Are you struggling to cancel your Uber One subscription? The US government says you are not alone.
Monday, Federal Trade Commission He filed a lawsuit against delivery and ride-sharing giant Uber, claiming the company has joined in “deceptive billing and cancellation practices.” The FTC claim relate to Uber One, Uber’s premium subscription service.
“I looked at my credit card bill and realized that Uber Eats had been charging $9.99 for my Uber One account for the last eight months. I’ve never signed up for this service,” another customer complaint said, “I’d like to not do it[’]I have an Uber account and never have one, but I get a recurring fee of $9.99 per month for Uber One. I don’t[’]I even know how T got my debit card info. ”
This screenshot of the Uber app was included in the FTC filing.
Credit: FTC
Why did FTC target Uber with their new suits?
Uber promoted Uber as a premium subscription platform of $9.99 per month, offering customers exclusive benefits such as saving on rides and delivery. However, according to the FTC, Uber is misleading consumers about what exactly those savings are.
“Americans are tired of signing up for unnecessary subscriptions that they think are impossible to cancel,” said FTC Chairman Andrew N. Ferguson. statement. “Today, we argue that Uber not only tricked consumers about subscriptions, but also made it unfairly difficult for customers to cancel.”
For example, Uber touted that customers could save $25 a month as Uber One member. The FTC disagrees. The lawsuit shows that the $9.99 per month membership fee was not considered when the ads were cut.
“These claims are false,” the government lawsuit states. “Many consumers don’t actually save $25 a month using Uber One. Uber savings claims assume that your subscription is free.
However, the issue with Uber One exceeded the promise of false advertising. In addition to saving $25, Uber has advertised that users can cancel one subscription “anytime” and “anytime” for “no additional charges,” according to the lawsuit. However, the FTC said Uber often charges consumers before the free trial ends. Plus, canceling subscriptions wasn’t as easy as advertising.
Masculine light speed
Easy to sign up and very difficult to cancel
The lawsuit argues that Uber will roll out a deceptive practice known as the “dark pattern” to encourage users to sign up first and then prevent them from canceling their Uber 1 subscription.
The FTC points out that users can sign up by clicking a few times, but up to 32 actions are required to cancel.
Credit: FTC
The app is a button that tells users to automatically register for the trial by saying “Start Save” or “Try for free” according to the lawsuit. In one case, the user was offered two options: “Start Save” or “Cancel.” A government complaint states that when a consumer clicks ‘Start Save’ they will immediately register with Uber 1 and will be charged monthly or yearly for their subscription. The only other option is to “cancel”. At this point, it is unknown what will cancel the button. It’s about to cancel it because they’re about to book. ”
And in reality, when a customer actually tries to cancel a subscription, “Uber makes it very difficult,” the FTC points out.
According to the FTC, Uber users were able to “navigate” the maze of steps to cancel their paid Uber One plan. The FTC says the cancellation process can be extended More than 23 different screens Force the user Takes up to 32 different actions Just cancel it. And as users approached the end of their current subscription, the stiffer Uber cancelled.
“Uber can ask them to say why they want to cancel. They will encourage them to suspend membership, or if they fail, they will present an offer to stay,” says the FTC.
Some customers were forced to contact Uber’s customer support to cancel, but no way to contact the company was provided. Additionally, according to the government, many users were charged for subscriptions during the cancellation process.
Uber’s alleged violations and the company’s official response
The FTC charges Uber at 5 counts based on Section 5 of the FTC Act and Section 5 of the Restore Online Shoppers’ Conditune Act (ROSCA).
In a statement shared with Mashable, Uber challenged the fraud.
“We are disappointed that the FTC has chosen to proceed with this measure, but we are confident that the court will agree to what we already know. Uber’s sign-up and cancellation process is clear and simple, and follows the letter and spirit of the law,” an Uber spokesman said. “Uber will not sign up or charge consumers without their consent, cancellations can be made through the app anytime, and most people can take them within 20 seconds.”
Uber said the company had requested that consumers contact the company to cancel Uber 1 if they were within 48 hours of the renewal period. However, Uber has changed this policy, allowing users to cancel their subscriptions from within the app at any time.
