Mildly Infuriating

This is built into some email services, where you with [email protected], you can set the label to whatever you want and it all goes to [email protected]. unfortunately many sites will incorrectly claim that + is invalid in am address.

What do disposable email addresses and spam filters have to do with canceling a gym membership? I don't see anything on that page referring to banking or credit card transactions.

OP mentioned getting emails, but the topic at hand was changing their card, not hiding from the emails. Any email service is capable of blocking a domain, why would a special email service be of any use in this case? They weren't spam emails, they were missed payment reminders.

Blocking emails doesn't stop the payments, either.

So you off handedly throw out "turn off your card" as if that's the simple and obvious solution, with no other detrimental effects, and then tried to shoehorn a plug for your email service into this?

You just saw the words "daily emails", the tiniest sliver of a possible opening to plug your thing, and you took it, regardless of it was on topic or not.

In essence, you dropped spam for your spam filtering service.

its a purposeful way of extracting money from a group they know wont fully utilize what they are selling.

they want you to sign up, and forget about it. its a scam.

Why are all gym memberships like this? The first thing I check before starting a service is how easy it is to end it. I’ve not been able to find a single gym with reasonable terms.

I do the same. So many gyms have abusive terms which is an immediate deal breaker for me.

There are handful I've found that aren't bad offering true month-to-month service. Give notice by phone or email by X day of the month and your membership ends at the end of that month. Miss that date? You only have one more month beyond that then.

For years Planet Fitness had a good deal they'd only run for a couple of days a year where you could prepay for the entire year for $99 (or later $120). You didn't give them your bank info, no "credit card on file". You could literally hand them the cash and 365 days from that day your membership would expire with zero action on our part. That was the best membership deal I've seen yet. I don't know if they still do that.

In the meantime, one could always pay with a prepaid card and then just never add funds when you decide to quit. Then just “return to sender” any mail they try to send you.

If you're using your real name I would imagine they'd send the debt to collections which would cost you even more when your credit score tanks and you try to buy a car or house.

Gym membership is the only chargeback I've ever done.

When I signed up I put my wife and myself on my credit card and we used it for a long time. We decided to cancel and I called them up, waited on hold for almost an hour, finally got through and they told me that I could only cancel mine, as I was the only one talking to them. I told them my name is on both accounts and it's my credit card payment information, I'm not paying for them anymore, and the outsourced customer service guy literally just repeated his script. He also told me that I would still be on the hook for some reason for 3 more months of membership, nothing he could do.

Called my credit card, picked up immediately and the woman was extremely nice and understanding. Within 20 minutes my money was back and any future payments were blacklisted to them.

Name and shame, it was 24 hour fitness, but from what I hear this happens with all the major gyms.

Also, see if your own credit card will allow virtual cards. I have at least two where I can create virtual cards and one that allows me to set them as single use, continual, or trial card that will validate but not charge.

I use Chime. Usually for just small payments occasionally.

My fitness gym (Germany) has subscriptions, but there is also one that can be canceled monthly, which is offered at a discount, especially at the beginning of the year, because of the new year resolutions, so people who regret it can cancel quickly. It is still available later in the year, but is then about 20% more expensive than if you enter into a contract for 12 months, which is still billed monthly and not all at once at the beginning. There is also a student discount that saves you around €200 a year. You can cancel online or on site, I've already done it once and it went without a hitch. So it seems to be a bit more convenient here than with OP. Although I would love a prepaid option as you describe.

NGL, I keep logs of that shit and I get a real boner doing a charge back about how I don't approve and then when my CC is like why, I send them the documented proof of a company's fuckery. Timestamps, who I spoke with, how I did due diligence in trying my best to cancel but the shit hole company made it a hassle.

Did it four times in a decade and not a single rejection from the CC to get my money back.

My gym offered refunds while it was burned to the ground