Cannot cancel a contract signed by a minor
Complaint
Jess Balansky
Country: United States
My 17 year-old daughter and her friends went to Bally Fitness Center. They had trial pass with them, but the employee talked them into signing a contract. When she said that she is only 17 and will be 18 in a few months, the employee changed her date of birth in the contract and said is not a problem.
When I discovered they signed the papers, I contacted the corporate office and requested that her membership with Bally Fitness Center be canceled because it was signed by a minor without parent's approval.
They responded that the contract will be canceled as soon as they have a copy of her birth certificate. I promptly sent the documents via registered mail. At the time we already started getting non-payment notices from Bally Fitness Center.
The calls from collection agency stopped for a few months but resumed again a month ago. We assumed that the contract has been canceled but apparently it was not.
I am not sure what to do as I already contacted our local attorney general, the corporate office, and FTC. They use deceptive practices to get people into signing a contract and I only hope that other people who read this will be aware of the way they conduct business.
When I discovered they signed the papers, I contacted the corporate office and requested that her membership with Bally Fitness Center be canceled because it was signed by a minor without parent's approval.
They responded that the contract will be canceled as soon as they have a copy of her birth certificate. I promptly sent the documents via registered mail. At the time we already started getting non-payment notices from Bally Fitness Center.
The calls from collection agency stopped for a few months but resumed again a month ago. We assumed that the contract has been canceled but apparently it was not.
I am not sure what to do as I already contacted our local attorney general, the corporate office, and FTC. They use deceptive practices to get people into signing a contract and I only hope that other people who read this will be aware of the way they conduct business.
Comments
You say "we NEVER tell them that they can "cancel anytime they want" but that is YOU. You are speaking to policy, not the individuals across the country whom share in your position. Others may not have the scruples you think you do and it is naive to make such a grossly negligent statement. Yes, perhaps Bally's 101 teaches you NOT to do so, but life teaches us not to steal but do people do it despite the instruction not to? Of course they do. So yes, these attempts to get potential members to join are based on each individual's morals...furthermore, we all know you are commission based therefore the drive to be less than honest or deliberately evasive would conceptually make sense.
Your post is so blatantly offensive to any breathing person's intelligence. Bally's policies are so unforgiving and many people realize that they are unable to fulfill contracts and with reasonable explanation are able to excuse themselves due to exceptional circumstances. You do not live and walk in anyone's shoes but your own. It is a shame that you are so blind to the feelings, situations, and human aspect of this it is repulsive. And for goodness sakes, we are talking about a gym membership not the Constitution. Seriously, do you live beyond Bally's?
Oh and to the comment "the employee didn't sign it for you, you did..." true. But if I told you if you signed this contract you would receive $500 every month for life, and you signed because that was what was explained to you...no strings... later to find out that all was a lie and that in order to receive the money you have to eat thirty piles of dog elimination...you may be a bit disillusioned. When you are rushed along, given misinformation, the club's standards decrease and amenities are made unavailable post contractual agreement, this constitutes reason for contractual dissolution not criticism and ridiculous, immature, naive posts by uneducated meat heads. Shame on YOU for having such a closed mind.
And finally, it is really a shame that this his how Bally's keeps customers. rather than loyalty and positive word of mouth advertising, they have to lie, lock people in, ruin their credit if they leave and coerce them into signing from the get to.
Despicable!
When you have sales people misrepresenting the terms of the contract, "asking about the policy" will just give you more deceptive B.S. to con you into signing without reading. If they are attempting to divert you from reading the contract, you can be sure their attorneys carefully "mined" it with terms to their advantage, and that they do not want you to know it before you sign. There is no other reason to engage in such deceptive sales tactics, in what is essentially "bait and switch".
In fact, take the contract with you before you sign it so you can study it at your leasure. Any competant businessman would, and it is considered "rude" to object. If they give you a hard time about that, you are dealing with con men, as no honest business will have any problem with you taking a proposed contract "for review by your attorney" before deciding whether to sign.
Contracts are based on agreement between the parties following a "meeting of the minds", and that normally requires an understanding of what is being agreed to, including "due diligence" through obtaining legal advice. They protected their position through legal advice when they wrote the contract, and you have a right to protect your position by seeking advice from an attorney, your wife, God, or even your dog, before agreeing to sign anything.
If you ever get flak for wanting to read or seek legal or any other advice on any contract before signing, you know who and what you are dealing with. Rip the contract in half, stuff it in your pocket, and walk out.
There is no good outcome likely from dealing with con men.
If you signed something to authorize their automatic deductions from your checking account, then you probably signed a contract. If they claimed you were not signing a contract, and therefore failed to give you a copy, then there is probably a reason why they would do that, such as without the contract showing what you were agreeing to, it makes it difficult to cancel.
Contact your local District Attorney's Consumer Protection Unit to file a complaint. Either they will claim there is "some mixup", and cancel, or they will produce the contract that they led you to believe you never agreed to.
Wait through the options to change your electronic payment.
Cancel your electronic payment.
They'll make you wait on hold for a while and then have a professional sales person make you offers and try to explain why you want to cancel and why you're not allowed to cancel. Don't give them any answers, just be firm and tell them you want the payment system cancelled. Never deal with them again.
What a bunch of crooks!
So i believe this guys are avoiding the cancellation intentionally.
I called credit card provider and i got new card.
So what is going to happen to my credit history in future if i did not pay to ballyfitness.
Help much appreciated.
the facility was getting downgrade every month since i joined 18 months ago, first they provide towel then remove towel service, they constantly short of paper towel and paper tissue, the gym always smell in poor ventilation. my sales has no idea of the quality customer service she talks loud and rude I regret so much why did I put myself into this hole.
I signed up otheer sport club before and have never experienced this kind of poor low grade quality like Bally.