Terms and conditions for a CrossFit or functional fitness gym

A functional fitness gym needs terms that cover three things at once: a recurring membership taken by direct debit, a booking system with capped classes, and a training floor with loaded equipment. Most disputes come from freezes, cancellations and injuries rather than from the workout itself. I draft a full set of membership terms for a fixed fee of £995, delivered in five working days.

Who this is for

Affiliated and independent CrossFit boxes, functional fitness and strength and conditioning gyms in England and Wales. Almost all your members are consumers, which shapes what the terms can and cannot do. Some of you also sell corporate memberships, team block bookings and drop-in passes, and those need handling differently in the same document.

What matters in a functional fitness gym's terms

Memberships, minimum terms and cancellation

Most gyms sell rolling monthly memberships by direct debit, often with a minimum term and a joining fee. The terms need to say how notice is given, when the final payment falls, and what happens at renewal. Under the Consumer Rights Act 2015 a one-sided right to change the price or the class timetable, or to keep prepayments when a member cancels, sits on the grey list of terms likely to be unfair, and Office of Fair Trading v Ashbourne Management Services Ltd [2011] EWHC 1237 (Ch) remains the leading authority on minimum terms in gym contracts. Further subscription rules are being introduced under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024, so auto-renewal wording should be drafted with that in view.

Health declarations, waivers and injury

Injuries occur, and a member who omitted a heart condition from the health form may still attend a high-intensity class. A waiver cannot exclude liability for death or personal injury caused by negligence, and the Consumer Rights Act 2015 will not let you sign a consumer out of that. What the terms can do is record the health information given, oblige the member to tell you when it changes, require them to scale when a coach says so, and make clear that open gym use is unsupervised.

Class booking, no-shows and the advertised price

Classes are capped, so a member who books and does not appear has taken someone else's place. A late cancellation or no-show charge is defensible if it is proportionate and flagged before booking; a punitive one is on the grey list under the Consumer Rights Act 2015. Set out the booking window, the cancellation deadline, and what an unlimited membership includes. Under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 the headline price you advertise must include mandatory charges such as a joining fee, rather than revealing them at checkout.

Joining online and the cancellation period

Where members join through your website or an app, that is a distance contract and the Consumer Contracts (Information, Cancellation and Additional Charges) Regulations 2013 give a 14 day cancellation right running from the contract date. A member who trains during that period pays a proportionate amount only if they expressly asked to start early and you recorded it. Where the cancellation information was never given, the period can extend by up to 12 months. The Electronic Commerce (EC Directive) Regulations 2002 also require you to explain the sign-up steps and make the terms available to store.

Affiliation and the coaches on your floor

If you hold an affiliate licence, your members contract with your gym, not with the brand. The terms should avoid promising branded programming or a named methodology indefinitely, because a licence can end and you will still owe members a gym. Deal separately with self-employed coaches and personal trainers using your floor: they need their own agreement covering insurance, qualifications, floor fees and who owns the client relationship. Employment status turns on the facts, and HMRC's Check Employment Status for Tax tool is the reference point.

Gym rules, property, drop-ins and corporate members

Rules on chalk, dropping bars, bringing children onto the floor, filming other members and using equipment unsupervised belong in the terms, with a stated right to suspend or remove someone who ignores them. Cover lockers and property left behind, day passes, and what a visiting athlete signs before touching a barbell. If you sell block memberships to employers or sports teams, those are business customers, and the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998 lets you claim interest and fixed compensation on a late invoice.

What it costs

Customer or supplier terms and conditions, £995. One set of terms, customer-facing or supplier-facing, drafted for your business. Five working days.

Review of your existing terms, £495. You already have terms and want them checked and brought up to date. Returned marked up with my amendments and an explanation of the changes. Three working days.

Email me at geoffrey@caesar.co.uk with what you need and any documents, and I will confirm the scope and the fee in writing, usually the same working day. If you would rather pay straight away, buying online forms the engagement on payment: the scope is what the terms and conditions drafting page describes, you accept the Terms of Service at checkout, and I will be in touch promptly to get started.

What you get

• A full set of bespoke terms drafted for your business, reflecting the legal requirements that apply to your business and sector
• A note in plain English explaining the terms I have drafted for you
• Liability, payment, termination and IP provisions that protect your position and are drafted to withstand scrutiny from the other side
• Guidance on how to incorporate the terms properly
• Your questions and comments answered by email or phone
• One round of amendments to finalise the terms ready for use

What is not included

• Negotiating your terms with individual customers (I am happy to quote for this as an additional service if required)
• Sector-specific regulatory compliance beyond the contract terms themselves
• Website privacy notice and cookie compliance, which I quote separately
• Terms governed by the law of another country
• Tax advice

Questions I am often asked

Can a waiver stop a member suing me if they are injured?

A waiver cannot remove liability for death or personal injury caused by negligence, and no drafting changes that. What a properly drawn one does is evidence what the member was told about intensity and technique, what health information they gave you, and that they agreed to follow coaching instruction. That evidence is what your insurer will ask for when a claim arrives.

A member is injured and wants to pause. What should the terms say about freezes?

Write a freeze policy into the terms rather than negotiating each case at the front desk: how long a freeze can run, whether medical evidence is needed, whether a holding fee applies, and how a minimum term is extended. Gyms with no written policy grant open-ended freezes to some members and refuse others, which is where complaints begin.

What happens to my membership contracts if I stop being an affiliate?

Your members contracted with your gym. Where the terms describe what you provide in terms of coached sessions, equipment and opening hours rather than a licensed brand name, losing an affiliation is a rebrand rather than a breach. Where they promise branded programming by name, expect some members to argue they can leave and claim a refund.

Related guidance and services

• Terms and conditions drafting, £995, the service this page describes
• Employment contracts and handbooks, £595
• Consultancy and contractor agreements, £595
• Terms and conditions for a personal trainer
• Terms and conditions for a yoga or pilates studio

This page is general guidance for businesses in England and Wales, not advice on your own circumstances. Last reviewed: September 2026. Email geoffrey@caesar.co.uk.