LANSING, Mich. (WOOD) — Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette has ordered Family Fitness to stop collecting excessive cancellation fees after receiving 103 customer complaints since 2011.
Schuette announced the cease and desist order in a news release Wednesday. He said he’s told Family Fitness it must stop misleading members, making them think they must keep paying even after they’ve canceled their gym membership or personal training contract.
Schuette said he also warned the gym chain that his office would keep interviewing customers and either open a formal investigation or file a lawsuit against Family Fitness, which owns 14 centers in West Michigan.
“When consumers enter into contracts, the law requires that they be treated honestly and fairly,” Schuette said in the release. “Using the threat of enormous penalties as a way of keeping customers locked into membership agreements misleads consumers about their legal rights.”
24 Hour News 8 first told you about a similar issue with Family Fitness in 2012 when a woman contacted Target 8 saying Family Fitness illegally debited her bank account after she asked about a membership.
The attorney general’s office said 48 of the 103 consumer complaints against Family Fitness were filed this year.
Additional complaints can be filed with the attorney general’s office online or by calling 877.765.8388.