united-kingdom contract-law
Canceling an &quot;email&quot; contract
<p>I live in the UK. A few months ago, I registered at a gym. The employee there told me that I could cancel the subscription at any time. I didn't sign any contract, just gave my information.</p>

<p>Fast forward last month, I asked to cancel my subscription. They responded that "a welcome email was sent to me after my registration containing the terms and conditions of the gym and a 12-month obligation". Since I did not contest that email, I am bound by a contract.</p>

<p>I never received this email and I cannot find such an email anywhere (might had gone in the spam and then deleted, I'll never know). I asked them in writing (registered letter) to provide me of a proof that they sent the email to my account (including the email headers) or any other proof that I entered into a contract with them, but they haven't responded in 2 weeks.</p>

<p><strong>Is what they did legal?</strong> For instance, if I send to someone an email saying "you will pay me £x per month for 12 months for this service and this is a binding contract unless you reply to me in 14 days rejecting", is it legally binding?</p>

<p><strong>Can I cancel the payments unilaterally?</strong> They don't have any signed or verbal contract. Who has the burden of proving if I received the email or not?</p>

<p>This is not about the money. I am just upset by their business model. The employee clearly told me I would be able to cancel with 1 month notice which he now refuses to have said. Sending at email as a binding contract without verification of receipt is sneaky at the best. </p>

<h3>Is this a legally binding contract?</h3>

<p>Probably not: see the related question <a href="https://law.stackexchange.com/questions/6263/what-is-a-contract-and-what-is-required-for-them-to-be-valid">What is a contract and what is required for them to be valid?</a> Generally, silence cannot constitute acceptance: <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Felthouse_v_Bindley" rel="nofollow noreferrer"><em>Felthouse v Bindley</em></a> (1862) <a href="http://www.bailii.org/ew/cases/EWHC/CP/1862/J35.html" rel="nofollow noreferrer">142 ER 1037</a>. However, this doesn't mean that explicit assent or signed contract terms are always necessary – see the Wikipedia article on <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agreement_in_English_law" rel="nofollow noreferrer">agreement in English law</a>. Even if a contract has not been formed, accepting a benefit without forming a contract may constitute <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unjust_enrichment" rel="nofollow noreferrer">unjust enrichment</a>. The issue can become very complex if the amount of money involved is large enough to warrant litigation.</p>

<h3>Can I cancel the payments unilaterally? Who has the burden of proving if I received the email or not?</h3>

<p>As a practical matter, you probably have the power to cancel the payments unilaterally; it depends on how they are made. If the payments are charged to a credit card you can normally issue a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chargeback" rel="nofollow noreferrer">chargeback</a>. If you refuse to pay a contractual debt, your creditors bear the onus of proving that a legally enforceable contract was formed in court. Of course, it is unlikely that a gym would sue you over an unpaid membership. They are more likely to make your life difficult by referring the purported debt to a debt collector or credit reporting agency.</p>
