Key points
- A membership gives the clinic steady revenue to plan around and gives members continuity with clinicians who know them.
- The UK has around 155 million active subscriptions, nearly 10 million of them believed unwanted.1 New UK rules on reminders, cooling-off and easy exit start in January 2027.2
- US federal law requires clear disclosure of material terms, express informed consent before charging, and simple mechanisms to stop recurring charges.3
- Publish six terms before the first charge, covering price and interval, what is included, minimum term, renewal, how to cancel and unused visits.
- Recurring payments run through the clinic's own Stripe account, so the clinic is the merchant of record.6
Summary
Publish six plain terms before the first charge, take express consent at sign-up, remind members before renewal, and let them cancel by the route they joined. New UK subscription rules start in January 2027, and in the US the Restore Online Shoppers' Confidence Act already requires disclosure, consent and a simple way to stop charges.
Members who know exactly what they pay for stay, book their next visit before they leave, and give the clinic revenue it can plan around. The terms below meet UK and US subscription law from the first charge.
See it in your clinicThirty minutes on your own patients and doctors.
Request a demoSee a membership sign-up with every term shown before payment and the charge landing in the clinic's own Stripe account.
| Term | What to write | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Price and interval | The amount, the currency and when each charge falls | Material terms must be disclosed before billing details are taken |
| What is included | Visits, tests and services per period, in plain words | Members can see the value they receive |
| Minimum term | None, or the number of months and why | Long terms trigger renewal reminders and cooling-off in the UK |
| Renewal | The renewal date and when the reminder is sent | UK rules require reminders before trials end and long contracts renew |
| How to cancel | The same channel used to join, and the date of the last charge | Simple cancellation is required in the US and the UK |
| Unused visits | Whether they roll over, expire or are refunded proportionately | Decides the refund if a member cancels within a cooling-off period |
Where memberships fit
Memberships suit care delivered over years, such as longevity, menopause, executive health and physiotherapy, where members return on a schedule and the diary fills ahead.
The UK rules arriving in January 2027
The Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 brings in a subscription contracts regime. The government announced in April 2026 that it covers clear information before sign-up, reminders before zero-price or discounted trials end or before contracts of 12 months or more renew, straightforward cancellation including online exit for online sign-ups, and a 14-day cooling-off period after a trial ends or a long contract renews.1
In August 2026 the Prime Minister's Office brought the start date forward to January 2027, and noted that businesses already giving notice before renewal and making contracts easy to leave will find very little changes.2
The renewal cooling-off right comes with full or proportionate refunds, so the business is paid for what it has already supplied.1 Keep an accurate record of visits used in each period, because that record sets the refund.
The US position
The Restore Online Shoppers' Confidence Act governs recurring charges sold online. The seller discloses all material terms before taking billing information, obtains express informed consent before charging, and provides simple mechanisms to stop recurring charges.3
The Federal Trade Commission published a revision of its Negative Option Rule in February 2026 to conform it to federal court decisions, and in March 2026 opened an advance notice of proposed rulemaking on helping consumers cancel recurring payments without unwarranted obstacles.4 Many states have their own automatic renewal laws, so check the rules where your patients live.
Six terms to write before launch
Show these in plain words before the first payment and repeat them in the confirmation. They are set out in the table below.
Describe what is included as visits and services, such as two consultations and one blood panel each year, and never as health outcomes. The clinician still decides what each member needs.
One-off payments that sit beside a membership are covered in payment links and deposits, and the case for putting every price on the page is in why we publish our prices.
Cancellation as a service
Offer cancellation by the channel used to join, confirm it in writing the same day, and state when the last charge falls.
wai drafts the reply in the clinic's voice with the member's visits and charges from the record, and a person at the clinic approves it before it sends.5 Offer a pause or a cheaper tier once, and accept the answer.
Where the money runs
Recurring charges land in the clinic's own account under the clinic's name, so members recognise them on a statement. Card payments run through the clinic's own Stripe account, and the clinic stays the merchant of record.6
wai Admin runs memberships next to deposits and invoices on the patient's record, so the desk sees visits used and charges taken at a glance when a renewal or refund question comes in.5
Where to start
Write the six terms for one membership, test them on two colleagues who were not involved, and rewrite anything they had to ask about. Set the renewal reminder date and the refund rule for unused visits.
Publish the terms beside the price and track renewals, cancellations and visits used per member for three months. What each recurring charge costs to process is in card fees and payment methods.
Bring your current membership terms and see how they appear before payment and how each charge matches the member's visits.
Frequently asked questions
When do the new UK subscription rules start?
Does a clinic membership count as a subscription contract?
A recurring paid membership for services is the kind of arrangement the rules describe. The detailed scope sits in regulations, so confirm each membership with a lawyer before January 2027.
Must members be able to cancel online?
What refund is due if a member cancels after renewal?
Under the announced UK rules, a member can cancel within 14 days after a 12 month or longer contract renews and receive a full or proportionate refund for what has not been supplied.1 Keep a record of visits used per period.
Who takes the recurring payments?
Can a membership include clinical services?
Yes, described as visits and services. The clinician decides what each member needs, and the membership promises no clinical outcome.
Sources
- 1Department for Business and Trade, 2026Consumers to save around £400 million every year from government crackdown on costly subscription trapsRead 14 October 2026Read source
- 2Prime Minister's Office, 10 Downing Street, 2026PM starts roll out of everyday fixes on the cost of living, ending rip-off discounts and subscription trapsRead 14 October 2026Read source
- 3Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School, 201015 U.S. Code § 8403, Negative option marketing on the Internet (Restore Online Shoppers' Confidence Act)Read 14 October 2026Read source
- 4Federal Trade Commission, 2026Negative Option RuleRead 14 October 2026Read source
- 5wai, 2026wai Admin, the front desk and back officeRead 14 October 2026Read source
- 6wai, 2026wai Checkout, booking and payment for clinicsRead 14 October 2026Read source
Members who stay because they want to.
Fifteen minutes on your own terms, payments and diary, with every charge in your own Stripe account. We reply within one working day.
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