The Office of Fair Trading (OFT) has opened an official investigation into whether health club operators are in breach of the Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts Regulations Act 1999.

As part of the investigation, the OFT will also determine if gym and fitness companies are engaging in any unfair business practices under the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations Act of 2008.

The investigation follows the enforcement order the OFT secured from the High Court in August 2011 against Ashbourne Management Services (AMS), a gym membership management company.

The High Court ruled that thousands of gym and health club contracts enforced by Ashbourne Management Services were unfair.

Following the ruling, the OFT issued a warning advising other gyms to check their contract terms to ensure they were not using similar unfair terms or business practices.

It now seems that the OFT has decided to investigate the matter in a wider context although it stressed in a statement that the investigation is still at an early stage.

"It should not be assumed that the parties involved have breached any consumer protection legislation," the statement said. "The OFT will not reach a view on whether the law may have been infringed by any company until it has completed its investigation."

The Fitness Industry Association (FIA) was quick to respond to the announcement and has scheduled a meeting with the OFT case team in February to further understand the investigation and the process.

Commenting on the investigation, David Stalker, FIA's CEO said: "At the FIA we strongly believe in following the rulings drawn up by the OFT and are happy to play an advisory role in this investigation process.

"They've made it clear that it should not be assumed that the parties involved have breached any consumer protection legislation and we must await its findings to draw any conclusions."