After Pandemic Complaints, Checks Totaling $4 Million On The Way To MA Gym-Goers

MASSACHUSETTS — Tens of thousands of Massachusetts residents will soon be getting refunds for gym membership fees they were unfairly charged during the pandemic.

The state attorney general’s office on Wednesday said payments totaling $3.85 million will be sent to 47,000 former members of now-defunct Boston Sports Club.

The refunds stem from a lawsuit the office won last fall against Patrick Walsh, chief executive officer of Town Sports International, the parent company of Boston Sports Club. In April 2020 – the onset of the pandemic – Walsh charged members for gym use despite the fact that all BSC locations were temporarily closed, according to the finding in Suffolk County Superior Court.

The company operated 30 Boston Sports Club gyms in Massachusetts at the time.

Walsh acted unfairly because he knew the gyms would be shuttered and decided to bill members anyway, prosecutors said. He also made deceptive statements to BSC customers and failed to follow requests to cancel their memberships.

Members were furious. In fact the AG’s office said it received more than 2,000 complaints from people who were charged for utilizing gyms they couldn’t access because of the COVID-19 crisis.

Walsh was ordered to pay restitution to members who were unfairly billed from April to July in 2020 and had not received credit for the downtime.

Now AG Andrea Joy Campbell says the money is on the way.

Her office has hired a refund administrator, Analytics LLC, to handle the process, according to a statement.

Affected consumers will receive an email from bostonsportsclubrefund@refundadministrator.com with instructions on how to claim their payments. Information is also available here.

Town Sports International was a defendant in the AG's lawsuit but previously filed for bankruptcy and was therefore left out of the judgment last year.

The company did not respond to requests for comment or further information.