My daughter signed a Bally contract at a mall sign up when she was 18. She asserts that the rep told her she could cancel it if necessary. However, she found that she had in fact committed to an uncancellable 36 month contract at $55 per month.
When the end of the contract was a few months away, I contacted this detestable company to notify them that under no circumstances was there to be any automatic renewal of the contract. For all I knew, if I didn't do anything the fine print might have said another 36 months. I called repeatedly, but never got through, then sent e-mails.
They eventually responded by phone to my e-mail - after about a month. The woman told me something that seemed odd; the contract ended March 28 but I could not notify them till AFTER the end of the contract that there was to be no renewal.
So the day after the end, I sent two copies of "DO NOT RENEW' to them.
Then, on my next credit card statement, I found a final monthly charge that was posted on March 28, the day the contract ended. What health club charges the monthly fee at the END of the month? Sio I disputed the charge with my credit card company, and after investigation they notified me that the charge was removed.
I suspect Bally's devious plan is this. Tell the customer they have to wait till AFTER the contract ends to officially cancel. Then they can (seemingly legitimately) make one more charge, as if you're continuing the contract. Many people probably see the final charge and think it is the last one due under the contract; when really it isn't. Thus they don't challenge it and Bally gets an extra month's fee. So watch for this slimy little ploy from this disgusting company.
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