South Carolina Gym and Subscription Cancellation Letter

Cancel a gym membership or an auto-renewing subscription in South Carolina with a letter that builds in South Carolina law, including Physical Fitness Services Act (S.C. Code Title 44, Chapter 79). It runs in your browser; nothing you type is stored or sent.

South Carolina rules checked against primary sources on October 21, 2026.

Everything you type stays in your browser. Nothing is sent, saved, or added to the page address.

Only the reasons South Carolina law addresses for this kind of contract are listed.

South Carolina gym membership rules

The law: Physical Fitness Services Act (S.C. Code Title 44, Chapter 79). Read the law

Who it covers: The contract rules apply to prepaid or credit contracts with for-profit fitness centers (gyms, spas, tanning centers, athletic clubs) lasting over three months or costing over $200; the State, local governments and any not-for-profit corporation are exempt.

  • Cooling-off period: You can cancel by sending notice by certified mail before midnight of the third business day after signing; business days are Monday through Friday excluding state and federal holidays, and the center must return payments within 30 days, less a pro rata charge for days you used. Source: S.C. Code 44-79-30(A)(5)(a)
  • How the club must let you cancel: The 3-day cancellation goes by certified mail; death, disability and relocation cancellations go by written notice to the center's contract address at any time. Source: S.C. Code 44-79-30(A)(5)(a)-(b)
  • Moving away: You can cancel at any time by written notice if you permanently move to a home more than 50 miles from any outlet the center operates and it cannot arrange use of an equivalent center; the center may ask for proof and keeps a monthly rate for the months used. Source: S.C. Code 44-79-30(A)(5)(b)(3)
  • Disability or illness: You can cancel at any time by written notice for a physician-certified substantial physical disability that makes it permanently impossible to use the center; temporary disability is handled only if the contract allows an extension. Source: S.C. Code 44-79-30(A)(5)(b)(2)
  • Death of the member: The customer's estate may cancel at any time by written notice on the customer's death and receive unearned prepayments back after the monthly-rate charge. Source: S.C. Code 44-79-30(A)(5)(b)(1)
  • Military service: A servicemember with military orders to relocate for at least 90 days to a place that does not support the contract may end an athletic club or gym membership by written or electronic notice with a copy of the orders, with no early termination fee and a refund of prepaid fees within 60 days. It applies to contracts entered into, extended, or amended on or after July 1, 2019. Source: S.C. Code 25-1-4060; 25-1-4020
  • Automatic renewal: South Carolina law lets a gym contract renew automatically only month to month, and only if the renewal clause is in bold type of at least 14-point font on the front page and you initialed it; a renewal option longer than one month (up to 12 months) is enforceable only if you exercise it in writing or by paying. A contract provision that does not comply with the chapter is unenforceable against you. Source: S.C. Code 44-79-60(3)-(4); 44-79-50
  • Refund timing: After a 3-day cancellation the center must return payments and any note within 30 days of receiving the notice. Source: S.C. Code 44-79-30(A)(5)(a)

If a business will not process a cancellation, you can complain to: South Carolina Department of Consumer Affairs

Your details
The business

Use the cancellation address in your contract if it gives one; for a franchise gym, that is often your home club.

Leave blank to cancel immediately.

Check before you send:

  • Add the member name exactly as it appears on the account.
  • Add the business name.
  • Add the business mailing address (from your contract or the business website).

Your letter

[Member name]

[Your address]

October 26, 2026

[Business name]

[Business address]

Re: Cancellation of membership

To whom it may concern:

I am writing to cancel my membership, effective immediately.

Please stop all further charges to my payment method, refund any amount paid for a period after the cancellation takes effect, and confirm the cancellation in writing, including the date it took effect.

Please keep this letter with the account records. I am keeping a copy, with proof of the date it was sent.

Sincerely,

[Member name]

Before you send (not part of the letter)

  • South Carolina: The 3-day cancellation goes by certified mail; death, disability and relocation cancellations go by written notice to the center's contract address at any time. (S.C. Code 44-79-30(A)(5)(a)-(b))
  • Refund timing in South Carolina: After a 3-day cancellation the center must return payments and any note within 30 days of receiving the notice. (S.C. Code 44-79-30(A)(5)(a))
  • Send it in a way you can prove: a method your contract or state law names, and keep a copy. Certified mail with a return receipt gives you a dated record.
  • If charges continue after the cancellation takes effect, you can dispute them with your card issuer or bank (see the timing rules on this page).
  • Complaints: South Carolina Department of Consumer Affairs, https://consumer.sc.gov/consumer-resources/consumer-complaints
  • This letter is a starting point you edit and send yourself. It does not cancel anything by itself, and it is not legal advice.

South Carolina gym membership cancellation law

South Carolina regulates these contracts through Physical Fitness Services Act (S.C. Code Title 44, Chapter 79) (S.C. Code 44-79-20, S.C. Code 44-79-30, S.C. Code 44-79-40, S.C. Code 44-79-50, S.C. Code 44-79-60, S.C. Code 44-79-110). The rules below come from the statute text; each links to its source, and the first line says which contracts the law covers.

South Carolina gym membership rules

The law: Physical Fitness Services Act (S.C. Code Title 44, Chapter 79). Read the law

Who it covers: The contract rules apply to prepaid or credit contracts with for-profit fitness centers (gyms, spas, tanning centers, athletic clubs) lasting over three months or costing over $200; the State, local governments and any not-for-profit corporation are exempt.

  • Cooling-off period: You can cancel by sending notice by certified mail before midnight of the third business day after signing; business days are Monday through Friday excluding state and federal holidays, and the center must return payments within 30 days, less a pro rata charge for days you used. Source: S.C. Code 44-79-30(A)(5)(a)
  • How the club must let you cancel: The 3-day cancellation goes by certified mail; death, disability and relocation cancellations go by written notice to the center's contract address at any time. Source: S.C. Code 44-79-30(A)(5)(a)-(b)
  • Moving away: You can cancel at any time by written notice if you permanently move to a home more than 50 miles from any outlet the center operates and it cannot arrange use of an equivalent center; the center may ask for proof and keeps a monthly rate for the months used. Source: S.C. Code 44-79-30(A)(5)(b)(3)
  • Disability or illness: You can cancel at any time by written notice for a physician-certified substantial physical disability that makes it permanently impossible to use the center; temporary disability is handled only if the contract allows an extension. Source: S.C. Code 44-79-30(A)(5)(b)(2)
  • Death of the member: The customer's estate may cancel at any time by written notice on the customer's death and receive unearned prepayments back after the monthly-rate charge. Source: S.C. Code 44-79-30(A)(5)(b)(1)
  • Military service: A servicemember with military orders to relocate for at least 90 days to a place that does not support the contract may end an athletic club or gym membership by written or electronic notice with a copy of the orders, with no early termination fee and a refund of prepaid fees within 60 days. It applies to contracts entered into, extended, or amended on or after July 1, 2019. Source: S.C. Code 25-1-4060; 25-1-4020
  • Automatic renewal: South Carolina law lets a gym contract renew automatically only month to month, and only if the renewal clause is in bold type of at least 14-point font on the front page and you initialed it; a renewal option longer than one month (up to 12 months) is enforceable only if you exercise it in writing or by paying. A contract provision that does not comply with the chapter is unenforceable against you. Source: S.C. Code 44-79-60(3)-(4); 44-79-50
  • Refund timing: After a 3-day cancellation the center must return payments and any note within 30 days of receiving the notice. Source: S.C. Code 44-79-30(A)(5)(a)

If a business will not process a cancellation, you can complain to: South Carolina Department of Consumer Affairs

South Carolina subscription and automatic renewal law

South Carolina has a general automatic renewal law that applies to consumer subscriptions.

South Carolina subscription and auto-renewal rules

The law: S.C. Code 37-6-120, S.C. Code 37-1-301(31)-(32), S.C. Code 38-78-55, S.C. Code 44-79-60(4). Read the law

Who it covers: South Carolina's renewal rule covers written consumer contracts for services over a fixed period or specified duration that renew for a period of more than one month and would keep the contract in effect more than six months after it began, so month-to-month renewals fall outside it; renewals by PSC- or FCC-regulated telecom carriers, broadband entities under the Broadband Accessibility Act, and electric cooperatives are excluded.

  • Required ways to cancel: The renewal notice for a covered service contract must list ways to get cancellation details, including a toll-free number, an email address, a postal address if the seller bills directly, or another easy cancellation mechanism. Source: S.C. Code 37-6-120(C)
  • Renewal reminders: For a covered contract, the renewal clause cannot be enforced unless you were sent written or electronic notice 30 to 60 days before the cancellation deadline stating that it renews unless you cancel, the renewal amount, and how to get the renewal and cancellation details. Source: S.C. Code 37-6-120
  • If the business breaks the law: A renewal provision in a covered service contract is unenforceable if the required notice was not given. Source: S.C. Code 37-6-120

If a business will not process a cancellation, you can complain to: South Carolina Department of Consumer Affairs

Federal rules that still apply

No. The Federal Trade Commission finalized a "click to cancel" rule in 2024, but on July 8, 2025 the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit vacated it because the agency skipped a preliminary regulatory analysis the FTC Act requires (Custom Communications, Inc. v. FTC, No. 24-3137 (8th Cir. 2025)). The vacatur brought back the original 1973 rule, which covers only "prenotification" plans such as product-of-the-month clubs, not gym memberships or most subscriptions.

In March 2026 the FTC asked for public comment on a new negative option rule. An advance notice is an early step: it does not create any new obligation for businesses. (FTC press release, March 11, 2026)

Federal law still reaches subscriptions sold online. For subscriptions sold online with automatic charges, federal law (ROSCA) requires clear disclosure of the terms, the consumer's express informed consent, and simple mechanisms to stop the recurring charges. (15 U.S.C. 8403). For gym memberships signed in person, the cancellation rules come from state law and your contract.

If they keep charging you

If a business keeps charging you after a cancellation took effect, you can dispute the charge with the company that issued your card or holds your account. For a credit card, a written billing-error notice must reach the card issuer, at the address it gives for billing errors, within 60 days after it sent the first statement showing the charge. (12 CFR 1026.13(b)) For a debit card or bank transfer, an oral or written error notice must reach the bank within 60 days after it sent the statement that first shows the charge. (12 CFR 1005.11(b)(1)(i))

For automatic debits from a bank account, you can also stop future payments. You can tell your bank to stop a preauthorized electronic payment from your account, orally or in writing, at least three business days before the payment is scheduled. If you call, the bank may require written confirmation within 14 days, and an unconfirmed oral stop order then lapses. (12 CFR 1005.10(c)(1)-(2))

Your copy of the cancellation letter and your proof of the date you sent it are the evidence for a dispute. The regulations define which errors these procedures cover and the card issuer or bank investigates, so send the dispute promptly and in writing.

You can also report a business that will not let you cancel to your state attorney general (each state page lists its complaint office), to the Federal Trade Commission, or, for a problem with a card or bank dispute, to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

What this tool does not do

  • It does not cancel anything for you or contact the business. You send the letter yourself.
  • It cannot read your contract. A statute may exempt your club or plan (for example by price, length, or type of business), and your contract may give you more rights than the statute.
  • It does not tell you whether you owe a fee, a buyout, or the rest of a contract term. Those depend on your contract and the facts.
  • It covers state statutes and the main federal rules only. City rules and court decisions can add to them.
  • It is legal information, not legal advice.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is there a cooling-off period for gym memberships in South Carolina?

You can cancel by sending notice by certified mail before midnight of the third business day after signing; business days are Monday through Friday excluding state and federal holidays, and the center must return payments within 30 days, less a pro rata charge for days you used. (S.C. Code 44-79-30(A)(5)(a))

Can I cancel my gym membership in South Carolina if I move?

You can cancel at any time by written notice if you permanently move to a home more than 50 miles from any outlet the center operates and it cannot arrange use of an equivalent center; the center may ask for proof and keeps a monthly rate for the months used. (S.C. Code 44-79-30(A)(5)(b)(3))

How do I cancel a gym membership in South Carolina?

The 3-day cancellation goes by certified mail; death, disability and relocation cancellations go by written notice to the center's contract address at any time. (S.C. Code 44-79-30(A)(5)(a)-(b))

Does South Carolina have a click-to-cancel law?

South Carolina's automatic renewal law does not include an online cancellation requirement, by the text we checked. Federal law (ROSCA) still requires a simple way to stop recurring charges for subscriptions sold online.

Sources

South Carolina rules checked against official sources on October 21, 2026.

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