ABOUT 300 people are thought to have been "conned" by a gym membership scheme.

People in Herefordshire have received letters from the Associated Members Club telling them they have won £750 in health and fitness vouchers, and all they needed to do was visit the Factory Gym in Canal Road, Hereford to claim their prize.

However, they were then persuaded to sign a credit agreement costing £427.

The agreements have been found to be in breach of the Consumer Credit Disclosure Regulations, because they fail to give consumers a pre-contract information sheet before they sign up to the agreement.

Tim Thorne, Herefordshire Council's principal Trading Standards officer, said: "This sheet contains information on the credit agreement they are about to sign and the absence of this in each case makes the contract non-enforceable against the consumer without a court order, which is highly unlikely to be granted.

"Therefore, consumers who have been conned can almost certainly cancel the agreement without any liability."

Anyone who wants to get out of their agreement should visit the Trading Standards department at Bath Street, Hereford, or call 01432 261987.