(BOSTON 12/8/2023) — Senator Michael Moore today sent a letter to Attorney General Andrea Campbell in his capacity as the Senate Chair of the Joint Committee on Advanced Information Technology, the Internet and Cybersecurity requesting two additions to her proposed regulations on “junk fees.” Citing examples from across the web, Senator Moore requested that Attorney General Campbell add a provision to her regulations requiring that the online cancellation process for a product or service be made at least as simple as the sign-up process. He also asks Campbell to crack down on “dark patterns,” in online user interfaces that are deliberately confusing and designed to interfere with the consumer’s ability to utilize the online cancellation option.
“When you go online to cancel a streaming service subscription, a gym membership, a premium shopping account, or a variety of other subscription-based services, companies are incentivized to make that process as confusing and as frustrating as possible – and as of now, there are very few laws to stop them,” said Senator Michael Moore (D-Millbury). “I’m pleased to see that Attorney General Andrea Campbell has proposed a new set of regulations designed to protect consumers from shady online practices such as hidden junk fees. Today, I sent a letter to her to ask that she add additional rules that require companies to offer easy, simple online cancellations, and that ban the use of shady tactics within the cancellation process that are designed to deter and redirect consumers. These are issues that are experienced by Bay Staters each and every day – I am hopeful that AG Campbell will bring further protection to everyday people.”
Attorney General Campbell’s office on November 30th proposed new regulations to prohibit “junk fees” in Massachusetts, additional charges that are hidden from consumers until the very end of the checkout process for things like concert tickets and hotel bookings. These fees are frequently termed “service fees,” “convenience fees,” or “facility charges,” and often significantly increase the price of a good or service. The new regulations, if adopted, would require businesses to clearly disclose the total price of a product or service at the time it is shown to the consumer. It would also require companies prominently show whether fees are optional and simplify the process for cancelling trial offers to avoid recurring charges. The Attorney General is granted the power to regulate these topics through the Massachusetts Consumer Protection Act. These regulations also require that businesses offer an online cancellation option if they allow customers to sign up online.
Recent Federal Trade Commission (FTC) investigations have shown that companies such as Amazon and ABCmouse use strategies such as dark patterns and complicated cancellation flows to discourage users from ending their recurring subscriptions. In the case of ABCmouse, the FTC wrote that, “consumers who wanted to cancel their subscriptions were often forced to navigate a difficult-to-find, lengthy, and confusing cancellation path on the company’s website and click through several pages of promotions and links that, when clicked, directed consumers away from the cancellation path.” These practices are close to industry standard for companies that offer subscriptions online.
Senator Moore’s full letter can be viewed online here. The Attorney General’s proposed “junk fee” regulation can be viewed online here. Public comments on this proposal and on consumers’ experiences in this area are currently being collected by the AG’s office by emailing junkfees@mass.gov, and a public hearing and comment session will be held on December 20th – more details can be found here.
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