Gym won't cancel membership — been trying for 6 months

I have been trying to cancel my gym membership since August 2025. That's six months of charges at $89/month — over $530 I shouldn't owe. Here's what I've done so far:

• Went to the gym in person in August and asked to cancel. They said I had to fill out a form. I filled it out and they said I'd get confirmation. Never got it.
• Called in September. Was told the cancellation "didn't go through" and I needed to come back in person. Went back, filled out ANOTHER form.
• Emailed their corporate office in October. Got an auto-reply. Never heard back.
• Sent a certified letter in November requesting cancellation. Have the signed receipt proving delivery.
• Called again in January. They said they have "no record" of any cancellation request.

They're still charging my credit card every month. I feel like I'm going in circles. Is there anything legally I can do to make this stop?

This is unfortunately a very common pattern with certain gym chains. You have several legal tools at your disposal.

State Health Club Laws: Most states have specific statutes governing health club contracts. For example, California's Health Studio Services Contract Law (Civil Code 1812.80-1812.98) gives members the right to cancel within specific timeframes and sets strict requirements for contract terms. Many states cap contract length and require gyms to honor written cancellation requests. Which state are you in?

Automatic Renewal Protections: If you're in California, the Automatic Renewal Law (Business & Professions Code 17600-17606) requires clear disclosure of renewal terms and a simple cancellation mechanism. If the gym made it unreasonably difficult to cancel, they may be in violation. Similar laws exist in most states — New York's General Business Law 527-a, Illinois's Automatic Contract Renewal Act, etc.

FTC Click-to-Cancel Rule: The FTC finalized a rule in 2024 (effective 2025) requiring businesses to make cancellation as easy as sign-up. If you signed up online or by phone, they must offer cancellation by the same method. This is a federal rule and it applies nationwide.

Immediate remedy — credit card chargeback: Contact your credit card company and dispute the charges from November onward (after your certified letter). Your signed delivery receipt is proof of cancellation. Most card companies will reverse the charges. Also ask your card company to block future charges from this merchant.

There's a gym-specific demand letter template at /Demand-Letters/Consumer/california-gym-membership-cancellation-demand.html that you can adapt for your state.

I'm in California, so it sounds like I have some strong protections. I had no idea about the click-to-cancel rule — I actually signed up through their app, so that's interesting.

I'm going to call my credit card company today. Quick question: if I do a chargeback, can the gym send me to collections for those months?

They can try to send you to collections, but they'd have a very weak position. You have a certified letter proving you cancelled, and if they're violating California's health club laws, they don't have a valid debt to collect. If they do send it to collections, you'd dispute it under the FDCPA (Fair Debt Collection Practices Act) and request debt validation. It's unlikely a collector would pursue it once they see your documentation.

Since you're in California, you have particularly strong protections. Under Civil Code 1812.85, a health studio contract must include a clear cancellation clause, and if the gym fails to comply with a proper cancellation request, the member is entitled to a refund of all charges collected after the cancellation date. The certified letter with delivery receipt should establish your cancellation date clearly.

Had the exact same problem with a big chain gym last year. Here's what finally worked for me: I called my credit card company, told them to block the merchant entirely, and disputed the last 3 months of charges. Got all my money back within 2 weeks. The gym never contacted me again.

The chargeback route is honestly the fastest. These gyms rely on people giving up. Once you involve the credit card company, the gym actually has to respond and justify the charges, and in a situation like yours, they can't.

Just flagging for anyone reading this thread — the FTC's click-to-cancel rule has been a game changer. If you signed up online, by phone, or through an app, the business is required to let you cancel the same way. If they force you to come in person or jump through hoops, they're likely in violation of federal law. You can file a complaint with the FTC at reportfraud.ftc.gov.

This applies to all subscription services, not just gyms. We've seen similar threads about subscription boxes, software services, and meal delivery companies.

Quick update: I called Chase and they immediately opened disputes for October through February charges ($445 total). They also put a block on the gym's merchant ID so no future charges can come through. The rep said they see disputes against this gym chain frequently, which honestly doesn't surprise me at all.

I also sent a demand letter for the August and September charges that are outside the chargeback window. If they don't refund those, I'll file in small claims. Thanks everyone for giving me the push to actually do something about this instead of just being frustrated.