In full transparency, the following is a press release from the Massachusetts Attorney General’s office submitted to SOURCE media.
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BOSTON – As part of the bankruptcy process involving Boston Sports Clubs (BSC), Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey today, March 24, announced that her office secured nearly $127,000 in refunds for hundreds of consumers in Massachusetts who filed claims after being wrongfully charged or having trouble cancelling their memberships.
After Town Sports International, LLC (TSI), the parent company of BSC, filed for bankruptcy on September 14, the AG’s Office obtained a court order committing the company to an administrative process for consumers to file post-bankruptcy claims for a refund.
As a result of this process, a total of 588 consumers in Massachusetts will be receiving full refunds totaling $126,858.
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“Our goal from the beginning has been about securing relief for consumers who were swindled by BSC and trapped in their memberships,” Healey said. “While obtaining money from a bankrupt company can present significant challenges, we are pleased to be able to get this result for the hundreds of consumers who took part in the claims process.”
Consumers who were wrongfully charged before TSI was sold on November 30 and who submitted a claim to the Bankruptcy Court will receive a full refund. They will receive notification in the next week informing them about the result of their claim, followed by an email with payment via virtual Mastercard. Consumers will receive refunds in the amounts they indicated in their claims or, if no amount was stated, based on TSI’s records.
The Bankruptcy Court also ordered BSC not to pursue collections on consumers who obtained a refund through a dispute with their credit card companies.
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In November 2020, AG Healey sued BSC following repeated failures to honor cancellation requests and stop charging for unwanted memberships. BSC also refused to follow through on previous commitments with the AG’s Office to provide refunds to affected consumers. The lawsuit was later amended in December to name former CEO Patrick Walsh alleging, among other things, that he authorized BSC to bill consumers while the clubs were closed last April.
The AG’s Office is continuing to pursue its case against BSC and Walsh in Suffolk Superior Court to obtain additional refunds.
This case is being handled by Deputy Chief Shennan Kavanagh and Assistant Attorney General Ann Lynch of AG Healey’s Consumer Protection Division
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