Cheap Gym Membership & Fitness

Escaping a gym contract can be more difficult than outrunning Usain Bolt (even when he's only warming up). Sadly there's no one-set of rules when it comes to your cancellation rights, though gym-goers have been given more protection in recent years.

Rules tend to be based on a hotchpotch of different guidelines, codes of conduct and legal precedents, so it's rarely black and white. But you SHOULD normally have some protection.

• Your contract should not be longer than 12 months. In 2011, the High Court ruled it was unfair for gyms to tie in members for more than one year (see the Tens of thousands can cancel gym memberships and More gym-goers will find it easier to cancel contracts MSE News stories). If your contract's longer than a year, you may be able to challenge it.

You can also check to see if the Office of Fair Trading's (OFT's) guidelines on unfair terms, some of which we've listed below, apply. The OFT has since been replaced by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), though these guidelines are likely to still be relevant.

• You MAY be able to cancel if your gym's made big changes. The OFT's guidelines say contracts are unfair if they allow clubs to supply something different from what was agreed, unless the change is minor. So if, for example, your gym closes its creche you may be able to leave.
  
  
• It's unfair if they've drastically hiked prices. If your contract says the club's allowed to make unrestricted membership fee hikes, this is likely to be considered unfair.
  
  
• The gym shouldn't auto-extend your contract. The guidance says it's unfair to automatically extend contracts, relying on people's inertia or ignorance.
  
  
• Membership terms should be clear. The OFT (now the CMA) told gyms that contracts should clearly explain minimum membership periods and notice periods. If the wording's unclear, you may have a case.

The following three rules should also apply. Six of the big chains – Pure Gym (which has taken over LA Fitness), Dave Whelan Sports Ltd, Harlands Group Ltd, Fitness First, David Lloyd's and Bannatyne's – agreed to them after an OFT investigation in 2013. They're also written into UKactive's code of practice, which more than 3,500 members are signed up to.

• If there's a change in circumstance you MAY be able to cancel. If a change in circumstance such as serious injury or job loss makes going to the gym difficult or unaffordable, you may be able to cancel mid-contract – though it'll depend on the nature of the change in circumstance.
  
  
• The gym shouldn't say it's a fixed contract length if it isn't. If membership automatically continues on a rolling basis after the initial period expires, the gym should be clear about this.
  
  
• The gym should be transparent about key membership features. For example, it should be clear about your cancellation rights, and this info should be provided upfront as part of the sales process.

If you think your gym isn't complying with these standards you can report it to the CMA.

MoneySavers' cancellation successes

Here's what some of you said when we asked you to let us know if you managed to cancel your gym membership: