David Lloyd/major Law claimform - £900 'couples' gym membership arrears from 2018

[BlossomFire63]

I had a Couples gym membership in 2018 with DL. I gave notice and they advised that I had to pay a further three months of membership.

The debt went to ARC and now received documentation from Major Law Solicitors. The debt was £898 and has now gone to £1127 with solicitor and court fee. 

The top of document says Claim Form,  County Court Business Centre, Nottingham. 

It has admission form, admission and defence form or acknowledgement of service allowing 28 days to make defence. It also has I&E. Is this a formal court process to move towards CCJ. 

I don't want a CCJ as I  want to buy a house. I just want to clarify is a claim form the same as a letter of claim? I have completed acknowledgement of service via MoneyClaim.gov.uk to give myself some time to decide what to do. 

 

[dx100uk]

very rare for a gym to do court but it is for £900

no its not the same as a letter of claim.

please complete this:

 

 

 

[fkofilee]

Guessing this was really close to Statute Barred Status - Surprised it is going to court... 

 

[BlossomFire63]

Name of the Claimant ? David Lloyd

How many defendant's  joint or self ? Self

Date of issue –  17th August

Particulars of Claim

 

What is the claim for – 

1.The claimant claims 975 pounds and 73 pence being the balance of consideration outstanding to it under account number ……… in respect of services rendered to the defendant

2. the claimant also claims interest thereon pursuant to s 69 county court act 1984 limited to one year to the date hereof at the rate of 8pc per annum amounting to 79 pounds and 73 pence.

3.The claimant claims interest under section 69 of the country court act 1984 at a rate of 8% a year from 05/07/2022 to 15/08/2023 on £896.00 and also interest at the same rate up to the date of judgement or earlier payment at a daily rate of 0.20.

What is the total value of the claim? 1115.73
 

Have you received prior notice of a claim being issued pursuant to paragraph 3 of the PAPDC (Pre Action Protocol) ? I think I received a letter from Major Law in July 23 stating I needed to enter an arrangement or I may go to court. I did enter an arrangement with ARC but have not kept up with due to financial difficulties.
 

Have you changed your address since the time at which the debt referred to in the claim was allegedly incurred? NO
 

Did you inform the claimant of your change of address? N/A

Is the claim for - a Bank Account (Overdraft) or credit card or loan or catalogue or mobile phone account? No
 

When did you enter into the original agreement before or after April 2007 ? After 2007
 

Do you recall how you entered into the agreement...On line /In branch/By post ? On phone
 

Is the debt showing on your credit reference files (Experian/Equifax /Etc...) ? No
 

Has the claim been issued by the original creditor or was the account assigned and it is the Debt purchaser who has issued the claim. Original Creditor 

Were you aware the account had been assigned – did you receive a Notice of Assignment? No
 

Did you receive a Default Notice from the original creditor? No
 

Have you been receiving statutory notices headed “Notice of Sums in Arrears”  or " Notice of Arrears "– at least once a year ? No
 

Why did you cease payments? I stopped my membership and they stated I Still had to pay for three months memberships for 2x people as the membership covered me and my partner. I was on a payment plan but then ran into Financial Difficulties.
 

What was the date of your last payment? August 2021
 

Was there a dispute with the original creditor that remains unresolved? No

Did you communicate any financial problems to the original creditor and make any attempt to enter into a debt management plan? Yes

Claim Form 23 .pdf

[dx100uk]

pop up on the MCOL website detailed on the claimform.
[if mcol is not working return after the w/end or the next day if week time]
.
 register as an individual on the Gov't Gateway Site
Go to HMRC's login page.
Click the GREEN sign in button.
Click “Create sign in details”
Enter your email address where asked.
You will now be emailed a confirmation code. ...
You will now be issued with a User ID for your government gateway account.
 note down your details inc the long gateway number given, you might need it later.
 then log in to the MCOL Website
.
 select respond to a claim and select the start AOS box.
.
 then using the details required from the claimform
.
 defend all
 leave jurisdiction unticked
 you DO NOT file a defence at this time
[BUT you MUST file a defence regardless by day 33 ]
click thru to the end
confirm and exit MCOL.
..

.
get a CPR  31:14  request running to the solicitors [if one is not listed send to the claimant]

https://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/topic/332546-legal-cpr-3114-request-request-for-information-when-a-claim-has-been-issued/

 type your name ONLY
Do Not sign anything
.do not ever use or give an email
.
you DO NOT await the return of ANY paperwork 
you MUST file a defence regardless by day 33 from the date on the claimform [1 in the count]

..............

 

[dx100uk]

@slick132 will pop in soon our master at this and help.

but just so you get a wee bit of background

type in David LLoyd in our ENHANCED GOOGLE SEARCH BOX and get reading.

under gym industry standards they cannot demand 3mts notice of cancellation neither can they thus charge 3mts membership fees because you failed to cancel by standing on one leg and whistling god save the queen or WHY.

the std is 1mth! and most never bother to accept that £sum that if a cancellation letter was not sent and later offered.

its also very interesting to note they have left this almost till its Statute barred to gain the maximum court interest and increase the chances you had moved.

i would expect DL have no idea this is going on and will most probably discontinue the claim once it gets near to having to pay the hearing fee, as Major law were probably hoping you'd wet yourself and pay them as soon as this lands and DL would know nothing about the claim in their name. ML staff straight down the pub for a knees up or to book a holiday on your free money.

 

dx

 

[slick132]

Hi Blossom,

 

Do you recall, when you gave the gym notice of leaving :-

1. Did you do it verbally or in writing.

2. Did you pay 1 last month's fee AFTER giving notice to leave.

3. What was the m/ship fee each month.

You refer above to an arrangement - I did enter an arrangement with ARC but have not kept up with due to financial difficulties. Please provide brief details of what you paid, when, and to whom.

[dx100uk]

you really need to be responding to this thread and the questions @BlossomFire63

dx

 

[BlossomFire63]

Hi Apologies,

I had to travel with emergency hence why I haven’t responded.

I have realised I got the membership around October 2020 and had it until 2022 July.

I had the membership frozen I think from Jan 22 and DL said I could freeze for a fee of £30 pp

when i went to cancel after it had been frozen, DL advised I will have to pay full price for a further 3 months.

I am going to go through my bank statements and check when I stopped paying.

I think the debt went to ARC Dec 2022 ,  I will look what payments to them.

I have completed AOS on MoneyClaim. And will follow next steps as advised

[dx100uk]

Can you try and use punctuation, blank lines and sentences in your posts, 

ive had to adapt nearly every one so far.

this is a forum not facebook.

1 block of txt is very diff to understand.

thank you 

...........

just to clarify 2 things..

be under no illusion these new claims after years since the ashbourne? case are a test to see how they fair, it could open the flood gates, if we screw up,

im wondering now many others were sent out,  1000's probably.

we typically only see <0.1% of claims issued on the various subjects we cover on CAG. DCA bought consumer debts, 'fake' private parking tickets,  etc.

Pease be very very wary the court will not give a flying .... you have had or are going thru emergency issues and the fleecers will most certainly look to exploit any such issues poss fatally to you, so going fwd, plan ahead and insure you do things by the dates in your sticky post or put in place measures to cover yourself if these emergencies happen again.

musing about things further, it's worthy to note david lloyd is a powerful business and media mogul, he would not have raised these claims without serious consideration of the bad media implications going forward and their better than average chance of failure. 

now it might just be that his management team have done this after a corporate sign up deal to major law with them claiming they have magical powers and they might all get discontinued.

id like to see other claims too, as i suspect they will all be sums near £1000, or better than £600 i bet, this opens the door should people lose or not respond and get a default judgement as they'd moved, the involvement of high court bailiffs to enforce and could well have been part of the same corp sign up deal with DL. watch this space.

To be honest ML are not one of the most ethical solicitors out there and are known to advise to litigate debts other companies would never touch with  barge pole, they are simply after money, and signing up big clients to their schemes, so hopefully when DL himself gets wind things might fizzle out.

 

,

[slick132]

Yes, DX is right - MajorLaw have threatened action in hundreds of cases here on CAG but taken NO court action that we've seen. They may well be seeing if court action is successful, now we are 12 years on after the High Court ruling against AMSL back in 2011.

You need to do everything possible to defend using the most relevant point.

Also, you mention needing to avoid a CCJ so you can buy a property. If Judgement goes against you, you can avoid this showing on your credit file by paying the judgement amount in full within 30 days (if able).

Please give specific answers to my Q's above. Also, tell us :-

4. Did you make DL aware that you were in financial difficulty when you froze the m/ship and/or when you try to cancel it. If so, tell us details.

5. Do you have anything in writing or emails about this. If so, give us details.

These last 2 points may be critical in terms of your defence.

[BlossomFire63]

Hi there, 

 

Apologies for the poor punctuation and grammar issues. I noticed on the claim form that the reference number for Major Law is the same reference that ARC Europe Limited used when they previously contacted me.

 

I spoke to ARC Europe Limited this evening. The person I spoke with stated that ARC Europe Limited are chasing the debt on behalf of DL and that ML are the legal representative.

 

They have my DOB recorded incorrectly on the debt. The date and month are correct but they have my partner's year of birth, it appears they have merged details as we had a couples membership. 

 

I did make DL aware that I was experiencing financial difficulty but I do not have copies of my emails unfortunately. 

 

I spoke with ARC with June this year re a payment plan but did not keep up with it. 

 

I will send off my CPR 31.14 letter by recorded delivery tomorrow. 

Correspondence with David Lloyd. 

I have found an email from DL stating I owed this amount. This was dated 02.02.22 .

“I’m writing about your membership at David Lloyd.

We just wanted to let you know that this month’s membership fees have now become due and you have an outstanding balance of £172.75. To bring your membership at the David Lloyd Club up to date, you can pay by credit or debit card.

I did email David Lloyd about my membership and financial difficulties however I have not saved it.

I have a confirmation email from DL dated 17.02.22 confirming I contacted them about my membership. 

Reference No: [xxxxxxx] Hello, and thanks for getting in touch. This auto-reply is to let you know that we've received your message. Your unique reference number can be found just above in the subject line. We'll get started on your query right away and be back in touch as quickly as possible. Kind regards, David Lloyd Clubs

 

I think I requested to end the membership around May 22 and DL advised that I needed for pay June, July, August 2022.

I do not have the emails though.

I am currently going through my bank statements to ascertain when I stopped paying DL. 

Correspondence with ARC 

Email from ARC Europe - Jun 30, 2023, 11:39 AM

 

Details of Payment Plan

ARC (Europe) Ltd. Reference: ********* (David Lloyd Clubs) Outstanding Balance: £896.00

Dear ————,

Thank you for setting up a payment plan with our Customer Support Team. Please see the full details below.

This agreement will be subject to periodic review. 

Have any questions? 

Should you have any questions in connection with this plan or for any other reason please speak to us via webchat by visiting our website www.arceuropeltd.co.uk or call us on 01932 251000 quoting reference xxxxxxxx

If you are in financial difficulties we recommend you contact one of the free organisations who give free debt advice.

We should advise that if we do not receive your payment as per the agreed arrangement, we will recommence formal collections activity, which will include letters and telephone calls, in effort to reach an amicable solution to resolve this matter.

If we hold your card details to facilitate this payment arrangement and you wish to cancel or amend this payment method, please call us on 01932 251000 before the day payment is due.

Kind regards,

Customer Support Team ARC (Europe) Ltd. customers@arceuropeltd.co.uk Tel: 01932 251000

Office Hours: Monday to Friday: 8.30am – 6.30pm Saturday: 9.00am – 1.00pm.

 

From: ARC (Europe) Ltd Reg Office: Kent House, Churchfield Road, Walton-on-Thames, Surrey KT12 2TU Registered: In England, No. 4214145

[dx100uk]

2 hours ago, BlossomFire63 said:

I spoke to ARC Europe Limited this evening.

STOP phoning the claimant or their dog or their previous dogs.

writing ONLY from now on and if we advise...they will LIE!

dx

 

[Andyorch]

Topic moved to General Legal Issues forum.

[dx100uk]

/assets/static/govuk-opengraph-image-dade2dad5775023b0568381c4c074b86318194edb36d3d68df721eea7deeac4b.png

Ashbourne Management Services: unfair gym membership contracts - GOV.UK

WWW.GOV.UK

---

Office of Fair Trading (OFT) closed consumer enforcement case.

 

[slick132]

Hi Blossom,

The point you make about your DoB is not relevant in terms of your defence.

To keep the necessary info together, please answer my Q's 1 to 5 briefly and together, bullet point format.

For your defence, we may need to focus on your financial hardship when you tried to freeze or cancel the m/ship. Can you really not access emails from 18 months back when you contacted the gym - this could be key to showing their failure to treat you fairly when you needed this. Check for any relevant emails and let us know.

If you can't find the actual emails, tell us instead what you believe you told the gym when you tried to freeze or cancel the m/ship. Again, please do this briefly.

[dx100uk]

41 minutes ago, slick132 said:

Can you really not access emails from 18 months back when you contacted the gym

you should be able to log in online at their website to your webmail portal.

 

[BlossomFire63]

1. I've tried to log in to DL app and it states my membership details are not recognised. 

2. I cleared my personal email inbox a few months back hence why I do not have my emails. 

3. I have found one archived email from 5.11.2021 which states I wish to cancel my membership can someone please contact me to discuss. 

4. I spoke to DL in November 2021 and said I could not afford my full membership due to financial difficulties. They stated I could freeze the membership for a fee of £60. 

5. I then contacted them in around June 2022 to say I wished to cancel membership. 

6. DL advised that because the membership had been frozen for a period of time that I would have to give a further 3 months notice. 

7. The debt relates to that three months notice £260 x 3 plus they have added late payment fee and interest. 

8. I completed the AOS and have sent a letter to ML re CPR 31.14

9. I have tried to log onto my MoneyClaim account since submitting the AOS and it now states the claim number or password is no longer recognised. So I am trying to call the business centre to check this. 

[BankFodder]

Send the gym an SAR.

It may produce nothing – but it doesn't cost anything and it might produce some helpful information. Do it today. We probably should have advised you to do this earlier

[BlossomFire63]

Shall complete SAR by email or letter in post or both? 

[BlossomFire63]

I have now completed SAR via email to the gym and got a case reference number for the request. 

[slick132]

Hi Blossom, 

Your post above is very useful but can you provide more about :-

3. Did your email state financial hardship or something similar? Confirm the relevant wording that you used.

4. Did you pay the £60 to freeze the m/ship, then no more until you tried to cancel in June 2022?

5. and 6. Were these communications by phone or was anything by email.

7. Ignoring interest, what penalty charges have been added.

Lastly, please detail what amounts you paid to the gym or ARC since you told confirmed you could no longer afford the monthly fees.

[slick132]

Evaluation of the OFT's enforcement action on health and fitness contracts (Published by the CMA 30th Sept 2016) -

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/557129/evaluation-report-of-oft-action-in-gyms-sector.pdf

48. In March 2013, the OFT closed its investigation into Bannatyne’s Fitness Limited, David Lloyd Leisure Limited and Fitness First Clubs Limited, as they each gave undertakings to the OFT to amend their terms and practices to make membership contracts transparent and give their members better cancellation rights. In summary, they agreed to:

(a) extend rights for members to cancel their contracts early should their circumstances change in a way that makes attendance at the gym difficult or unaffordable – for example if they lose their job or suffer an injury;

(b) make a commitment not to describe membership as being of a fixed duration, if the contract automatically continues on a rolling basis after the initial membership period has expired

[BlossomFire63]

Shall I use in my defence that DL stated that I provide an additional three months' notice, effectively extending my membership commitment beyond the original 12 months. Then refer to OFT stating that such terms can be considered unfair and unreasonable? 

[slick132]

No, we will help you prepare the Defence for submission - we're working on this behind the scenes.

Meanwhile, answer my Q's above please.