Personal Trainer Agreement

This document can be used by a sports personal trainer who is based in England or Wales. The document is a simple contractual document which sets out the terms and conditions applicable to the services of the personal trainer. The document is designed for use where the personal trainer is providing services to individual adult clients as their own business (i.e not as part of their employment with a larger company).

It can be helpful for a personal trainer to have an agreement to confirm the terms and conditions applicable to their services because:

• it formalises and regulates the agreement between the client and the personal trainer;
• it confirms the responsibilities of each party;
• it sets out how the booking and payment for the services will work;
• it can help the personal trainer to maintain a professional profile (and to clarify details surrounding their regulation and qualifications).

There are also certain regulations which stipulate that a business (including a sole trader) must provide specific information to individual customers before a sale takes place. The nature of this information varies depending on whether the contract is concluded:
- as a distance contract (where there is no face-to-face contact with consumers); or
- on the business premises of the personal training; or
- as an off-premises contract.

It is therefore important to include specific information in the contractual agreement. As a result of the requirements to provide specific information to consumers before a contract has commenced, the personal trainer will also want to make sure that the pre-sale information provided on their website (or in any other form) complies with such requirements. It should be noted that additional specific information should be provided where services are provided digitally (for example through a mobile application).

This agreement includes a cancellation right within the first 14 days of the agreement (a cooling-off period), as per the requirements of a distance contract, which would also mean the client would have a right to be refunded for any fees paid within this period should they cancel. The services will therefore not ordinarily be performed by the personal trainer within this period. The client can agree that the services should commence within the cooling-off period and that they will therefore be required to pay the costs of these services within the cooling-off period. If the client has the option to instruct the personal trainer to perform the services in the cooling-off period, their consent and instructions about this should be obtained explicitly.

The document takes the form of a services agreement, where the agreement for the personal trainer to provide services to clients is defined in the contract. This agreement does not create a relationship of employment between the parties because an employment contract must be used where the parties wish to create this kind of relationship. We also have a commercial services agreement available for use where one business is providing services to another business.

A personal trainer may consider joining a professional organisation such as the Chartered Institute for the Management of Sport and Physical Activity (CIMSPA). There may also be other professional organisations available to personal trainers, depending upon their specialist discipline.

A personal trainer will need to consider what other policy documents they may need to hold and other requirements they may need to meet in addition to this agreement. For example, this might include:

• privacy/data protection policy
• a complaints policy
• insurance requirements
• any particular consent or information they may require for the specific nature of the services.

How to use this document

The document should be completed with all the relevant information about the personal trainer and their services. The template agreement should be kept by the personal trainer and should be provided to each new client. Following a client's request to book the services, they should be provided with a copy of the agreement (with the personal trainer's signature). The document could be provided via a website or via email to the client for their electronic signature. Alternatively, the client may sign the document in a paper format.

The agreement will then start upon the personal trainer's written acceptance of the client's booking. The personal trainer may have a particular system for confirming the booking (for example via a website). Each party should retain a signed copy of the agreement. The services may then be conducted in accordance with the agreement.

Relevant law

There may be particular legal and regulatory requirements for certain personal trainers, depending upon their specialism.

The following provisions will also apply to the sale of the services:

• The Consumer Rights Act 2015
• The Consumer Contracts (Information, Cancellation and Additional Charges) Regulations 2013, SI 2013/3134

Help from a lawyer

You can choose to consult a lawyer if you need help.

The lawyer can answer your questions or help you through the process. You will be offered this option when you complete the document.

How to modify the template

You fill out a form. The document is created before your eyes as you respond to the questions.

At the end, you receive it in Word and PDF formats. You can modify it and reuse it.