Overview

• The FTC filed its complaint on Aug. 20 in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California against Fitness International and Fitness & Sports Clubs, which operate LA Fitness, Esporta Fitness, City Sports Club and Club Studio.
• Regulators allege the companies forced members to cancel only in person or by mail, required printing a web form behind a login, limited cancellation to narrow hours and directed members to a single employee who was often unavailable.
• The complaint cites tens of thousands of consumer reports and claims the practices led to hundreds of millions of dollars in unwanted recurring fees, alleging staff rejected phone and email requests and that some customers were rebilled under new account numbers.
• The FTC seeks a court order to bar the practices and secure refunds, and says the newer website option to cancel remains burdensome and is not available in the mobile apps.
• Fitness International disputes the allegations as without merit, says it complies with state laws and offers online cancellation, and argues ROSCA was not intended for health-club memberships; the suit follows a federal appeals court’s blockade of the FTC’s click-to-cancel rule in July.