Are you wondering about your rights as a consumer, in particular with the introduction of the vaccination passport? Do you have a membership at a fitness or weight management centre that is closed because of COVID-19? The following questions may be of interest to you.

Do I have the right to cancel my contract with a fitness centre if, for example, I am unable to access the centre because of the requirement to show a vaccination passport? i

You can cancel a contract with a fitness centre, but the rules are different depending on when you decide to put an end to the contract.

Under the Consumer Protection Act, you can cancel a contract without any fees or penalties if the cancellation is made before any services provided for in the contract are delivered.

If the centre has begun delivering the services to you, you may cancel your contract within a period equal to 1/10 of the intended length of the contract. Under the Consumer Protection Act, the merchant cannot claim more than 1/10 of the total price of the contract.

After the deadline provided for by the Act, the Civil Code of Québec gives you the right to terminate your contract. As provided for under articles 2125 and 2129 of the Code, the merchant may then claim the price of the services provided, calculated as a percentage of the total length of the contract. If applicable, the merchant must also reimburse any amounts you paid in advance for services that were not delivered. In addition, the merchant can claim compensation for damages suffered. However, the merchant cannot claim compensation for future damages (e.g., loss of profit) or include a penalty clause in the contract that provides for an assessment of anticipated damages.

To find out more, refer to the page on cancelling a membership at a fitness or weight management centre.

Do I have the right to suspend the payments provided for in my contract? i

In the event of closure

You have a membership with unlimited access for a given period lasting up to a maximum of one year. In most cases, a payment schedule is included in your contract. If the service described in your contract is not delivered to you because of the closure ordered by the Québec government, you may suspend the payments you would normally have to make to this merchant.

In the event of a vaccination passport requirement

If you can no longer receive the service as a result of the introduction of the vaccination passport, try to reach an agreement with the merchant before suspending the payments provided for in your contract.

You have entered into a contract that binds you to the merchant. Unless you reach an agreement with the merchant, the merchant may choose to go to court to receive payment for the services provided.

Do I have the right to suspend the payments made by pre-authorized debits? i

In the event of closure

If you are paying for your membership by pre-authorized debits, it is in your best interest to have the payments stopped during the closure period ordered by the Québec government. To do so, you must notify the merchant and your financial institution, preferably in writing.

If the pre-authorized debit instalments are still going through, you must inform the merchant of that fact. Once the situation has returned to normal, you can try to reach an agreement with the merchant regarding the amounts you have paid for the service you have not received. If you fail to reach an agreement, you can send the merchant a formal demand before turning to the courts.

In the event of a vaccination passport requirement

If you can no longer receive the service as a result of the introduction of the vaccination passport, try to reach an agreement with the merchant before suspending the payments provided for in your contract.

You have entered into a contract that binds you to the merchant. Unless you reach an agreement with the merchant, the merchant may choose to go to court to receive payment for the services provided.

I have paid the full cost of my membership in advance. Do I have the right to be reimbursed for the portion of the services I have not received as a result of the centre being closed? i

You have paid the full cost of your membership at a centre. However, the services are not delivered to you because of the measures to close certain businesses adopted by the Québec government to limit the spread of COVID-19.

Once the situation has returned to normal, you can try to reach an agreement with the merchant regarding the services that were paid for but not received. If you fail to reach an agreement, you can send a formal demand to the merchant before turning to the courts.

What can I do if the contract I have signed with a fitness or weight management centre contains a “force majeure” clause? i

Such a clause could specify, among other things, that you must fulfill your obligation (i.e. pay for your membership), even if the centre has to close due to a “force majeure” (superior force, or fortuitous event). You can then consider the option of cancelling your contract in order to reduce the loss incurred.

For more details, refer to the page that explains how to cancel a membership at a fitness or weight management centre.

Can a merchant offer to extend my contract to compensate for the days on which the centre is closed due to measures imposed by the government or when access is restricted to individuals with a vaccination passport? i

Yes, under certain conditions. You can try to reach an agreement with the merchant, making sure the merchant abides by the obligations provided for under the Consumer Protection Act. The maximum length of a membership contract with a fitness or weight management centre is one year. The merchant should therefore not extend an ongoing contract if doing so would increase the length of the contract to beyond one year.

However, nothing prevents a merchant from offering to renew your contract upon its expiry, free of charge ($0), for a length of time that is equivalent to the number of days the centre was closed, the period of time during which you have to wait to get a vaccination passport, or the period of time during which access is restricted to individuals who can show proof of vaccination.

The merchant could also offer you to enter into a new contract that would include free services. These services should correspond to the value of the services already paid for but that were not provided because of a closure or that you could not receive as a result of limited access to the centre.

Before the pandemic, I had a membership for a limited period at a gym for which I paid fees every month. When the gym closed by order of the government, the gym suspended my membership as well as payment of the fees. Now that the gym has reopened, does my membership resume where it was suspended? i

Yes. For example, if there were 2 months left in your membership, you are entitled to use these 2 last months at the rate provided for in your contract. The merchant is also entitled to require that you pay for these 2 last months, even if you have no plans to go to that gym. You could, however, decide to cancel your membership, but the merchant could charge you a compensation fee. The page that explains how to cancel your membership provides all the details.

Top of page