State Rep. Ciresi’s ‘Click to Cancel’ legislation for recurring subscriptions passes House

State Rep. Joe Ciresi’s legislation (H.B. 116) that would increase consumer protections by requiring companies to provide a notification before each automatic renewal, to be transparent about renewal terms, and to allow subscribers to cancel subscription services online if they initially subscribed over the Internet unanimously passed the House.

“The situation too many consumers face today is that their online contracts often automatically renew without them being notified or even aware,” said Ciresi, (D-Montgomery). “Making matters worse is that some subscription services require consumers to jump through hoops just to cancel their subscription, such as by forcing them to call or speak to an online representative before they can end the service.

“My legislation, ‘Click to Cancel,’ would make consumers aware of their active subscriptions and their renewal terms and empower them to easily cancel their subscriptions. This bill would require that subscriptions be transparent and easy to understand.”

Ciresi’s legislation would amend the Unfair Trade Practices and Consumer Protection Law by requiring businesses which offer automatic renewals to:

• Provide renewal terms, cancellation policy and how to cancel.
• Allow a customer who signs up online to be allowed to cancel online.
• Any material changes in the automatic renewal must be provided in a clear and conspicuous manner.
• Allow customers to save a copy of the notice of material changes in an automatically renewing contract.

For subscriptions including a free trial period, businesses would also be required to disclose the price that would be charged after the trial period ends and the deadline to cancel to avoid charges, as well as give customers the ability to cancel before being charged.

A violation would constitute unfair methods of competition and unfair or deceptive acts of practices under the UTPCPL

“When “Click-To-Cancel” becomes law, consumers in Pennsylvania will be better protected from companies’ subscription practices that have burdened them with fees for subscriptions they no longer want or are aware of,” Ciresi said. “It is time we provided greater transparency to consumers regarding their subscription services and empower them to cancel subscriptions they no longer want with limited hassle.”

The bill now heads to the Senate for consideration.