Massachusetts is suing Boston Sports Clubs for not allowing members to cancel their memberships during the coronavirus pandemic, the Attorney General’s Office said Tuesday, according to 7 News Boston.
Man lifts weights at gym (not Boston Sports Club) by Cryptographer. Shutterstock.
Since March, Attorney General Maura Healey’s office has received over 2,000 complaints from BSC members who had requested cancellations and were illegally charged during the pandemic, which violates state law, according to the local outlet. (RELATED: California Gyms, Restaurants Sue City For Right To Stay Open After New COVID-19 Crackdown)
“Considering what we’re all going through, people trying to scrape together enough money to have Thanksgiving dinner with family, to be erroneously charging people left and right for money they don’t owe you and make it impossible for them to cancel, it’s immoral,” former BSC member Ari Kendall said, according to the outlet.
Under Massachusetts law, consumers can cancel a contract with a health club without facing penalties if the club “substantially changes the operation of the health club or location,” and coronavirus closures qualify as a substantial change, the AG’s office said, according to the outlet.
BSC would only cancel memberships if consumers provided a $10 cancellation fee, according to the outlet. The club also referred members to debt collection agencies when they refused to pay, the outlet reported.
