The short answer
If you buy a recurring supplement order online, the seller has to be upfront about the terms, get your clear consent, and give you a simple way to stop. Those three duties come from a federal law. If a seller does not follow them, you can complain to the Federal Trade Commission, and you can dispute the charge with your credit card company. Keep a record of every step.
What the law requires: ROSCA
Congress passed the Restore Online Shoppers' Confidence Act in December 2010. It covers online sales with a "negative option" feature. That means the seller treats your silence as a yes. A free trial that turns into a paid plan is one example. A monthly bottle that ships until you say stop is another.
Under the law, the seller must do three things. First, it must clearly show all the material terms before it takes your billing details. That includes the price, how often you will be charged, and how to cancel. Second, it must get your express, informed consent before it charges your card or account. Third, it must give you simple ways to stop the recurring charges.
A box buried in fine print does not meet that bar. The text has to be clear and easy to see.
Source: 15 U.S.C. 8403, Negative option marketing on the Internet, U.S. Code, 2021 edition, govinfo.gov. Enacted as Public Law 111-345, December 29, 2010.
What the FTC said in 2021
In October 2021, the Federal Trade Commission issued an enforcement policy statement on negative option marketing. It does not make new law. It explains how the agency reads the laws that already exist, and it warns that the agency will act on tricks that trap people in subscriptions.
The statement lists four basic rules. Sellers must clearly disclose the material terms of the offer. They must do it before you agree to buy. They must get your express informed consent. And they must not put unreasonable barriers in the way of cancelling, or get in the way of the cancellation steps they promised.
The statement is also specific about how easy cancelling should be. The FTC says a cancellation method should be at least as easy to use as the method you used to sign up. It also says you should be able to cancel through the same medium, such as the same website or app, that you used to agree. If you signed up with two clicks, a seller that forces you to phone during office hours is on shaky ground.
Source: Federal Trade Commission, "Enforcement Policy Statement Regarding Negative Option Marketing," Federal Register, 86 FR 60822, November 4, 2021 (announced October 2021).
How to cancel and build a paper trail
Start with the cancel option in your account. Many sellers have a page or a button for it. Use it first, and capture proof as you go.
- Take screenshots of the order page and the terms you agreed to, if you still have access.
- Take a screenshot of each cancel step and of the final confirmation.
- Save any confirmation email. If none arrives, write down the date and time you cancelled.
- If you have to email or call, note the date, the name of the person, and what they said.
- Check your next statement. The charge should stop.
If the seller blocks you, ask once in writing and keep a copy. That message may matter later.
If the charges keep coming: dispute them
You have another route through your credit card. The Fair Credit Billing Act sets rules for billing errors on credit card accounts. Call the card company first. Then, to protect your rights, send a written billing error notice within 60 days after the card company sent the statement that shows the charge.
After the card company gets your notice, it has 30 days to send a letter confirming it received the dispute, unless it has already fixed the problem in that time. Keep copies of everything.
If the card company agrees with you, it must correct your account. If it does not, it must explain in writing why it believes the bill is right. Your screenshots and notes from the cancel steps are the evidence that makes your case clear. Because the clock is 60 days, do not wait for a second unwanted charge.
Source: 15 U.S.C. 1666, Correction of billing errors (Fair Credit Billing Act), U.S. Code, 2021 edition, govinfo.gov.
What to check before you subscribe
A few minutes before you buy can save a long fight later. Look for the plain price and the billing schedule. Look for how and where you can cancel. Check whether a free trial turns into a paid plan, and on what date. Then set a reminder a few days before that date.
Pay attention to the way the order page is built. The terms should be visible before you enter card details. The cancel path should not be harder to find than the buy button. If a seller hides the terms, that is useful to know before you hand over a card number.
You can also report a seller that ignores these rules. The FTC takes complaints about negative option practices.
Source: Federal Trade Commission, Enforcement Policy Statement Regarding Negative Option Marketing, 86 FR 60822, November 4, 2021.
Sources
- 15 U.S.C. 8403, U.S. Code, govinfo.gov.
- Federal Trade Commission, Enforcement Policy Statement Regarding Negative Option Marketing, Federal Register, November 4, 2021.
- 15 U.S.C. 1666, Correction of billing errors, U.S. Code, govinfo.gov.