2007
Read the small print – or risk becoming financially unfit, warns Consumer Direct
Credit agreements buried in the small print could trip up thousands of people who rushed to join a gym as part of their New Year’s resolutions, warns Consumer Direct.
Whilst the New Year is a peak time for joining gyms and getting fit, Consumer Direct North East cautions that financial fitness could be compromised if the novelty of a work out regime wears off.
People joining gyms are often oblivious to the fact that a lot of contracts include credit agreements covering membership fees. In many cases the agreements are based on a fixed period of time – typically one to two years. Cancelling a gym membership will not cancel the credit agreement.
Howard Turton Principal Trading Standards Officer Said:
“Our Advice is to read and understand all agreements prior to signing. If you don’t understand what they mean seek advice”.
Gyms are legally obliged to give copies of contracts to customers who ask for them, so it is always possible to double-check your terms and conditions.
Howard Turton continued:
“Consumers should not just look at how much the monthly payment will be but to whom it is made, for what period and what, if any, are their rights to cancel or terminate the agreement”
Consumer Direct North East offers the following advice:
1. Read the terms and conditions of the membership contract carefully
2. Don’t be pressured into signing the contract immediately – take it away and read it at your leisure
3. If you are unsure about your membership terms, you are entitled to see a copy of your contract and the gym is legally obliged to provide it
4. If you join your gym over the telephone or online you are entitled to a seven working day ‘cooling off’ period
5. Check the terms for rights to suspend or terminate the membership
6. If you want to terminate your membership put it in writing, send the notice recorded delivery and keep a copy of all correspondence
7. You may be able to stop your gym membership within the contract period if the gym fails to provide a satisfactory quality service
8. If you have a dispute and you are still tied into the contract it is best to keep paying, but do inform the bank and gym that you are paying under protest
9. Don’t stop paying monthly direct debit payments until your membership has concluded. If you do the gym could claim outstanding arrears
10. Even if your contract is coming to an end, you should still give your gym notice if you do not want to renew your membership. It may be worth keeping a note of key dates in your diary.
Consumer Direct is available six days a week on 08454 04 05 06 from 0800 – 1830 Monday to Friday and 0900 – 1300 Saturday, excluding bank holidays and public holidays. Callers are connected to specially trained consumer advisers.
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Media contact:
For further information please call Sue Gungaram, Communications and Liaison Officer (North East) on (01642) 495 681.
Notes for Editors
1. Consumer Direct is a telephone and online consumer advice service managed by the Office of Fair Trading. It offers consumers clear, practical and impartial advice and information.
2. Consumer Direct North East has 16 highly trained advisers to help callers from Northumberland in the north to Redcar and Cleveland in the south covering the local authorities of Darlington, Durham, Stockton-on-Tees, Middlesbrough, Hartlepool, Redcar and Cleveland, Sunderland, South Tyneside, North Tyneside, Newcastle, Gateshead and Northumberland.
3. Consumer Direct has around 350 highly trained advisers in 11 centres based in London, the South East, the South West, the East of England, the West Midlands, the East Midlands, Wales, Yorkshire and the Humber, the North West, the North East and Scotland.
4. The information and advice helpline is available on a single low-cost national telephone number - 08454 04 05 06 from 0800 – 1830 Monday to Friday, and 0900 – 1300 Saturday, excluding bank holidays and public holidays.
5. A Welsh-speaking Consumer Direct service is available on 08454 04 05 05. Minicom users should call 08451 28 13 84.
6. Calls cost a maximum of four pence per minute from a BT landline. Calls from mobiles or other networks may vary. Your service provider may charge a minimum cost per call.
