By John Q. Hosedrinker 
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is suing Fitness International, the operator of LA Fitness and related brands, alleging that the company intentionally makes it challenging for consumers to cancel gym memberships. The FTC claims that the company’s cumbersome cancellation methods, including in-person or mail-in options with numerous hurdles, resulted in hundreds of millions of dollars in unwanted recurring fees for customers. Despite Fitness International’s recent introduction of online cancellations, the FTC asserts that the process remains overly complex and that the company fails to adequately disclose cancellation terms. The FTC is seeking a court order to halt the alleged practices and obtain refunds for affected consumers.
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FTC sues LA Fitness operators for ‘exceedingly difficult’ gym cancellation policies, it seems, is a situation that resonates with a lot of people, judging by the stories circulating. It appears the FTC has taken action against LA Fitness, and the reason is pretty clear: they’re making it unbelievably hard for people to cancel their memberships.
From the stories, it sounds like the cancellation process at LA Fitness has been designed to be a maze. You might be required to jump through hoops, like sending certified letters far in advance of your renewal date, even though you might have done so and they just continue charging you. Some have dealt with confusing forms, complicated online portals, and a lot of pushback. There’s the need to specifically address the cancellation to multiple associated plans and trainers. Some even had to go to the gym in person only to be dissuaded from canceling. In essence, they throw everything they can at you to keep you paying.
The experiences people share really highlight the frustration. One person sent a cancellation letter months in advance, only to be told it was “too early” and later faced ongoing charges, ultimately threatening legal action. Others have had to navigate lengthy phone calls, threaten credit fraud reports, and resort to chargebacks. These are not isolated incidents, either. Several commenters talk about battling the same issues at LA Fitness or other major gym chains.
It is common for consumers to go to extremes to stop charges when they should be able to do it by a click of a button.
Adding to the difficulty, several people have discussed how these gyms try to lure you in with special offers and then trap you in the contract. The stories of pushy sales tactics, like the hard sell for personal training sessions after a “free” assessment, paint a clear picture of aggressive sales practices. People are lured in by one thing, but sold something else.
The fact that many consumers resort to desperate measures, like blocking charges or closing bank accounts, shows how frustrating it can be. Some have found that simply getting a new credit card is the easiest way out. However, this still doesn’t fully solve the problem, as gyms have figured out ways to work around this by requiring bank account information. The ultimate issue here is that gyms do not want to let people cancel their membership.
Of course, there are also stories of people being able to cancel without much difficulty, but the sheer volume of complaints and the common tactics employed by many gym chains paint a clear picture. The FTC seems to understand that some gyms are not following ethical business practices.
Hopefully, the FTC’s action against LA Fitness can push for fairer practices across the industry. Whether that will be the end of this remains to be seen. The push for a “click to cancel” system, something that the FTC seems to support, is a step in the right direction.