Xercise4Less, Harlands and CRS Problems

[lounick]

hi

my son too cancelled his membership by cancelling his direct debit - he may well have gone into the gym but they have no record of this.

 

He then moved to USA for the summer. I have today received a letter from CRS referring to previous letters sent by Harlands and demanding £174 - which include £102 of their costs. My son had been a member since September 2014 and the last DD was taken on 20/5/15 - so he had not completed the 12 months contract. I phoned CRS (before I read that I wasn't suppose to!) - told them he had not received any of the letters mentioned as he was out of the country but they said he should have - even though he left the country on 30/5/2015 and it wouldn't have been until 20/6/15 that the DD didn't get paid!

 

You mentioned that you sent them a letter using a template - could you let me know which one you used?

does anyone know if it makes a difference that he had not completed 12 months membership - does he have to pay more than the 3 x £9.99 which would take him up to 12 months?

 

Many thanks

[lounick]

Does it make a diffrence if I email or send a letter ?If I am sending a letter should I send to the gym aswell?

 

many thanks

[Bazooka Boo]

Hi Lounick,

 

Your on someone else's thread, so only those who have posted a response on here will be able to see this at the minute, however, it will flag up in Slicks inbox.

 

If it was a 12 month contract then IMO he will be liable for the full twelve months, however, IF he informed them that he was going to the USA then all he would have paid is one months notice, so £9.99, as it was impractical for him to attend the gym.

 

Most definitely DO NOT contact anyone about this via the phone, unless you can record both sides of the call?

 

Keep everything in writing or email, if sending correspondence via post, then keep copies of what you do send and always obtain ''proof of posting'' which is free from the PO counter.

 

Deal with the gym, and you need to find out if YS went into the gym and told them he would be moving to the USA.

 

Don't forget CRS are a powerless DCA, with absolutely no legal rights to do anything other than spit out puerile threat letters in an attempt to exploit the debtors lack of knowledge.

They are NOT bailiffs.

 

P.S. Which gym is this, ie, where in the country?

Complain to the gyms local trading standards regarding the unlawful adding of fees by CRS.

[slick132]

Hi Lounick and welcome to CAG

 

Your posts and reply from BBoo have been moved into your own thread.

 

I assume this is Xercise4Less but please confirm.

 

I suggest you use a written letter to send to Harlands. Forget the gym as they will wash their hands of the matter. Write the letter in YS's name or Harlands may not deal with you for Data Protection reasons.

 

Send it to Harlands and get a free Certificate of Posting from the PO :

 

Your Son's Name

c/o Your address

xxxxx

xxxxx

 

Harlands Services Ltd

2nd Floor, Rockwood House

9-17 Perrymount Road

Haywards Heath

West Sussex

RH16 3TW

 

Dear sir or madam,

 

I refer to my membership at XXXX Gym in [town/city]. I am writing c/o my parent's address as I am now in the USA.

 

I told the gym staff I was leaving for the USA and that I would have to cancel my DD before the 12 months was up. The last DD was paid on 25th May and I should have paid a final payment for the notice period but this did not happen.

 

I will pay this £9.99 to you now but I will not pay additional fees added by Harlands or CRS. Such admin fees are unlawful and unenforceable.

 

Please confirm in writing within 14 days that you will accept my offer and it will be paid quickly.

 

If you fail to accept my offer within 14 days, or if you continue to demand higher amounts, my offer will be withdrawn and I will not pay you anything.

 

Yours faithfully,

 

[lounick]

Thanks for your quick reply Bazooka Boo.

Just to confirm - I should send my letter to the gym in Swansea of which he was a member and send nothing to CRS?

I will ask my son if he told them why he was leaving.

I will try to find the template to send to them and keep copies. Does it matter that I have spoken to them direct already?

 

many thanks again - this knowledge has been invaluable!

[slick132]

Post #5 moved into this thread as you posted it on the wrong one

 

[lounick]

thank you so much slick123 for this. When the letter arrived this morning demanding the money I felt awful. Your advice has taken a load off my mind - my son is a student so would have struggled to pay the £174 they were demanding.

 

I will get a letter sent and let you know how I get on.

 

Thanks again

[slick132]

Hi Lounick,

 

You're very welcome and let us know when they write back to YS.

 

[lounick]

Thanks again - will do.

[lounick]

Hi

This morning I received another letter from CRS saying that as I had not replied to their last demand I need to pay immediately or they could take one of the following actions - Firstly legal action - it then went on to say how they could take me to court and issue CCJs and I would be liable to extra costs etc. Their second option was that they would pass the debt to another collection agency who would take further action to cover the costs.

I have been given 10 days to pay the money.

I sent the letter to Harlands as advised offering to pay the one months fee and they received this on 1 september. I spoke with my son who advised that he phoned the gym to cancel his membership - explaining that he was going away but they told him he had to come into the gym - he was not in Swansea at the time so could not/did not go.

 

I would be very grateful for any advice on what I should do now.

 

Thank you very much!

 

Lounick

[Bazooka Boo]

CRS are Harlands, and their foolish letter is nothing more than lame empty threats, they can't take legal action

because they're not the original creditor, and they won't be able to get a CCJ, all bluff and bluster.

[lounick]

Thanks for your reply Bazooka Boo - its a great help!

 

I assume from your reply I just ignore the letter? should I contact Harlands again - i gave them the offer of one months membership and gave them 14 days to contact me/accept my offer.

 

Thanks again!

Lounick

[Bazooka Boo]

IMO I would wait and see if they accept your offer in the 14 days you gave them.

 

Their letters are computer generated so most likely crossed in the post or

someone has forgot to tell the computer to stop printing out their rubbish.

[lounick]

Ha thanks - I agree with you and will leave it the 14 days and see what happens.

 

Thanks again for your help - I will let you know how I get on.

 

Lounick

[slick132]

Hi Lounick,

 

Until Harlands reply properly to your letter in post #4 above, ignore Harlands/CRS completely. Let us know when they reply.

 

Do NOT call them when the 14 days is up. In fact, stay OFF the phone completely.

 

Zinc are an external DCA and, if they contact you, let us know. We'll tell you how to see them off quickly. Zinc will make various threats but they are powerless and will do nothing.

 

[lounick]

Thanks slick132 - I wont contact anyone and will just wait until I get contacted.

 

Can not thank you enough for your help and support with this.

 

Will let you know when I get contacted.

 

Thanks again

 

lounick

[lounick]

I have received another letter from CRS this time it is a bit more personal - and a copy was sent to my sons email account which is the first time they have contacted him via email. I have pasted the main part of the letter below:

 

 

 

 

 

 

we have contacted the club regarding your request for cancellation and have been advised that:

 

"Looked at this member account on harlands and he freeze there account back on 19.08.15

On check free there was a note made on June 7th 2014(i think this should be 2015!) which said Membership frozen as member is student and going home for summer.

 

I looked on the cancellations file to see if he had filled one out and i couldn't find anything on there."

 

As you can see, our client has no record of agreeing a cancellation with you. You have entered into a legally binding agreement with Xercise 4 Less to pay a minimum of eleven direct debit payments of £9.99 of which you have paid only nine. The terms of your agreement do allow for cancellation prior to completing the minimum term in instances of a permanent relocation, however the terms state:

 

"This agreement can be cancelled in the event that your new permanent address is more than 15 miles away from the facility upon receipt of a copy utility bill or bank statement showing the new address."

 

and that

 

"ANY cancellation for the above reasons will not be effected until the appropriate proof is provided and received."

 

Since you do not allege to have supplied such evidence, you had no right to terminate your membership and as our client has not agreed a cancellation you remain liable for your missed June and July instalments of £9.99 each.

 

You have incurred additional fees in line with clauses 6 and 8 of your agreement to cover costs incurred because of your breach of contract. Despite your statement to the contrary we assure you that, in addition to being present within the terms you agreed to, these fees are in line with all relevant legislation and guidance and have been enforced in court previously.

 

For the above reasons we must advise that the balance of £172.48 is correct and due. As a goodwill gesture we are willing to accept £122.48 as final settlement of this debt if paid in full within 7 days. Payment can be made by Credit/Debit card by calling us on 01444 449165. Alternatively, cheque/postal orders should be made payable to Credit Resolution Services and sent to CRS, 2nd Floor, Rockwood House, 9-17 Perrymount Road, Haywards Heath, West Sussex, RH16 3TW.

 

A payment plan can also be set up if you are unable to settle in full, although we do charge a little extra for this.

 

If you are experiencing financial difficulty, there are organisations who offer free debt advice and assistance such as Step Change (0800 1381111), National Debtline (0808 8084000) and your local Citizen Advice Bureau.

 

Please ensure a payment or response is received within the next 7 days, so we can avoid further action being taken."

 

 

 

 

 

I still have heard nothing from Harlands.

I would be very grateful if you could confirm like all the other letters I ignore this one.

 

Many thanks

[slick132]

Hi Lounick,

 

You should just ignore this letter. Yes, it's more personal but all it really says is :-

 

Yet again, X4Less have apparently "lost" another cancellation their staff were told of. So you have to pay us the gym fees and our ridiculous penalty charges !!

 

Plus it's taken them almost 2 months to reply to your letter, in which your offer was valid for 14 days. They can take a hike !!

 

Ignore completely and don't reply by mail or by email.

 

Let us know when Zinc contact YS.

 

[Bazooka Boo]

That has given me the biggest laugh of the week!

 

Seriously who do they think they're talking to?

Since you do not allege to have supplied such evidence, you had no right to terminate your membership

 

But this was the clincher!

A payment plan can also be set up if you are unable to settle in full, although we do charge a little extra for this.

 

The CMA would/should see a copy of this, such desperation!

[lounick]

Thanks for your replies - it is very much appreciated. I will let you know when I receive anything else.

 

lounick

[lounick]

Hello again!

Hope you are ok with me bringing this topic up again but my son has now received a letter from Zinc saying they are commencing formal recovery proceedings against him for the amount of £172.48 they say he owes. They are giving him the option of paying £129.36 immediately (they do not mention why this is a reduction from the £172.48 they say he owes) or to set up an affordable payment plan at WeWantToSayYes.co.uk . The letter warns him not to underestimate the seriousness of this matter and to get the matter sorted immediately. As a reminder this is due to them saying he did not go in to the Exercise4Less gym in Swansea to cancel his membership as he was going away to USA for the summer. I sent a letter to Exercise 4 less offering to pay a months membership but did not receive a reply. In Harlands last letter to him they confirmed they had a record of a phone message from him advising that he was cancelling his membership as he was moving back home.

 

I would very much appreciate your advice with this matter.

 

Thank you

Lounick

 

Hi Lounick,

 

You should just ignore this letter. Yes, it's more personal but all it really says is :-

 

Yet again, X4Less have apparently "lost" another cancellation their staff were told of. So you have to pay us the gym fees and our ridiculous penalty charges !!

 

Plus it's taken them almost 2 months to reply to your letter, in which your offer was valid for 14 days. They can take a hike !!

 

Ignore completely and don't reply by mail or by email.

 

Let us know when Zinc contact YS.

 

[Bazooka Boo]

IMO either ignore the foolish letter entirely as it is a standard computer generated missive, OR, you could respond too them with a simple warning that their continued harassment has earned them a complaint with the SRA.

 

All future correspondence will be treated and reported as harassment.

[slick132]

Hi Lounick,

 

I'd ignore this rubbish from Zinc who are simply an external DCA. They'll do nothing.

 

Hold off the threat of reporting to the SRA until you get a demand from Spratt Endicott (Harlands/CRS pet solicitor at the moment).

 

[lounick]

Hi

Thanks very much for your replies - I really appreciate it.

 

I will not reply to Zincs letter then - I will take your advice and will wait to see what happens next.

 

Once again thank you your advice has been invaluable.

 

Lounick

 

I saw these companies on BBC Watchdog a couple of months ago with a few people with similar stories.

[slick132]

I found the Watchdog article interesting - they focused on X4Less and barely mentioned Harlands who are behind endless streams of demands and harassment.

 

Their time will come though.