KSHB 41 reporter Abby Dodge covers consumer issues, personal budgeting and everyday spending. Share your story idea with Abby.
The Federal Trade Commission's "click-to-cancel" rule, which would have made it easier for consumers to stop subscriptions, will not take effect as planned after an appeals court blocked it because of a procedural error.
The rule would have required companies to make canceling subscriptions as simple as signing up for them, addressing a common frustration among consumers.
"If you want to buy something, it's very easy, right? Just click or something. But if you want to cancel, it's a different process," said Mery Moncada, a subscriber to multiple services.
Consumers consistently report difficulties when trying to cancel subscriptions to various services.
"Well, first of all, getting someone on the phone was very frustrating," said Sandalo Jackson, a subscriber.
Richard Vohl, another subscriber, shared similar concerns: "It seems like they don't make it easy. You have to find your way through the website."
The Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals blocked the rule from starting because the FTC didn't conduct a preliminary regulatory analysis, which is required for rules that could impact the U.S. economy by more than $100 million.
Lyndsay Noble, Rockhurst University director of analytics and technology programs, explained why companies prefer subscription models.
"It's the magic of recurring revenue," Noble said. "The easiest way to count on that is to make it hard for people to stop. Ethically, right, ethically I think that is definitely a grey area.”
Noble predicts the regulatory analysis could take a few years to complete, but is confident new rules will eventually emerge.
"As new things are invented, people will find new ways of taking advantage of customers, and then we'll have new rules to protect customers. And it will just keep going," Noble said.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
