📺 Stream EntrepreneurTV for Free 📺

Lawsuit Claims SoulCycle 'Robs Customers' With Its Class-Purchasing Policy The proposed class-action suit comes as SoulCycle prepares to go public.

By Mallory Schlossberg

entrepreneur daily

This story originally appeared on Business Insider

Soul Cycle | Facebook

As SoulCycle prepares to go public, it has been hit with a proposed class-action lawsuit claiming it "robs customers" by requiring them to buy certificates for classes with "unreasonably short expiration periods."

The lawsuit — which accuses SoulCycle of a "relentless effort to maximize its profits" — details the story of California customer Rachel Cody, who paid $30 for a certificate good for a future class.

Her pass expired before she could make it to SoulCycle, she claims.

SoulCycle offers later expiration dates when customers buy pricier packages for multiple classes, as opposed to a single class.

The lawsuit also brings up how SoulCycle's popularity comes into play. With classes at peak times filling up rapidly, it can become difficult to get into classes, thereby posing more of a risk of wasting classes.

The periods until class packages expire — none of which are longer than a year — violate the Credit Card Accountability and Disclosure Act, according to the lawsuit.

Given that customers must purchase "certificates" in order to receive classes, the lawsuit likens these packages to gift certificates, which are not allowed to have expiration dates shorter than five years under the law.

Many customers have complained about the policy on review websites such as Yelp.

"My single biggest pain point: the class EXPIRES without advanced notice," a New York City customer noted. "If you pre-purchase a single class or a series of classes, they will expire (single class expires within 30 days, series of 5 within 45 days). At $30 a class, I feel like there should be more of a notice before the classes expire since we're all busy people who have to juggle various deadlines."

"SoulCycle's deliberate use of expiration dates harms and deceives customers throughout the United States," Daniel Hipskind, one of the lawyers who's involved in the lawsuit, said in a press release. "SoulCycle's expiration dates rob customers of their money, creating illegal profits for SoulCycle."

The lawsuit hopes to refund the money of customers who have had class certificates expire.

"We believe thousands of people across America have been unable to use the certificates SoulCycle forces customers to purchase based on unlawful and unreasonable expiration dates. Customers have lost hundreds or even thousands of dollars because of SoulCycle's illegal acts," Hipskind said.

SoulCycle is declining to comment on news stories, citing the quiet period before its IPO.

Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/soulcycle-is-facing-a-lawsuit-2015-8#ixzz3k35htBZM
Mallory Schlossberg

Reporter for Business Insider

Mallory is a retail reporter for Business Insider. She has written for a variety of websites, including Yahoo Celebrity, Cosmopolitan, Bustle, The Frisky, and The Billfold. She graduated from SUNY Binghamton and lives in Brooklyn.

Want to be an Entrepreneur Leadership Network contributor? Apply now to join.

Editor's Pick

Business Ideas

63 Small Business Ideas to Start in 2024

We put together a list of the best, most profitable small business ideas for entrepreneurs to pursue in 2024.

Data & Recovery

Protect Your Business Computer From Hackers and Trackers with This $70 VPN Deal

Windscribe VPN supports unlimited devices, a global VPN network, and more.

Leadership

Keep Learning with Rosetta Stone and More During Limited-Time Price Drop

Open up a world of business opportunities with a new language and other growth courses.

Leadership

7 Tips for Empowering Mothers in the Workplace

Moms make up an important and large segment of the workforce, yet too often have been overlooked in the development of company culture. In this article, we explore seven ways that companies can empower mothers in the workplace, through the lens of my own experience as a mom and CEO.

Business Solutions

Get Microsoft Office Plus Windows 11 Pro for $70 This Week Only

Use Microsoft Office to streamline productivity and Windows 11 Pro for security, collaboration, and more.

Fundraising

My Startup Couldn't Raise VC Funding, So We Became Profitable. Here's How We Did It — And How You Can Too.

Four months ago, my startup reached profitability for the first time. It came after more than a year of active work and planning, and here's what it took.