LA Fitness' cancellation process is a scam

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[@PhoctorDill]

I used to work at an LA Fitness and it was easily the worst job I’ve ever had. I worked at the front desk was never given access to cancel memberships. In order for someone to cancel their membership they would have to talk to an Operations Manager (who was almost never there) or send an email to corporate that usually did nothing. It was so embarrassing telling people that I couldn’t help them cancel their membership when I was literally the only employee in the building. I know I would be furious if I was told that.

[@rossmanngroup]

Pinning so anyone who comes across the video can understand the depth of the scam. I'm sorry you had to deal with that.

[@coleworld904]

I would just cancel my card and get a new one

[@lillakieah]

​@@coleworld904they send you to collections real quick. And it hits your credit

[@Swishesweets]

Same thing happened to me when I worked for LA Fitness!! The operations manager was NEVER there, I was often the only person in the building so even when they wanted to talk to a supervisor - they couldn't. And I just had to get yelled at daily 😅 On top of that we had to cold call a minimum of 30 people a shift harassing them to join again. They often yelled at me that they received 3-10 calls a week from various LA Fitness locations. Horrible!

[@Limitedonathios]

@@coleworld904that’s what people typically have to do at that stage

[@RickTrajan]

The cancel culture everyone should support

[@Dcmazters]

Underrated

[@3ZN357]

Yes

[@randomdeliveryguy]

You are a very funny guy and I hope you have a happy life.

[@triadwarfare]

Cancel culture is not allowed now. So cancelling subscriptions are the side effect.

[@jim4448]

This is a shit way to do business.

[@CiaranMaxwell]

There are countries where this is illegal. If you sign up online in three clicks, then these countries mandate that the company must let you cancel online in no more than three clicks. The law needs to be implemented here in the US.

[@curedham2963]

@@GH0STST4RSCR34Mof course

[@squigglyphrank9348]

Nah. Politians like corporate butt

[@squigglyphrank9348]

Lick

[@DarkDyllon]

The netherlands generally just have an online or in app cancelation method, i've never had to mail in something to cancel it, so this is mind blowing, but then again, it's the US we're talking about, so i'm not surprised.

[@llothar68]

Germany has a law like this recently

[@citywitt3202]

As a blind person I’d just send them the cancellation letter in braille, tell them I’d kept with the contract and if they disagreed I’d sue them under ADA. Not my fault they can’t read it, but they could make it so much easier for themselves with a button on their website.

[@roxcyn]

I love the malicious compliance idea there.

[@inmypaants]

This is perfectly evil

[@designwithphoenix]

if your blind how did you even type your youtube comment?

[@deedoubs]

@@designwithphoenix There are devices for outputting text to braile as well as various text to speech systems specifically made so that blind and sight-deficient people can use computers.

[@KenderGuy]

What if it was translated into many different languages like Greek, Portuguese (Spanish would be too easy), German, French, and Chinese (traditional, of course) They would need to spend a lot of time translating it, but arguably it's simple using Google Translate

[@sunnym.4077]

Anytime fitness did this to me, but I was prepared, sent my certified mail cancellation notice 90 days in advance (once I received the signed document scanned and emailed it to anytime to confirm receipt manager confirmed receipt and said this wasn't necessary), sent the 2nd 60 days in advance (I sent the original cancellation notice this is just secondary notification of cancellation again was told this wasn't necessary), brought both in at 30 days. "we never received it" My reply "we will be going into small claims court" "Oh we found it, this was never necessary and you didn't need to go this far" "Yes it fucking was and never contact me again you scumbag"

[@Heinz-bx8sd]

You're the toughest guy I ever met

[@marcogenovesi8570]

@@Heinz-bx8sd he is not as tough as me

[@PolusLofi]

GOT EM glad you covered your six I can't stand the gym cancellation stuff I am soo thankful I have a nice gym in my apartment complex it's amazing has everything you need and no need to worry about a gym membership!

[@rohitnijhawan5281]

Not every person who will close a gym membership has 90 days of advance knowledge that they might have to take that action.

[@logicalfundy]

If you did everything right and they still won't cancel, then absolutely it's necessary because they're in violation of their own contract. I'm not sure what other options you had if they were willing to lie to you about not receiving certified mail (which being certified means you have proof they received it).

[@jbmp1390]

When a company makes it extremely difficult to cancel whatever their service or product is, that tells me that that service or product is not what their business actually depends upon.

[@hopelessdecoy]

My gym I used to have needed you to apply to quit, meaning your application to cancel could be denied. During COVID they denied my application saying that too many people were applying and so it was a lottery system per month to cancel. I changed my card numbers and they tried to send me to collections, I said I would get a lawyer and they then approved my application to cancel my subscription. Most gyms are total scumbags with subscriptions.

[@sandyfordd1843]

I had to get a letter from my doctor stating that using the gym could trigger a heart attack, they cancelled very quickly. 😂

[@andrehashimoto8056]

@@sandyfordd1843 Best trolling way to say "cancel my Subscription or else" to these scumbags. Would be pure Karma if someone tried to cancel their subscription to a Gym, sent them what you had to get to cancel the subscription, and when they refused or were clearly delaying as much they could, go there, with a FDP (Fake Natural Minecraft Pill), take it, and see them panic at having a guy who just wanted to cancel their subscription had suddenly "Suffered a China veerus incident" inside their business.

[@miciso666]

sounded like the gym i went to... got banned and they still demanded i pay for the rest. i had to cancel IN STORE with ID or PASSPORT if not. then it wasnt verified enough. and could be ''faked''

[@WillNolte]

Was this gym an EoS Fitness by chance?

[@hopelessdecoy]

@@WillNolte No Lifetime Fitness

[@clutch7366]

When I was 18, I signed up at LAF. Got in way over my head with members fees. It wasn’t long before I wanted to cancel. They wouldn’t let me. A girl at the front desk overheard my cancellation attempt with another club associate & she told me that if I just don’t pay anymore, all they can do is call me and ask for payment. They won’t send debt collectors for non-payment. So I went home and cancelled the payment card I had used to sign up. Sure enough, I received numerous phone calls requesting for payment. After months of ignoring those calls, they finally ceased and I haven’t heard from them in 14 years.

[@MarcosDaniel30]

Literally exact same thing happened to me a couple years ago. I was a day or two past the cancellation window and they refused to let me cancel without paying $600 as a “cancellation fee” so after that I was like screw that and cancelled my card, then kept getting calls for a few months until they finally stopped.

[@sunbleachedangel]

if you didn't mention it was for a fucking gym membership it is just strictly speaking a scamming incident

[@SammySam7x]

I had a similar situation except they didn't even try to call me or anything like that.

[@elskid206]

Have you checked if there's a judgment against you?

[@elskid206]

​@@sunbleachedangel was the f-bomb really necessary. Buy vocabulary!

[@PokerPlayerJames]

My gym is kind off shitty but they're policy is literally just "Wanna cancel? Don't pay us next month." and I respected the hell out of that.

[@wahababdul4529]

Gyms in the UK have a similar thing, they tell you to cancel the direct debit and that’s it

[@koelkastridder3388]

Here in the Netherlands we can just unsubscribe online without much hassle. This is just straight up theft, wow 😮

[@reez1728]

*their

[@kamnyechukwuekene]

@@koelkastridder3388precies, ik heb totaal geen idee hoe Amerikanen het zo moeilijk hebben

[@atlien1988]

​@@koelkastridder3388the American way.

[@amicaaranearum]

We need a national “right to cancel” law that requires companies to allow you to unsubscribe in the same way they allow you to subscribe. So if a company lets you sign up online with an e-mail address or phone number, they must also allow you to _cancel_ using the same easy method.

[@LizNeptune]

There are laws written for this but the government refuses to pass them. Someone here mentioned in the state of California it’s a law. They used a VPN to cancel in their respective state. It’s fkn sick that you even have to do that!

[@myrakrusemark6873]

ADT will spend billions in their cancellation fees lobbying against this

[@kataseiko]

That's the law in the EU. If you allowed me to sign up for a gym membership online and you don't allow me to cancel online, the contract is automatically void and you have to pay me back all fees that I may have paid, up to three years back. As you may imagine, a lot of gyms that didn't immediately follow the laws had to file for bankruptcy.

[@buteocks4020]

the thumbnail got me cus i was too zoomed out so the was unreadable, thx rossmen xD(im still gunna watch tho)

[@buteocks4020]

(the title's text not the thumb nail)

[@RM_VFX]

Almost every time I've cancelled a service, I had to Google for the cancellation page. It's like being held hostage. If you can enter a legal contract with a few clicks, you can dissolve it too.

[@deamontana596]

I love when a website cycles you between two cancelation pages that don't actually cancel it. "are you sure you want to cancel?" yes "here is how you cancel" do it "are you sure you want to cancel?"

[@odi_de_podi]

​@@deamontana596I hate those pages. You only get there with very determined tens of clicks so you are pretty sure you want to do this and then they ask you again. Why? It's obvious by visiting this hidden page I want to quit. I hate dark design patterns.

[@krakensquatch]

Wait til you hear this one, it took 25 minutes and $30 to get married in the same room I got my drivers license from (Colorado), and it’s cost me a mandatory 1 year separation at a different address 18 months of court proceedings, $10,000 so far, and my sanity to get divorced, and it’s still not over for a while (South Carolina) and that’s with Cause! adultery x 5. How about that contract? Forget a button on a website, I’d gladly mail a certified letter for that, heck I would buy out the USPS stock of Certified envelopes and hand write each one and it would be easier, quicker and cheaper. Make it more difficult to get Married! That’s my platform.

[@Buswik]

And then the first result is always the god damn FAQ page

[@8eSix]

​@@krakensquatchOof! That's why I got a simple prenup "yours/mine/ours". And a notorized letter stating neither of us will ever owe the other child support. I got lucky with this one. She's on the same page. The marriage club pontificators can suck a fat one and take a sip from a wet ashtray when they're tied up in court. We'll still be here putting in the work. Side note, adultery is a felony in my state so long as a person has proof. Should be like that everywhere. Could save couples a lot of money.

[@kingti85]

I was a member of LA Fitness about 20 years ago and I wanted to cancel because I got tired of paying $40 a month to not go. I ended up finding it easier to just report my debit card as missing and getting a replacement. Changes the number and cancels all your autopays in one fell swoop 😂😂

[@Batlas]

Doesn't work like this anymore though. My amex was stolen by a less than reputable store I stopped in a few wks ago. Called to report it stolen and they told me that everything already on auto pay carries over.

[@kingti85]

@@Batlas idk as i said this was 20 years ago but you're talking about a credit card and I was talking about a debit card. idk what would happen now

[@atleastimtrying5391]

They will send you to collections and ruin your credit

[@kingti85]

@@atleastimtrying5391 it was a debit card so i really doubt it

[@atleastimtrying5391]

@bat3891 I’m really sorry to hear that friend

[@thorlancaster5641]

Companies who do this need to be held retroactively, criminally liable. This is theft on a massive scale.

[@beng4647]

They usually are. They pay 300 million to our government all the time. And people can get like 8 bucks back if they do 3 weeks of paperwork.

[@Biteme-t8z]

Agreed, put the all the board members in jail. As for this issue, I just report my card as lost and they will send me a new card with a new number the next day.

[@ttttt316]

Friendly advice: do not call the police. If you call them, then they will trespass on you, and if you continue arguing, they will lock you up.

[@MamaMOB]

100%!

[@kicapanmanis1060]

You didn't cancel, that's on you. You shouldn't be signing with them in the first place with such a bad cancellation policy.

[@adrianbargen9727]

Also, I tried to cancel a gym membership and it was hell. They told me I had to pay for the rest of the year. I told them I'll just cancel the card I used. They said they would just send it to collections. They said "we are a real business." It was a fight. I told them that I'm petty enough to take it to court and post it all over the local pages on facebook since it was a small town. That made him change his mind. Small town gyms don't make a lot of money anyway, so shitting all over them on facebook in a small town about how they won't let you cancel a membership is a HUGE deal. People won't want to get a membership if they know that even if they lose their job and are hard up on money, they will still be stuck paying monthly for the membership.

[@Hallgrenoid]

You should still blast them, you just gotta include what made them sing a different tune in the end.

[@MyReviews_karkan]

​@@HallgrenoidAbsolutely. I did that to a daycare that tried to scam me, a week later they changed their whole policy.

[@Eingefallen]

​@@MyReviews_karkana daycare? Damn.

[@ultimaweap12]

I came looking for this comment. I basically did the equivalent of this. The CC they had on file expired and they just sent me to collections so be careful before trying this...

[@jamesdagmond]

​@@ultimaweap12Dispute the debt with the credit agencies. it costs nothing and has a small chance of erasing the debt.

[@PeteAkaPsy]

That actually is a nice part about living in Germany, we now have a law that in short forces companies to allow "2 Button Cancelation" for online subscriptions.

[@miciso666]

wasnt it 3?

[@PeteAkaPsy]

@@miciso666 nah, its 2 unless you're counting any login or other stuff in. 1st for "Cancel Sub" and 2nd for "Yes I am sure"

[@thegoldenatlas753]

The us has this too But like many of our laws no one knows about it so don't do anything about it. This is why you tell your bank "hey this company wont let me cancel my service, block them please"

[@ampulsion]

European countries nowadays are more free than America, I might listen to the haters, and go back to where I came from 😁

[@vanesslifeygo]

@@PeteAkaPsy LOL so you don't cancel by accident.

[@Zelduh64]

I remember when I was 19 or so and had to cancel my first gym membership, after going through hoops and finally talking to the person that actually had the power to let me cancel, they tried aggressively bodyshaming me to keep me from cancelling and it took like an hour arguing with the roid raging psycho bullying me to finally have it cancelled

[@sbubwoofer]

lol fatty

[@VonRibbitt]

Jesus fuck, does this people have no fucking shame?

[@myralchista]

wow, its alvways happening in 3 world countries with goverment services, crazy its a practise in business in 1 world country. feel sorry for you, ive been there 😢

[@MrWackozacko]

Similar experience, trying to play on what they think are my insecurities. All of this 'oh man you're looking good it would be a shame if you stopped now'. Australia

[@pierrex3226]

Hahaha that's wonderful! Wanna cancel? But you look like shit bro you got to lift! Love it.

[@Daniel15au]

In California, there's a law stating that canceling a subscription has to be possible using the same method you originally used to sign up. If you signed up online, you have to be able to cancel online. Other states should adopt that. With many subscriptions, you can simply change your billing address to a Californian address, and magically a cancel button will appear in your account.

[@Polite_Cat]

This is hilarious. Do you know of any specific services that this works on? I've never heard of that.

[@beng4647]

Funny it's all Cal companies scamming us in NY.

[@Daniel15au]

@@Polite_Cat New York Times used to (or may even still) do this. To cancel outside of California, you had to call or live chat them. In California, you could simply cancel online. Changing your billing address to California would make the "cancel" button appear in your account. A few other newspapers do this too.

[@Nanomachines5on]

Was this from a class action lawsuit against LA fitness in the state of California? Or am I mistaken? I remember getting a notice about this a long time ago in the mail.

[@DaphneMarina88]

I belonged to EOS gym and they tried to make it hard for me to cancel without paying an additional month. Being a native New Yorker, like the host here, I pointed out how they were charging me without providing everything in my contract (the pool), I would be happy to sue them. Luckily, there was a manager who was reasonable, but why do we have to get pissed off!. I live in Los Angeles and when I want to end something, I do.

[@hunterellis8986]

Canceling my 24hr Fitness membership was done online and very easy. I was thinking about trying LA Fitness until about a minute ago. Thanks Louis, I definitely learned something. 😁

[@rossmanngroup]

Fuck LA Fitness for making it difficult to cancel on purpose.

[@nzkshatriya6298]

up for a mass mailing prank to their PO Box?@@rossmanngroup

[@xatoor]

@@GH0STST4RSCR34Mwhat 😭😭😭

[@gernhartreinholzen3992]

@@GH0STST4RSCR34M what what in my butt

[@xatoor]

@@GH0STST4RSCR34M you're saying "anyone who knows whats been happening, knows whats been happening" what is the point of that comment??

[@maxmorgan6789]

I canceled LA fitness in person in 2017 because I was moving to an area that did not have one. They tried really hard to convince me move my membership to non-active and pay a 10$ per month so that I could sign up again without an activation fee . I said no and eventually they didn’t let me cancel. After I canceled they sent me emails at least once every two weeks trying to get me to come back without having an activation fee. this should be illegal

[@Scruit]

"I said no and eventually they didn’t let me cancel. "

[@tarinfatel2985]

There shouldn't have to be a law against every little corrupt thing a business can slip into a contract, any kind of service contract should be entirely voluntary on both sides.

[@greschenglin-dz7wj]

No. The voluntary aspect isn't the problem, more the hoops and hurdles customers have to jump through to be able to *just* cancel they're subscription to a service.

[@deadturret4049]

Tf is the problem with gyms specifically? Whenever I hear cancellation horror stories its either a gym or adobe. Absolutely wild to me.

[@TheMattTrakker]

@@deadturret4049 It's how they make a good portion of their money. Like Louis mentions in this video, the people that aren't going to be using their gym memberships, tend to be the people that are too lazy to cancel/go through a huge process to cancel & fight fees.

[@wrongplacerighttime]

As someone that worked at anytime fitness this is true. We had a company called ABC financial and they had the resources to track down your new bank account if you changed it in order stop payments from coming in. At the time I experienced members being charged on a brand new card, I was surprised. I didnt even think it was legal to do something like that.

[@JustinTweed]

Happened to me and I didn't even receive the card so I was charged late fees for a card I didn't have

[@juang951IE]

I did something like this in 2011. I tried to cancel LA Fitness and they made it such a hassle so I asked them to switch to a credit card instead of my debit card, then I called my credit card company and told them to close my account. It was easier for the credit card company to cancel my card than a damn gym!

[@TheDoBetterPodcast]

Same with me and LA Fitness. Went up to the gym 3 times to cancel in person. The manager was never there. I actually had one of the staff call the manager while I waited and the manager exploded on the staff member over the phone for calling her. After being charged for an additional year when I thought I had it cancelled. I just had my bank block the charge. Smh

[@ajilla708]

Same around the same time. Lost a customer for life

[@crazeguy26]

I told them i loss my card and they sent a new one.

[@justhearmeout]

Like paying for food you never ate... or ordered....or even sat down for.😅

[@lPoliticallyFye]

Lmaooooo

[@KalahiMd]

As of June 2023, here in France a law was voted to force subscription services to provide a 3 click system to cancel subscriptions. Hurray for non totally stupid customer protection systems!

[@dereksbooks]

I wish that California and Arizona elections were as secure as LA Fitness' cancellation process 😂😂😂😂

[@zwerko]

Always ask what is a cancellation procedure whenever somebody offers you a contracted service. If you can't get out from the contract the same way you went into it-turn away and take your business elsewhere. This is the only way this scummy practice ends. Also, tell the same to your friends and family.

[@Code7Unltd]

Jokes on them. I don't need any subscription services and aren't paying for any. Instead of streaming, I use the air, warez forums (I only downloaded software from those boards a few times) and have a large video collection (mostly filled with TV shows), as example. It might be boring at times, but it's fun to stick with the past and live on what's free.

[@dannydaw59]

I did that with Planet Fitness in early 2020. I saw that you have to use certified mail so I walked away.

[@stapedium]

THIS!!!

[@kazbah1217]

I'd go one step further and see a demo of that cancellation procedure as sales ppl talk shit.

[@yocobicus]

noted.

[@pdxmetal]

I walked up to the LA Fitness front desk, told them I wanted to cancel, and they cancelled it. Never got billed again.

[@shotseven]

Louis, I think you'll love this: California law reportedly was reportedly amended a couple of years ago to make it easier to cancel subscriptions/memberships. It seems that subscription companies that have a location in California must make it so that if their subscription can be signed up for online, cancellation procedures must be accessible in an equivalent manner. I bring this up especially because some redditors have indicated that they have been able to cancel their non-California Planet Fitness memberships online by either changing their address to a California location on the website or using a VPN indicating their location to be in California. Doing so reportedly results in a "cancel" button appearing on the website for these users when their system updates, reportedly within a couple of days. It may be worth investigating these methods for other services--it appears that when one user changed their address for their WSJ subscription, refreshing the page allowed them to cancel their subscription online. UPDATE: My sister was able to cancel her Planet Fitness membership online via this method. Her standard PF login didn't work--she had to create a myiclub account and link her account/member code. Some people would have already done this. Anyway, after changing her address to a california one, a cancel button appeared.

[@Tohkaku]

Gonna test this

[@xenn4985]

I get that its shitty that they do this, but... just block the payments??????

[@tuukkai1841]

This is good info

[@Thanatos2996]

@@xenn4985that is not a bad idea (or better yet use a virtual credit card in the first place and cancel it outright), but some of these places will send your failed payment(s) to collections on you.

[@jenelaina5665]

Just came into the comments to make sure someone mentioned the California trick. TY!

[@lihavalokki5705]

When I was moving out of my student apartment back into my parents' place for a while, I had to cancel my electricity contract by phone. The first question the customer service worker asked me after explaining that I wanted to end the contract was ''Why didn't you do this over at our website?''. I explained that the website only allowed switching from one contract to another, but canceling the contract required a phone call. Being able to do end contracts of any kind through just the internet is pretty damn standard in Finland, so even the customer service worker was surprised after I explained this lol

[@wwild2k]

Suomi mainittu!

[@jbutler8585]

Virtual/temporary credit cards are SUCH a godsend for security it's actually shameful that they aren't handled by the cc banks themselves anymore. They used to be a standard service back in the 00s.

[@leonro]

That and foreign travel is all I use Revolut for tbh. I recently bought an esim for Serbia with a one-time use debit card and I got a failed payment notice after it expired.

[@ziva1]

American Express and Capital One make virtual cards available online or on my phone. Thanks for reminding me to use them.

[@GlockGlock18]

revolut offers that too

[@moth.monster]

Capital One has a great virtual card feature.

[@llamamusicchannel7688]

I use zip pay for that, you can create a single use credit card with them and it's quite handy for free trials with automatic payment at the end.

[@3twelve206]

Omg I haven’t been an LA Fitness member in over a decade. It’s crazy to see that they’re still scamming people. I remember how difficult and absurd it was to cancel.

[@ablebaker8664]

I actually just got off the phone with a service that was making it as difficult as possible to cancel and asked them if it would be easier for me to have the state AG request the cancellation. Amazingly, they were able to cancel it in realtime and refund two months of fees from the time it was originally cancelled to present. This feature works for almost any subscription. It's almost like they don't want to talk to the AG.

[@aluisious]

I did this in San Francisco with a dirtbag who locked my car in a private lot and forced me to pay the towing company fee to just drive my car out. They didn't think the next call would come from the city attorney's office. Oh look at that, all a big misunderstanding, heh hey buddy here's your money back, big smiles from everyone involved.

[@aluisious]

The BBB is bullshit. It's just another private company.@@stevefox1620

[@DaphneMarina88]

yup

[@enhapik]

I am sorry, not from US. what is an AG?

[@ablebaker8664]

@@enhapik Attorney General. Basically the officer that manages the legal affairs of a government body. In this case, I was referring to Ohio State Attorney General, Dave Yost. He has an unusual passion for phone spammers, shady internet sites and retail shops with anti-consumer policies.

[@Zerow45yw]

This applies to ISPs such as comcast and mobile service providers too. Meanwhile services like Amazon will let me cancel prime whenever I want, and they even refund you some or all of your money if you cancel before your subscription term ends.

[@mapl3mage]

yea, i never had trouble canceling a prime subscription. as much as people hate on Amazon, they actually let people cancel without too much trouble.

[@hopelessdecoy]

As much as Amazon does wrong they have a good service up front, which is why they have made it so big. Is 1 subscription worth people hating you and telling thier friends and family to avoid your business?

[@_shadow_1]

There's a lot I could criticize them on, but their delivery and customer service are both generally solid, especially considering the immense scope of their company.

[@shaynegadsden]

I don't think that's because Amazon is a good company but because they operate internationally and like Steam countries like Australia fine them for anti-consumer practices so easier to just do it right everywhere than have different policies for each country

[@KickYouInTheThroat]

literally had to call a spectrum guy a stupid piece of shit 20 times for ignoring my cancellation request and trying to upsell me before he transferred me to a supervisor. apparently a supervisor is needed to do the actual cancelling. he picked up the line and i said "i want to cancel and i dont want to hear one fucking word from you other than yes" and he was like "yes" and went about cancelling my shit. (this should have happened straight away) i shouldnt have to spend 40 minutes on a live phone call demeaning another human being beyond any reasonable measure just to get transferred to someone high up enough to cancel something. i literally had to destroy this mfer verbally before he transferred me. nothing about cancelling a subscription should require me to forego all manners, morals, and ethics just to talk to the person capable of cancelling my service. i sounded fucking insane but nothing worked so i just started ripping this dudes soul out and after about 10 minutes of that i got transferred. i mean....wtf people.

[@sawyer4981]

I remember when I was working in customer service, one of the companies I worked at pulled this shit. I almost got fired several times for just canceling a service a customer asked to cancel and not making them jump through all the hoops.

[@triadwarfare]

It sucks if it is the company themselves are making you do it.

[@sawyer4981]

@@triadwarfare right? Choose between violating your morals or making rent this month. It's fucked

[@TatiMare0]

I've been using virtual credit cards for about a year now mostly for increased protection against data breaches and just general financial privacy. I initially didn't even consider how awesome it is that you can just effectively cancel services by preventing them from being able to charge you, but that has been an absolute game changer for me.

[@eubankles]

Be careful with that. Heard they can send you to collections.

[@DaltonUber]

I found out Planet Fitness ONLY accepts your literal checking account number and bill your account directly to make it even harder for you to het the leach off.

[@atleastimtrying5391]

They will definitely send you to collections and ruin your credit

[@AldrickTanith]

I had this happen to me. I got my shit canceled when I threatened to take them to small claims court to not only demand a refund for a service that was no longer working, but to also charge them for my time, money, and court fees. It worked because, even if I would have lost the fight, the amount of money it would have cost them to fight me even in small claims court would have cost more than the money they would have earned by keeping me as a customer. I hated making threats to some mid-level employee who was just trying to do their job, but sometimes you've just gotta be a bastard to force these corporate parasites to pull their bloodsuckers out of you.

[@billh.1940]

Good for you. Remember even in small claims court, they send a lawyer. Even if they win, they lose. 😮.

[@veo16]

Wall Street Journal and New York Times have it like this. Took me months of emails and calls to cancel. They dragged their feet, pretended not to receive emails, and wasted a lot of time until they finally accepted. 😢 Gym memberships also did this. When I had moved, they pulled a “you need to come in to the branch where you signed up.” After I said I could not, they told me to call back in and ask for the manager. Called everyday for a week, manager was always “busy, please call back later.”

[@mmmbbq]

I canceled the WSJ over a year ago. One call and it was done.

[@andrehashimoto8056]

Should just call your bank and have them BLOCK that specific business from the automatic payment system for your CC/Bank account. and if they complain, make clear you WILL TAKE THINGS TO COURT if necessary, they always will back off exactly because the Legal fees far exceed whatever value they would get from you from forcing you to pay the rejected monthly fees.

[@veo16]

@@andrehashimoto8056 When you go to those lengths, the bank would rather end their relationship with you than meet your demands. Careful if you choose to tread that road.

[@JimboJuice]

@@mmmbbq at least they can do something right.

[@Real_MisterSir]

I would personally advocate for a bill that requires any subscription based service, to offer a cancelation procedure equivalent to their signup procedure. So if you can sign up on their front webpage with 3 clicks, you should also be able to unsubscribe from their front page with 3 clicks. It's a really simple bill proposal, and it literally covers everything in a just manner.

[@b5fw6jg7]

No, this makes room for loopholes. Instead the cancellation should involve 1 cancel button click then, a follow up confirmation click and after that an OPTIONAL feedback form. It should enforced to be this simple. Apart from this, every credit card company should be forced to provide the same 2 step cancellation interface. They all shouldn't be allowed to operate without this.

[@jordanrosario5159]

I used to go to charter fitness when the gym at my work was being renovated. It was only $15 a month so I signed up and went there until the gym at my job opened back up. When I tried to cancel my membership they made it so damn hard to cancel it. I either had to send a formal letter or go inside the gym to actually cancel. Luckily this gym was only 10 mins away so I drove there and waited at the front desk for a good 20 mins before someone came to help. I said I want to cancel my membership and the lady that spoke to me was pretty much freaking out. “Why do you want to cancel?” “Are you not happy with our gym?” “I can give you a discount to stay with us longer” “is there another gym you’re going to?” I jus said the gym at my job opened back up, I can workout there for free so I don’t need this anymore. Then that whole cancellation process was something in itself. I had to answer a bunch of questions, show my ID, sign a letter saying I’m sure I want to cancel. It was just ridiculous. After that I told myself I’m never signing up for another public gym again. I’ll buy my own weights or do callisthenics to stay fit before having to go through that process again

[@rpospeedwagon]

Agreed. TIDAL not only made it difficult to cancel, they kept charging my card after I did cancel. What's completely unacceptable is they stopped billing for months are restarted without any action on my part. Called my state AG office and filed a formal complaint.

[@roxcyn]

Oh wow, really? I've done a few promos with them and cancelling was easy. I would have been pissed if they continued to bill me.

[@gerryd9606]

What State and what did the AG do for you?

[@badger3235]

tidal is probably the easiest service to cancel. its like 2 clicks

[@creativeheadroom]

TIDAL the music streaming platform? Could you please tell me a bit more about your experience? I've considered releasing music on their platform, but this could make me reconsider. Thanks in advance.

[@roxcyn]

@@creativeheadroom - We were just consumers, not artists. I think they pay you more per stream play. It's probably best to load your music on all platforms so you get the most exposure.

[@carlostrudo]

In Brazil there is a law that most services can be canceled by a simple click in their website. If you can sign the service online it is mandatory to be able to cancel online with a single click. OF COURSE they will hide that mofo link as much as possible, but is always there.

[@XPLOSIVization]

Same for the UK, but agreed they hide that cancel subscription link very well, i remember trying to cancel Amazon Prime for my ex and it took me forever to find it

[@manoz6194]

Cancelling should be two clicks, why if you accidentally click the cancel button lol

[@roblockstock]

same here in Denmark one click of the mouse done.

[@ledhunters]

@@manoz6194 Yes, you should always reconsider before canceling 🤣🤣🤣

[@carlostrudo]

@@XPLOSIVization Amazon prime is very well hidden here also. But at least it is possible. In Brazil we have a low education rate so even link being available people still struggle to cancel services, but in last resort you can always complain to regulatory body by mail or even WhatsApp and in most cases it gets solved.

[@SB-qm5wg]

I quit a gym (in person). They screwed up the paperwork. I cancelled my CC. They sold my last 'debt' to a collection agency that had multiple other agencies calling me with threats.

[@silver9062]

LA fitness aren't the only ones doing this. I was part of a gym called "Edge fitness" that did this very thing. It was operated by a company named "ABC Financial." They outright refused to let me cancel, and tried to alter the TOS mid-contract with covid as an excuse. They were also trying to lock me into another year with an auto renew. And my way out was exactly what you said: Take away their ability to take money from you. Also, you are very right about the financial institutions: My bank refused to let me chargeback and told me "sort it out with the merchant yourself."

[@user-yw9fm7kb1s]

The bandaid solution is using virtual credit cards. Make it hard to unsubscribe? Just close the card.

[@rossmanngroup]

that fucks you over for everything else. Every credit card for the most part does this, so then you will be going through life paying cash for everything. Which isn't all bad, but does make some things rather difficult.

[@CreativityNull]

​@@rossmanngroup especially with the amount of businesses refusing cash or taking money online only. My apartment complex requires you to pay online with e-check or a credit card. They won't take a money order or cash anymore. That's easy for me, but that's definitely not a solution for everybody. I remember how hard it was to get my girlfriend a bank account because her mother had used her information to take out loans she was never going to pay off.

[@user-yw9fm7kb1s]

@@rossmanngroup I've been using virtual credit cards for many things and I honestly have not been inconvenienced by them. They work great for helping prevent fraud, as I can lock a card to a single merchant. On some less-than-reputable sites where they've had a data breech, I've seen attempts to make purchases which were blocked. I didn't mean close the line of credit, rather deactivate the virtual card so that it cannot be used anymore.

[@timtimtimmay4654]

Using virtual or gift cards is the best way for these things. Same with making purchases with vendors who may be questionable with their security like small vendors with less secure payment methods or large ones who like to save your billing info for others to hack and steal.

[@ajwh0]

I did this for a gym membership and got my overdue fees sold to a collection company. Had to pay it or it’d hit my credit report. Absolutely ridiculous

[@jfernandez76]

At least in Spain, the law mandates that any contract can be cancelled using the same channel used when contracting the service. Also, you can issue a chargeback on the debit card and block a company to bill that credit card ever. Why is the US so antique in its financials?

[@asialsky]

Even in the US, you can just block all future ACH debits from that merchant to your account. It requires some phonecalls, but it can be done.

[@gebali]

One answer. Greed and corruption.

[@odizzido]

It's because the CEOs of large companies run the country so it's all set up to favour them.

[@fdmillion]

Intense lobbying and often outright bribery of the political system by corporations, combined with generally inept politicians who aren't even close to experts in the things they're making laws on (or not making them on). The right emotional sob story or hot take from a company combined with an appropriate cash bribe (funded by those sweet late fees) is often enough to keep these reasonable rules away.

[@TheLordofNyrin]

that's exactly why i don't understand it when companies make cancelation so difficult that it becomes easier for me to contact my bank instead.@@asialsky

[@pikachu8508]

I had a similar experience in Malaysia before. A decade ago, I saw an ad introducing a new privately operated ISP and I decided to sign up online out as I had enough with the monopoly of government owned provider and subpar service. However I was completely unsatisfied with their frequent disconnections after few months. I decided to cancel as I wanted to switch back to the previous provider. I called the customer service and inform them that I wish to terminate the contract 2 months early, they said I had to pay a small penalty, fair enough. But they also told me that I have to go to their HQ to unsubscribe the service, that could mean up to 4 hours of driving from my house to the HQ. This shit is totally unacceptable and should be illegal.

[@mohdafnanazmi1674]

Hello, can I know which ISP is that so I can avoid it?

[@chrishartley1210]

Here's how to stop that nonsense. Check out their location on Google Streetview and note some of the better looking cars, particularly if there are any that are damaged. Then, when you call them again to tell them you need to be able to cancel without visiting their HQ, casually mention how nice the cars look and what a shame it is that they are damaged. "Was that done by the last person who had to come to their HQ to cancel?" is a good line to use, making sure you don't speak any actual threats. "Does your CEO still live at ? I think that's on my way to your office, perhaps I could call on him instead." is another one. The person you are talking to won't know but they will understand the implied threat.

[@AllenHanPR]

Took me almost 3 months to cancel my LA membership. I lived 4 blocks from one from my old office, I went in person and asked to cancel they said only the manager can speak you to about that, and he was never around. So I went almost everyday for 5 minutes before going home from work, they never mentioned certified mail to me. After 3 months of visiting, I had my friend who was a lawyer come with me and told the friend desk I have my legal counsel with me. The manager immediately showed up and refunded the three months I've been trying to cancel. Then was like, "you could've done this through the mail", like your staff told me about it at all.

[@mindfreakloyal92]

i threatened with a lawyer too, but over the phone. They studder and back track to much it's actually sad funny. They don't wanna deal with legal. The lady stopped my account in 30 seconds and told me that all I had to do was ask. I laughed so hard at her and told her didn't I ask you before the argument that lead to me wanting a lawyer. She got so mad lol

[@MrCrazyjoe259]

What kind of lawyer do I need to do this? Civil litigation?

[@ogi-wankenobi3638]

people are garbage

[@OnionKnight541]

when i canceled The Economist, i had to schedule a time online for a phone call during a window of time during the workday. during this call, the required that i answer every question they asked, which included why i am canceling. i said, "i just want to cancel, i don't want to do this survey." they said i had to do the survey in order to cancel. so i started babbling random shit to them, like, "the magazine doesn't have any pages," and said "that's my answer. write that down." here's the wild thing: a year later i get a check in the mail for about $250 from a class action lawsuit against The Economist. they got penalized in court for this behavior. this was amazing.

[@Private290]

Had a similar situation. I canceled my credit card because I couldn’t get a anywhere with the gym. Get this….they sent me to collection and even though I canceled the card, they continued to charge the “card” so they credit card company also sent me to collections. The credit card company said I was still responsible for the charges even though I didn’t have a card account with them. It was a nightmare. Never again.

[@test-rj2vl]

How did it end? Did you have to pay the "debt"? Did you end up being sued?

[@uplink-on-yt]

Once you cancelled your card, all further charges are unauthorized charged, and it's right there in the terms and conditions that you are not responsible for unauthorized charges once you let the card company know that you're no longer in possession of your card (due to loss, theft, or account closure). Maybe they want to meet a judge and be told to pay damages to you, and don't know how.

[@Private290]

@@uplink-on-yt certainly not arguing with you but that’s not what Citibank told me. They told me that canceling the card does not preclude the company from continuing to charge the account. Apparently, it’s not uncommon for people who are in a contractual agreement to cancel their cards to avoid the debt. I would 100% agree with you had I not had an issue.

[@omegaman1409]

I have a dental club membership card that once a year they bill be over $100. I had one credit card that expired and somehow they got the information of the new card. It’s nuts. They make it difficult to cancel. I don’t even use the membership. Useless.

[@screamtoasigh9984]

This is why you use a card that you put money on so it's limited. If you don't add more money they can't take what's not there.

[@realharo]

Adobe does a different kind of scam, where, for some products like Lightroom, they pretend that you can pick between a monthly and an annual subscription, but in the fine print they're both annual subscriptions, and they try to charge you an "early cancellation" fee, if you try to cancel after a few months. There are a lot of posts online from people who were tricked by this. I think they recently made it slightly clearer, but it's still not mentioned on their pricing page unless you click further. For now, they make it easy to get around it, by letting you change to a different kind of product, which restarts the grace period during which you can cancel for free. I'm guessing they're intentionally leaving this possibility open in order to get people who care enough to look it up to leave them alone and not push back too much. Otherwise those people might complain enough to cause the authorities to look into it and force Adobe to make changes by making it much clearer, resulting in lower sales.

[@B-e-a-r-d-e-v-i-l]

I experienced this too. This has to be stopped.

[@itsgeneralbuttnaked]

My friend got stung with this recently. I was actually angry on his behalf when I read their page on cancellation fees, one of the most anti consumer things I've ever seen.

[@sihamhamda47]

I miss the time when all software are only one time purchase and can be used for lifetime They could just divide it into 2 type, buy once to use it lifetime and subscription with extra cloud save and free updates. But they decided to terminate all one time purchases and went straight to 100% subscription

[@realharo]

@@sihamhamda47 The author of "Sync for Lemmy" gave such an option (remove ads forever), but then a lot of people started complaining about the price.

[@BornRemaining]

And why exactly are you paying a subscription fee for software??? If you're not allowed to buy a copy, it's not hard to find an 'adapted' one on the open seas. Yo ho ho stop being a corpocuck!

Besides the difficulty of mail, it's amazing how much they try to get you to reconsider, from asking you "why" to dark patterns on the buttons.

[@dbzlover666]

Dark patterns? WDYM?

@@dbzlover666 "dark patterns" designate design practices made to confuse or deceive users on purpose. For example, making the "Accept Cookies" in red (the otherwise universally recognized "no" color), or a "don't not sell my personnal data" tickbox. In the case of a cancellation, it can be for a example making the page load super slow after clicking the "cancel subscription" button in hopes the user would think it didn't work.

[@hannahanderson4305]

I agree 100% that this is a scheme and scam making it hard as hell to cancel just about anything. I hate these companies that keep your credit card on file even when you paid for a whole year outright but essentially holding you hostage for their auto renewal service.

[@cpK054L]

Freeze credit card on due date, problem solved

[@Playingwithproxies]

@@cpK054Lyeah sure remember 12 months later and then freeze your card forever. Subscriptions will still go through after you unfreeze it.

[@rishirajsaikia1323]

​@@cpK054Lvirtual credit card

[@matthewdancz9152]

This is a form of fraud, and these companies need to be sued in a class action lawsuit.

[@DualWieldingDad]

Remember when spam email was insane to unsubscribe from before they were required to have a button at the bottom of every email

[@meeponinthbit3466]

And now phishing emails look like "legit" spam and use that link to get you to their malware launching website.

[@TheCosmicAstro-]

I used to go to LA Fitness. The sign up process as youve stated is super easy and im fairly certain the cancellation discussion i had was so nonchallantly brushed over they actually made it sound like it was no strings attached cancelations. At one point i had to cancel my credit card(was stolen), forgot i had a gym membership cause i hadnt been going for a little while. And i remember the salesmen calling me about it and getting FURIOUS when i said i wouldnt re-up, nor would i give him my new card info to pay for half of the year that is yet to come... In what world does it make sense for me to pay for half of FUTURE UNUSED TIME. When i want to cancel. He literally said "yeah you pay for half of the year and we pay the other half and then your cancelation is all set". ??????? Why is that even legal. And at the end of the conversation of me refusing to give him my card info he yells at me "you got away with it this time". Got away with what? Not getting ass fucked by scummy business tactics? Lol

[@MrNside]

Back in AOL dial-up days, they made it extremely difficult to cancel, but not for the same reasons. In '99, I used one of their "free 30 day" discs because I was looking for a new ISP and needed a buffer while I did some research. After finding a decent and much cheaper ISP, I called AOL to cancel. They quickly said, "What if we give you a month free to reconsider?" Okay. I call back a month later to cancel, same thing. After 7 or 8 months of that, and never having given them a single penny, I finally had to brute force my way into cancellation because I was getting broadband instead.

[@fdmillion]

My family tried to cancel our AOL service, and kept getting told it was done but it wasn't. Not sure if the CS people were outwardly lying or maybe their system was designed to conveniently not COMMIT the database transaction. But in either case, eventually the card they were billing us on expired so we thought "good riddance". Somehow, the charges started showing up on a *completely unrelated card* that we had *never* used to pay for AOL or on any AOL branded service. The only thing I can think of is that they maybe had access to the card details through some merger at some point along the way. Eventually that card also expired, and by this time AOL was on the way out and the charges stopped. But all in all we probably paid $150 or so to AOL for services we never used because no matter what method we tried to cancel via, they'd confirm it was done but then it never happened.

[@roxcyn]

Same. We had to do it 3 times. Each time they would give free service (1 - 3 months). Finally, after the 3rd time, they let us cancel. We weren't using it so it was kind of annoying.

[@SAerror1]

I wonder if they will give up when the credit card is declined or if they will start piling up non-payment penalty fees and selling your “debt” to a collector.

[@mjc0961]

the latter

[@biancagerade4229]

I had a company try to do that to me about 10 years ago it's possible they well try to ruin your credit over something stupid.

[@mctripleA]

They will just let it acclimate and then Send you to collections I'm stupid and didn't read the latter half of your comment, that's what they'll do

[@ryanvoots9827]

This is exactly what they do when this happens. They will keep your membership open and renew it while sending you to collections and report it to the credit agencies.

[@Bamahut]

I had the exact same issue with my local gym, I sent them a few email as well as one with a signed letter asking to cancel my subscription. They gave me some BS which I talked back saying the same as you Louis. I ended up asking my bank to block the payments. Then a few weeks later I had the gym send a dept collector to try and get my membership payments. I ended up threatening them with a lawsuit if they kept going this way.

[@terique69]

Wait, even tho you never show up to the gym after blocking the card, they still want ur money!? The f is wrong with these companies

[@Hane_.._]

Wow dude. I never in my life buy a subscription, was thinking of doing that. But now i just dont even wanna think about it

[@simonw.1223]

I hope you win if you do a lawsuit.

[@leokimvideo]

Louis you should have been a Lawyer Vs a tech wizard. Your insight into how bad companies treat customers is incredible. I'm thinking in Australia the ability of a company to do what's being described here is a tad more difficult. The consumer watchdog and protection systems are fairly robust. Almost as tight as out gun laws.

[@kevykevTPA]

For many of us Yanks, your tight ass gun laws are why we wouldn't even consider moving there!

[@zwicker5585]

@@kevykevTPAgetting shot while you cant cancel your gym membership? sounds very American 😂

[@kevykevTPA]

@@zwicker5585 Anything that is even hypothetically possible will eventually happen, but I have not ever heard of a situation as you described.

[@1111Tactical]

Except your gun laws are bad and immoral. It's partly why your government gets to bully you around far worse like things during the pandemic. Don't make that false equivalency mate

[@Brolylover007]

Thank you for letting more people know about Virtual Credit Cards. I am tired of all this BS services that want to charge me unnecessarily and steal my money.

[@jer1776]

I could go on and on about gym memberships being BS. I got a staph infection at a planet fitness which almost hospitalized me & required me to be on 3 antibiotics. I asked for a refund as I didnt go at all for about a month and they had the nerve to bill me for the next month too (you have to cancel by the 10th of the month to not get billed for the following month). Luckily I had a black card so they didnt charge me a cancellation fee.

[@roxcyn]

Woah, that's crazy. Wait, people go to the gym with infections and being sick? 😮

[@BR1.618]

Thank you for my confirmation of why I train at home.

[@Mernom]

​@@roxcynfun fact: the US Healthcare system is f*cked too.

[@kazbah1217]

Black card hey? Mr Big.

[@Rishab12312]

@@kazbah1217 its the type of membership at planet fitness

[@greentea7180]

Lol, good to know this crap is still happening... 10 years ago I signed up with 24 Hour Fitness and the fine print had a clause saying you HAVE to cancel your membership in person at the location you signed up. I was absolutely livid, especially as I had just moved across Washington state. Thankfully I was dropping Chase as a bank anyways due to their predatory fees, pro tip don't be a broke college kid, so I got to give them both the finger at the same time.

[@BrooklynBalla]

I once reported my card stolen just to cancel a gym membership.They had the nerve to call me asking for a valid card the same day the next payment was due.When I told them I’m not paying anymore they tried to say I was in breach of contract.I just said great,so the contract is now voided correct?

[@Cantor214]

@@BrooklynBalla Give them the old Jean-Luc Picard line "I hereby declare this contract in abeyance" (he said actually said treaty).

[@SanchoSanto]

BofA is also a fee loving bank. I dumped them.

[@Shingetsu404]

Australian universities been doing the same scam, to withdraw and get a refund from the tution fees you paid.

[@craigostertag1335]

I’ve never been interested in going to a gym. However, since it’s getting colder out I wanted to give it a go because I’ve been extremely consistent and dedicated to improving my health. I looked at 4 different gyms (local and national) around me and they all were loaded with this kind of crap. I ended up creating an account at our local parks and recreation center. It’s not the nicest gym, but you pay month-to-month manually for $22 and there are absolutely no other fees and contracts. I’m glad I researched all the gyms and their “agreements” before committing to one.

[@Sullivancohen]

My husband keeps asking us to join a gym and I refuse. I have weights at home and a backyard to run in, I don't need a gym that's solely there to collect on me when I inevitably forget about it 😂

[@718EngrCo]

I was a member of a gym a few years ago and was going to be out of the country for a couple months so I put my membership on hold. When I came back I noticed that the gym had closed. A few months later I noticed that they were now billing me again. I went found another gym with the same name and went there to cancel the membership. They told me that I could only cancel the membership at the gym where I signed up. I canceled the card instead.

[@eightone91]

I lost my card and replaced my card and they somehow got the new credit card number behind my back and billed it plus late fees. They won’t cancel over the phone.

[@natedagreat90]

​@eightone91 that's not possible unless there stealing your personal info too at that point its a crime.

[@DSP-gh5ei]

​@natethegreat6415 It's possible with select visa cards, research visa account updater, they'd need to know which credit card you have though and have proof you authorized a recurring subscription

[@Chris_Serrani]

@@eightone91probably your bank account was linked.

[@TheMidnightillusion]

100% agree! I had a similar experience trying to cancel my Sky broadband service. Their website is laid out to make it very hard to even find the information for what you need to do to cancel, and then you have to jump through so many hoops to do it. It's pathetic.

[@SergirothGames]

The cancel culture is crazy over there! When I read the title to your video, I thought of the difficult ways of canceling over here in EU. For us the difficult ones are, for example Amazon, that you can sign up for Prime on their app, but need to log in into the website and go to a remote part of you profile to cancel it. But having to mail a cancelation form? Having to have an actual reason for cancelling!? Cancelling for "relocation"!? You don't need to have a reason for stop taking my money. Edit: I love how your cat is able to make their own money for food! I would buy something if I lived over there.

[@Gnaaal]

I had the same feeling, that my woes over finding a small cancellation link which is not always easy to find on sites that contain lots of promotions to buy more products was annoying enough. It always exists though, and once you find it you're done. Holy shit I'm glad we don't have to jump through the hoops they have to over in the states.

[@JCel]

I'm in the EU (Germany) and I can cancel Prime within the app in a few clicks 🤔

[@SergirothGames]

@@JCel I've been out for some time (abroad), so I might be outdated, but the last time I wanted to cancel prime, for that reason, I couldn't do it in the app, the FAQ sent me to the web to do it. But I'm glad if it is getting easier now.

[@differentlydifferent]

I remember being shocked and aggravated when I found out I had to go in person to LA Fitness just to cancel my membership. And the location it was at was just not convenient to travel to easily. I got lucky because someone at the front cancelled the first time I went up there

[@kjm-ch7jc]

EU/UK Banks have been telling their customers who don't fit a certain profile you no longer have a bank account without giving a reason, in a world where you cant exist without a bank account this has been putting people in extreme anxiety. Would love to see Louis take this up in a future rant.

[@roflBeck]

That's messed up. I wouldn't mind hearing more about that.

[@Me04120]

People have gotten debanked in the US too, generally as a result of politics. Laura Loomer and Kanye West come to mind. But losing personal banking is relatively rare. It's much more common for merchant accounts to be attacked.

[@TheDeathMocker]

Yeah, It is real cute, Banks based in EU can do an awful lot of cute things. Even where they can close your business account and Personal account even if you are not an employer. Without reason,🎉 If you were not quick enough to awnser some finacial question. They might send, you but "one letter" to awnser and or oblige, or respond. If not they could cancel your account within 20-30 days... Un-revokablebly Delete your account, with this credit built up and everything related, like you never existed, data you cannot reach without paying.. I guess 78% of the script is already done, who'll donate a Rode Mic, so I can actually make this into an actually EP. To let our Legends: ELI And Louis, know even on the otherside of the ocean, we are Fighting against Multinational-Scum Without dough, Ex-Networking engineer, Herough, Herough, yes; your advice, TCIPT-advice.-2014-

[@rengurenge]

We will hear and experience this much more often if they successfully move to only digital money. Banks will have absolute power over peoples and by how they already are mistreating their clients I don't see it ending well.

[@Mynervas]

@@roflBeck It all kicked off in July this year when politician Nigal Farage went public that the very fancy-smancy bank Coutts had closed his account. Coutts first claimed it was because Farage didn't have the required minimum amount in the account, but a Freedom Of Information request revealed it was because they didn't like his political views. If you google "Farage Coutts" you can read up on it.

[@JLujan4492]

During the covid "lockdowns", my dad could no longer go to his gym, so he tried to cancel his membership, but they said you had to go in in-person to cancel. He also was paying for a personal trainer which was about $100 a week, but he couldn't use that service during the "lockdown." Well, since the gym wasn't allowing people in, he couldn't cancel. So he cancelled his card and got a replacement with a different card number. The gym contacted his bank, I think Bank of America, and they gave the gym his new information, so he cancelled his bank account and signed up with another bank. Well, somehow, the gym managed to get his new new info from his new bank, maybe Region?, I can't remember, and still billed him, and billed late fees and all sorts of other shit. So then he called other banks to ask which ones would not fuck him over again. He ended up at Chase bank, but I think his credit report still got hit. This whole subscription and cancellation thing is fucked up.

[@Drew17181.]

That's actually a valid charge back as the service he was paying for couldn't be provided.

[@craigslist6988]

your story is exactly how disgustingly criminal companies are allowed to be to people without any recourse. Any reasonable, just court and jury system should be able to let your dad f the eyeballs out of a company for doing all that. They should be paying out hundreds of thousands to millions in damages. But instead it's the opposite, they are not held in any way liable... and courts might even have the 'right' to seconds, give them another go to f you so you remember who owns the US.

[@rossmanngroup]

Name the gym

[@Liquid_Mike]

These businesses are like psychotic ex-girlfriends, Jesus H

[@josh-hu4gb]

name and shame

[@OnkyoGrady]

I know someone who's used small claims court to contest cancellation charges successfully. Her reasoning is that small claims is pretty much a lock for the consumer, at the very minimum they spend far more than the $300 (or whatever) just to respond. Worked according to her at least.

[@craigslist6988]

very unlikely the company will fight in small claims. They cannot send in a representative attorney, they have to send a person from the company who isn't a lawyer. The person can be coached on what to do, but now you're paying for attorney time to train someone, then pay that person to go into court, all for small claims max. But you still have to do your own research, have a reasonable argument for why you are *legally* (not morally) not required to pay it, and hope your judge agrees and isn't in the pockets of credit card companies (some districts I've heard actually are, like in Delware or somewhere). It's a PITA... tbh jumping through the original hoops is probably easier and safer. These companies have paid well to bend US citizens over a barrel and tie us down tight... you get one arm free you'll still gonna get f'd.

[@FractalPrism.]

small claims has low fees in all states, around $10 / $30 to file. show up, speak plain english, no lawyers allowed

[@Somepepper]

I had a planet fitness membership at school and was sent home during Covid. They wanted me to drive THREE HOURS to cancel my membership in person. So I just broke my debit card into peices and got a new one lol. Good luck charging that💀

[@roccociccone597]

I generally hate the trend of subscriptions. I just want to buy and own my things not rent them constantly.

[@honeypeadigital]

I would not feel guilty either. I actually tried privacy a while back but it was not supported in my country. I'm guessing it's still not so oh well. But I 100% agree with you on this.

[@_Dimon_]

Does Revolut work in your country? They also offer virtual and disposable cards.

[@bbrainstormer2036]

It’s only in the US unfortunately

[@chaos.corner]

My worry about privacy is you have to give them access to your bank account. If there was something you could just pay money in to, that would be much more preferable to me.

[@d3stinYwOw]

@@chaos.corner Revolut :)

[@domwatts8314]

I used to belong to a women's only gym that changed hands and because of the fine print, took a lump sum of $150 per customer as a transfer fee.. because they sold the business ...??!! WTF? I saw this charge from them and went down there and bawled them out along with a few other women who stopped in to do the same. Some of the ladies just left because "contract" but that's not me so I then tried to quit the gym in person during this brouhaha and omg.. what a carousel of drama! I ended up leaving and getting my Bank on my side who stopped payments and reversed the $150. It was a nightmare but "Exclusively Women's" only lasted maybe another year before it closed due to no members. Obviously LOL The world really is becoming a shitehole of scamming for the regular "Joe & Jill" .

[@TheMattTrakker]

I've found that getting your bank/CC company involved has a magical ability to make all those issues that scam companies said exist just...go away.

[@manywinters]

need a warrior like you or at least good to here from one

[@botezsimp5808]

Woman only gyms exist? That's sexist..

[@manywinters]

@@botezsimp5808 🗿

[@domwatts8314]

@@botezsimp5808 LOL This was like 15 years ago before the Woke Brigade made pretty much everything an issue.

[@aloshailyukh5150]

The worst is that if you also had a contract for training, just canceling your gym membership does not void it according to their customer service, they scammed me out nearly 700.

[@mammutMK2]

It should be pretty simple...they need to bring out a bill that "the effort of cancelation needs to be equal the effort of signing up" . You let my buy that office subscription directly from my computer,I want a cancelation button there as well.

[@DJ.1001]

Paying with a proxy card like privacy is my solution as well. I don't know how anyone gets by without privacy these days

[@user-yw9fm7kb1s]

Privacy has saved my ass many times.

[@bbrainstormer2036]

In both senses of the word

[@mattwa33186]

I cancelled a newspaper subscription once. Signed up online, but had to call them to cancel. Of course I was put on hold for 20 minutes. Then they asked why I was cancelling. I said "because I don't want your paper any more". That wasn't good enough. I had to give a better reason.

[@kyleshockley1573]

I wonder when companies thought it a good idea to make it official policy to act like a jilted ex. Was there a WSJ or Forbes article that talked about the virtues of treating customers like they've been lying about their fidelity and needing to confront them about what they've been up to after work? I thought everything for corporations was purely transactional, layoffs or price increases aren't personal, etc.

[@fdmillion]

You should have said "I don't need to give a reason, please cancel my account." They might say asking for the reason is for research purposes and to try to improve their service (and that may actually be true), but it is also, as you discovered, just as much of a way to gaslight you into thinking *you're* doing the wrong thing by canceling. There was a hilariously pathetic recording of a guy trying to cancel his ISP service, he kept repeating "cancel my account" and the guy on the other end was going full gaslight on him, "you're making a mistake", "it's my job to make you happy and you canceling wouldn't make you happy" etc.

[@mattwa33186]

@@fdmillion I actually did say that, three times. They literally refused to proceed with the cancellation until I gave them "a good reason", and cancelling an online newspaper subscription wasn't worth getting a lawyer involved. But if I was rich and had more time I would have done that.

[@Drew17181.]

Usually a bluff is enough to sway them. My gf always says that her sister is a lawyer and then threatens with suing. Which is true, but we're not mentioning she lives in a whole other country. We've never ended up suing, because the threat of it is usually enough. Although, to be fair, we probably would sue out of sheer principle anyway if it comes to such scams.

[@President_Not_Sure]

This is from their website "Be environmentally conscious and make payments online. It's easy." But when it comes to canceling, it should say "We love unnecessary carbon emissions". In addition, as long as you don't give them your SSN and official ID, which they do not ask for, the most they can do is sell the dept to a collection agency and it will not show up on your credit report.

[@amarvelousgeek222]

I did something similar in college. I signed up for an online writing course that was supposed to have a one-month free trial (the site had a bunch of courses but I just wanted the one). I watched some of the class materials and they weren't great so I went to cancel, and found out you could only cancel via phone call. I looked it up and people said they were still being charged after making said call, that the customer service tried to talk you out of canceling as much as possible, etc. Luckily I was able to swtich my payment method to PayPal and cancel that PayPal account so they could no longer charge me. I still got emails for like a year after that but I just immediately deleted them.

[@konsumer]

#LulzSec #help

[@Tarheb]

i particularly liked the part about borrowing money. 100% agree there is a saying in my country "don't stretch yourself more than your blanket is", meaning don't go into actions or expenses that exceed your possibilities. it's a bottomless pit of failure

[@smileychess]

The borrower is slave to the lender.

[@MrAustinMusic]

I worked for Chase bank credit card services. I can confirm that most credit card companies will allow reoccurring business charges to continue to bill your account after a new card is issued. This typically would last for about 3-6 billing cycles before the bank would start blocking the account due to it being an outdated card number. Good video, appreciate all the information Louis!

[@brianmccain8818]

This happened to me with my credit union. One day when I was traveling, tried to pay my Verizon bill and the card was declined. Thought my account had been hacked. Talked to the credit union and they said it was wrong exp date and cvc. I had gotten a new card about 5 months prior and never updated that account but they still let them go through.

[@paulnewman2778]

Correct.

[@theknightikins9397]

I had to unsubscribe from Planet Fitness after I moved from Virginia to Florida. When they told me I had to send a certified mail letter was INSANE! I considered calling my credit card company and just getting them to not pay them and tell PF to sue me. I was PISSED.

[@cryam6428]

I tried once to walk into the local gyms like LA Fitness. As soon as they ask me for a Bank account number I walk out. Since then I've found parks I like to walk, a desk treadmill when the weather sucks, and dumbbells' a jump rope and exercise bands home gym equipment. I've spent 10+ years worth of gym memberships in a number of weeks and regret nothing.

[@DoctorBeees]

I can't believe what I'm hearing. I originally thought you'd say something like "you have to go to the gym physically to cancel the contract" which is something that can happen in my country, but this just disgusting. These companies are mega cringe.

[@bush4721]

All VPN subscriptions I know are harder to cancel than it is to subscribe. Instead of providing a self-service cancellation, the user has to manually contact customer support that tries to offer discount to persuade you from cancelling. Cancellation page is usually harder to find as well.

[@ewsfgtdvRVWEASDG-pz4mo]

your using shit vpns then

[@hughjanus149]

Mullvad

[@BroonParker]

Surfshark.

[@ewsfgtdvRVWEASDG-pz4mo]

@@BroonParker bot net xD

[@boss-lyfe]

Planet Fitness are worse. I had a subscription for a year that I never used because I was driving over the road. I called and told them that I drive a truck, and they refused to cancel over the phone. I called a few times and they kept saying I had to come in my local one to cancel in person. I had to have the bank cancel my subscription.

[@peoplephobic]

I often cancel subscriptions that I actually intend to keep just to see how difficult they make it. If it sucks I find something else.

[@konsumer]

#LulzSec #help

[@SynthAir]

If you’re Canadian (or in some other countries outside the US), you should choose to pay with PayPal when signing up to a subscription. PayPal gives you the option to cancel subscriptions from their end through your account settings with a single click. I’ve even used it to block Adobe from charging their stupid cancellation fee that they hid from me when I signed up

[@StreetPreacherr]

PayPal can go screw themselves too. I've gotten burned a few times when signing up for a 'Free 30 Day Trial' for some service that still insist on providing a credit card that they're allowed to charge if you forget to actually CANCEL the service prior to the end of the trial. And PayPal likes to 'hide' these recurring monthly subscription charges on a separate 'page', so you don't even see them when looking at the 'main' list of transactions on you account... I think I ended up getting charged like $100 by Adobe because I needed their software to open some special 'PDF' file and then forgot to cancel the recurring monthly fee to access their 'premium Acrobat' BS that I used once for less than a minute!

[@dilligafmofoker]

PayPal can steal thousands from your account for using “hate speech” on social media-per occurrence! Of course they determine what “hate speech” is.

[@v0xl]

my bank has an option like this too

[@SecondTake123]

Yup! Pay Pal or Pre-Paid cards only for subscriptions!

[@pencilcase8068]

my mentor said when i was cancelling a gym membership to go in person and get the cancellation done in writing. told em I am not leaving without something confirming that it is cancelled. I am glad i did

[@pt8306]

The best way to cancel a subscription is to simply stop paying. Works every time. They even do the cancellation steps for you! And if they send threatening letters with bills, you can just not pay those too! Preventing cancelling a subscription is so shady that nobody wants to ever take anything like this to court, so they always back down the moment you give them a hint of trouble.

[@LeviForWaifu]

My old gym literally called me every day after changing my card number and I had to block their number. They then emailed me saying I owed $80 and they would send to collections if I didn't pay. Then I paid and they sent $30 to collections anyway 😂 Fortunately balances beneath $100 don't go on your credit report and since they went back on their word I charge backed the payment I made on the delinquent account.

[@DSP-gh5ei]

Don't know where you live but no collections agency would handle a debt under $500 USD for me and I used to be a contractor and would have to send jobs out to collections often😂 for $30 I don't even know if it would go on your credit report lol

[@DSP-gh5ei]

The best part is my experience with a local gym that had a "contract" that they could collect on you for equipment damage and they claimed me dropping weights damaged their floor

[@nybble]

NYS made it a legal requirement that you can cancel a gym membership by email in about 2021. It was nice being able to email my gym and cancel.

[@LizNeptune]

So glad you’re talking about, this made me nuts about 3 months ago trying to cancel planet fitness. Due to their shady and unscrupulous business practices regarding ending my subscription, I WILL NEVER sign up with them again. I had to pay my bank $30 to stop payments on them permanently. I tried to cancel in person multiple times, they refused. My main gym was in NYC and I’ve long since moved to FL. They said I had to cancel in person in NYC.. I said I’m not flying to NYC to cancel a gym membership. They said, can you send someone to do it for you? I said who? My 80 year old aunt? And walked out. The thing is, there is supposed to be a LAW against this but the govt either won’t pass it!!! I WONDER WHY!!! Lobbying?

[@dannydaw59]

Can you switch payment from your credit card to a virtual card?

[@LizNeptune]

@@dannydaw59 it’s done already. I’ll keep that in mind for future memberships.

[@chrisbaker8533]

I just use a prepaid card. I don't keep money on it until i'm paying bills. Always fun to see the 'charge declined' text/email.

[@TWMAD]

perfect that's real smart good shit. i'm surprised that not everyone does this.

[@BrokeBoi69]

This happened to me at a gym I used to go to. They used a company named ABC Financial and they wanted me to send them a letter explaining why I wanted to cancel my membership. After this I refused to sign up with any gym that used ABC financial.

[@chrisguzman7926]

Is this eos? They're owned by a company with a similar name, was a hassle to cancel and I called the parent company and they canceled it in 10 min

[@antdah]

Wow. US consumer protection seems like a dystopian nightmare.😨 My (Swedish) bank has provided me with "virtual online cards" since about 2005, and it is included in the annual fee for the VISA. Addendum: Apparently _"as easy to cancel as it was to sign up"_ is now a requirement in the latest revision of the EU _Digial Services Act._ And apparently some US states already apply this principle too.👍🏼

[@nickreeve7052]

Whoa seriously? I’d love if I could use this. I’m in Italy and I had to deal with the same BS - to cancel my internet I had to send certified mail. This country is a fuckin mess

[@blankyblank4742]

When I cancelled my LA Fitness Gym membership, I let them know that if they didn't cancelled on the spot I would be continuously calling until they did. The Manager got on the phone and cancelled Immediately.

[@ericmann1781]

This happened to me, I got my 2nd year I "cancelled" but they trey charged my card and scammed me anyways. I used the money, when I got it back, to start investing in my own home gym, compact rack with pulley, bench that can be stored upright, a 5' bar + weights and some dumbbells I also bought an upright rack for. It sure takes up space in my 4 1/2, but the peace of mine I have had for the last 5 years, plus with the gyms shutting down during the insanity in 2020 and beyond, one of the best investments I ever made.

[@Meowlico]

I literally closed my checking account to cancel my Planet Fitness membership because they required routing and account number to sign up. 🙄They wanted 3 months rate to cancel, and there was no way I was paying that

[@tmacman0418]

I was in the exact same scenario recently, I was trying to cancel LA fitness before my next charge and I went to print out the document only for my printer to be out of ink. Stores were closed so I had to wait an extra day to mail it off making them want to charge me for a month after I had moved. I also got a new card at the same time so whenever they called my trying to get my new card number I laughed at them

[@terique69]

They thirsty af😂

[@odinleader]

You should make a video about the flight insurance scam. If you get insurance for your flight, it is almost impossible to get a refund for your flight. My mom recently tried to cancel a spirit slight that had insurance. She had to spend 6 hours on the phone getting transferred to different places. On hold for hours. Being told continuously that they can't do the refund. Finally she had to send a doctor's note certified mail and then wait 3-6 months to get a PARTIAL refund. Total scam

[@alestane2]

I have the reverse experience. I signed up to a gym, then stopped going and neglected to cancel. After a year of paying but not going, they called me and asked if I planned on going or if I'd rather cancel, which I did. Not sure if that was just company policy or if that was mandated by law - I live in Japan. Credit scores are a scam. They are not used in France or Japan, for instance.

[@MrWackozacko]

Very moral behaviour of the gym. I wonder if they did it themselves or theres a law that made them do it too