Fans are furious that they have been automatically signed up for a pricey annual subscriptions after using Chris Hemsworth’s popular fitness app.
Social media pages for Centr, the Marvel star’s app, have been flooded with complaints by disgruntled users who suddenly found money had left their accounts.
During the coronavirus pandemic, with gyms still closed across much of the country, Australians were offered a six-week free trial of the app.
It offers workouts to do at home, designed by the actor’s crack team of trainers, and some videos even promised a glimpse of the Thor star himself.
But six weeks later, some customers found that they had been stung with huge charges.
Chris Hemsworth (pictured) has been criticised for his fitness app, which users claim has charged them without their knowledge
One Melbourne couple were each charged $95.99 for an annual subscription – nearly $200 from a household who had lost work during the pandemic.
‘$200 is a lot of money, maybe not to Chris but to us,’ Daniel O’Kane from Melbourne told A Current Affair.
Along with his wife, Jill, Mr O’Kane had signed up for the app in March after missing out on their regular gym visits.
After just one workout, they stopped using the app as they weren’t impressed by the offering.
Six weeks later, a whopping $191.98 left their household bank account, without any receipt or confirmation of payment being emailed to them, they claimed.
‘I was pretty upset and then kind of thinking like, “oh, is this my fault? Like, am I an idiot, did I just forget?”, he explained.
Chris Hemsworth (pictured) launched the app, Centr, earlier this year, and offered users a free six-week trial during the coronavirus pandemic
The app (pictured) gives users access to workouts with some of Hemsworth’s favourite trainers, as well as dozens of healthy recipes
‘Then I’m looking, maybe I’ll get a reminder, I thought.
‘I looked through my emails and there’s nothing there and they didn’t even send a receipt. So, I thought that was really unusual.’
He accused the actor of being ‘un-Australian’ for taking people’s money without any reminder.
‘I remember one of the first emails I got from Centr was from Chris Hemsworth saying “thanks for putting your trust in me”.
‘And then they take our money, they don’t give us a receipt, or any reminder, it just seems bloody un-Australian to me.’
Jacintha Soo Ho also told the programme she had been charged $95.99 without warning, even after she cancelled before the free trial ended.
Hemsworth (pictured) has promoted the app online, saying it offers world-leading workouts straight into people’s homes
The Centre app (pictured) has been criticised by some users, with many mentioning that Hemsworth doesn’t feature in all the videos
‘He seems trustworthy. He is a big Hollywood superstar,’ she said.
‘I actually went into my account to click some kind of button that said either unsubscribe or stop auto-repayments.’
Both have since received a full refund.
A spokesman for the app told the programme: ‘Centr’s extended free trial period was a genuine offer made with the intention of helping people to stay strong, healthy and calm during this challenging time.
‘The terms and conditions, which are standard for any subscription-based service, were clearly displayed upon sign-up, outlining that if the trial was not cancelled within the six-week period, the customer’s nominated plan would be charged.’
The Centr app (pictured) includes meal plans, daily workouts, meditations and access to a 24/7 community offering support, tips and exclusive bonus content
Centr (pictured) offered a six-week trial during the coronavirus pandemic, but users claim they were charged afterwards without their knowledge