Life Buzz News

Canceling a subscription is about to get a lot easier, thanks to new FTC rule


Canceling a subscription is about to get a lot easier, thanks to new FTC rule

No more jumping through hoops to cancel a subscription or recurring membership. Here's how it'll work now.

Whether it's a magazine subscription, gym membership, or a monthly payment for a streaming service, canceling unwanted recurring subscriptions has just become easier with a new Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ruling. On Wednesday, the US Federal Trade Commission adopted a final "click-to-cancel" rule requiring businesses to make canceling a subscription as easy as signing up for it in the first place.

Last year, the FTC proposed a "click to cancel" provision after finding that many companies were engaging in "unfair" and "deceptive" subscription practices. The FTC sued Adobe for harming consumers by enrolling them in its default subscription plan without properly disclosing the plans' terms. The FTC also sued Amazon for signing people up for Prime "without their consent" and "sabotaging" consumers' attempts to cancel, and it criticized Microsoft for "product degradation" related to Xbox Game Pass price increases.

Also: Your Roku TV is about to get a major smart home upgrade - for free

Under the newly passed rule, businesses are forbidden from using a cancellation method other than the one used by consumers to sign up. Moreover, the FTC will also require businesses to clearly disclose the terms of their subscriptions and obtain customer consent before charging them.

"Too often, businesses make people jump through endless hoops just to cancel a subscription," FTC chair Lina Khan stated in the press release. "The FTC's rule will end these tricks and traps, saving Americans time and money. Nobody should be stuck paying for a service they no longer want."

According to an FTC blog post, the final rule provides a comprehensive legal framework that "protects people from misleading enrollment tactics, billing practices, and cancellation policies and provides businesses with clear rules of the road, all consolidated in one place, to help them build customer trust and avoid enforcement action."

This includes:

Most of the provisions in the "click-to-cancel" ruling go into effect 180 days after it is published in the Federal Register.

Previous articleNext article

POPULAR CATEGORY

corporate

8726

tech

9847

entertainment

10612

research

4824

misc

11344

wellness

8286

athletics

11178