have moved 13 miles out of the area - cancellation states 15 miles. I wrote to them again stating that I would not be visiting the gym again, given my situation - finances are very tight, and rising petrol costs it was not viable for me to go there. Also the area brings back painfully memories. I also stateed in my email about OFT case against Ashbourne amongest other things. They replied stating that given I don't live 15 miles out of the area they will not cancell my membership and that my membership is in arrears of £98.00 or I can pay £461.00 to pay off the membership. They are not listening and only interested in getting their money regardless of the situation. I have emailed BBC Watchdog with my story. Like many of us I'm not happy, yes I take responsibility that this was my own fault for not taking in the cancellation rules etc., but I don't feel I have a choice other than pay up and draw a line under this situaiton. Many thanks.
  19. Hi I'm new to the forums and I have been reading a number of threads in relation to Harlands and their debt collection letters on behalf of gyms. I have a rather complicated scenario but I would be interested to hear what people think. In September 2011 I looked for a gym in the local area and found one not too far from my home which was offering a six month contract at a reasonable price. I needed to find a new gym as the one that I had been using on an ad hoc basis was due to be demolished so I made a point of discussing this with the salesperson signing me up to the new gym before signing on the dotted line. As their gym had been refurbished in the May I agreed to a short contract. My agreement was with a company called Membership Collection Agency and is a very basic one page document. On their part of the document the contract stated it was for a minimum period of 6 months and states that during that time you cannot cancel your membership. On my copy of the document the salesperson did not put in a minimum term or even get me to sign. It mentions the clubs terms and conditions which were not given to me but which are apparently held by the reception at the club. I had no problems with the gym itself but only a month or so later I got tendonitis and wasn't able to work out at all until mid December. I went to the gym twice during the month and on the 17th December I turned up to find the place shut and a note on the door saying it was closed for refurbishment until the New Year. At no point had I been sent a letter saying this was going to happen. I went home fuming and tried to ring the gym to get an explanation but there was no answer so I rang MCA. Their reply was they no longer had anything to do with the gym and couldn't help me. As you can imagine I wondered what the hell was going on. So I looked at my bank account statements and found that a company called Harlands was now taking the direct debits from my account. MCA had never given me written notice to tell me that they were no longer the collection agency. The gym had never written to me to tell me of the change and Harlands hadn't bothered to contact me either. So I cancelled my direct debit because I now had an unknown agency taking money from my account and no club services. My contract states that The club can change this agreement at any time, If they do they will give me 1 months notice in writing at the address you have provided and by a notice on the club's notice board. I followed up my direct debit cancellation with an email to the gym and a couple of days later I got a note back stating that the dates for the refurb had been up at the gym as well as the change of collection agency. On the two days that I had made it to the gym I hadn't seen them as I only used a small section of the gym. They have admitted in writing that Harlands were responsible for notifying me of a change of contract and they apologised. They also told me any cancellation of membership had to be in a letter to the club so I drafted my reply that day and delivered it personally to their door. The manager also refused my request for a refund for the days the gym was shut because they felt it was upgrading the facilities for the members and therefore I would be getting a better service. Since January I have sent repeated threatening emails by Harlands asking me to pay the balance of the six monthly contract. They have also added on further charges. Interestingly I have received a letter from Credit Resolution Services threatening me with court and they have exactly the same address as Harlands. I should point out that each time I have contacted them they have promised to investigate and then just sent another threatening letter. I have copies of all the letters they have sent and the names of the people that I have spoken to. Frankly I have no intention of paying up but I would be interested to hear what other people think of the case.
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