By Poppy Johnston in Canberra

Australians have been urged to check the fine print before signing up for gym memberships or wellness apps to avoid subscription traps.

With the new year comes resolutions to get in shape and eat healthier but sometimes other priorities emerge and goals are put on hold.

In these instances, the federal government wants it to be as easy to exit gym memberships or meal kit subscriptions as it was to sign up in the first place.

Putting a stop to subscription traps – which make it unnecessarily hard to opt out – is part of the federal government’s broader crackdown on unfair trading practices.

In the meantime, Financial Services Minister Stephen Jones wants consumers to be alert to the practice.

He has urged people to be wary of free trials that automatically renew without warning and other hurdles to unsubscribing.

“We want people to be alert to these dodgy practices, but more importantly we want businesses to stamp it out altogether,” he said.

“We plan to introduce legislation that will impose penalties on businesses who choose to continue trying to rip off Australians.”

“Drip pricing” tactics that add hidden fees and “dynamic pricing”, which involves charging a higher price at points of greater demand, are also in the government’s sights.