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Every January, gyms across the United States see a jump in enrollment due to New Year’s resolutions and low introductory rates. Life changes, moves, illness, and death, however, eventually leave many members needing to cancel their memberships. While not exactly easy, we've compiled a step-by-step guide on how to cancel a Planet Fitness membership for yourself or a deceased loved one.
While it’s typically easy to sign up for a gym membership with a recurring monthly payment, many gyms make you jump through a few hoops to cancel. Here, we break down the steps you'll need to take to cancel a Planet Fitness gym membership, either for yourself or a loved one who passed away.
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There are many reasons why you might cancel a Planet Fitness membership. You could be injured. You may find that you prefer exercising outdoors. You might be tightening up your finances. Whatever your motivation, here are the steps to cancel a gym membership at Planet Fitness.
Often, when people sign up for gym memberships, they are swayed by the promise of low monthly rates. In some cases, that lower rate is only available if you sign up for a particular period of time. That might be six months or a year. Before starting the cancellation process, it’s important to be sure you understand just what you signed up for.
If it turns out that you are committed for a longer period of time, it might make more sense to let your contract finish out, and then cancel it. If you only have two months left on a one-year contract, for example, two monthly payments will be cheaper than the one-time buy-out fee Planet Fitness requires for early termination.
If you have to wait a month or two, make sure to set a reminder on your phone or calendar app so you don't miss the cancellation window. Contracts are automatically renewed unless canceled.
Planet Fitness provides club members with a membership card or an app that gets scanned upon entry. Have this handy, along with account information such as the associated email, phone, and address on your account.
Most Planet Fitness clubs don't accept cancellations via phone or email. They require you to come in person or to submit a certified letter.
If you decide to cancel in person, you’ll go to your Planet Fitness location and ask to cancel your membership. You'll then be provided with a membership cancellation form to fill out. Once you fill out that form and sign it, snap a quick picture of the cancellation form for your personal records. Hand in the cancellation form and then ask for them to email you confirmation of your canceled membership.
The alternative cancellation method is to send a certified letter to your specific Planet Fitness location. The letter should include a clear and explicit request to cancel the membership, along with an effective date of cancellation. It should also include the following details:
Sign the cancellation letter and mail it as a certified letter. Certified mail can be easily tracked by the United States Postal Service, which can give you proof of delivery in case you need it. The company should reach out to you to confirm your cancellation within a week or so.
Unfortunately, there have been cases of people who have tried to cancel a gym membership only to find out later they were still being billed. Keep an eye on your credit card or bank statements to make sure that any automatic debits or charges have indeed been canceled. Also, remember that it can take up to seven business days to process the cancellation. If you’re too close to your usual automatic payment, it will cost you an extra month of membership fees.
Per Planet Fitness, monthly membership is billed on the 17th of each month. The club should receive your request for cancellation by the 10th in order for the charges to get stopped on time.
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When people die, they don’t always have enough warning to get their affairs in order. Their next of kin or the person taking on executor duties often has to cancel accounts and memberships.
Post-planning tip: If you are the executor for a deceased loved one, we have a post-loss checklist that will help you ensure that your loved one's family, estate, and other affairs are taken care of.
If you’re worried about the deceased's credit card being billed, a good first step is to cancel their credit cards . This will prevent Planet Fitness, and any other organizations with the deceased’s card on file, from future charges.
But even with credit cards canceled, you should still cancel the deceased’s gym membership so the estate doesn't get put into collections for non-payment. Here are the steps to canceling a Planet Fitness membership on behalf of a deceased loved one.
Planet Fitness will allow you to cancel an account for a deceased person. According to their FAQs, they require proof of death. A copy of the death certificate would be sufficient.
If you’re acting as executor, you may not be close enough to a gym to terminate the membership in person. Instead, write a letter to officially notify them that the account should be closed due to death. Mention that the death certificate will be enclosed. Other information you should include is:
Be sure to include a copy of the death certificate along with your email. Then, send it all certified so there is proof of delivery.
If you purchased a one-year contract membership, and you're planning to cancel before the year is over, you'll be charged a $58 buyout fee.
Planet Fitness memberships can only be canceled in person or by filling out a form and mailing it in. If you called your club or tried to send an email with a cancellation request, your account won't get canceled.
You can suspend your Planet Fitness membership for up to three months. To suspend your membership, you'll need to visit your club so a staff member can process your request. Though your monthly membership fees will be suspended, the annual fee will still be charged if it falls within the months of suspension.
You can, but you might have fees to pay if you're still within your contract period. To downgrade, you'll need to go into your club so a Planet Fitness staff member can assist with the process.
Yes! You can transfer from one Planet Fitness club to another by logging into your account, navigating to the member portal, and choosing your new club location.
If you’ve ever had a gym membership, you already know you may need to jump through some hoops when it’s time to cancel. Whether you’re canceling your own membership or taking care of someone’s digital afterlife , it’s never just a simple phone call. But if you follow these steps, you should be able to get your membership or your loved one's membership canceled with no problems.
