New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani has urged residents to report businesses that make it difficult to cancel subscriptions, renewing attention to the city’s new consumer protection rule that took effect Oct. 1.
“Cancelling a subscription shouldn’t be this hard. If you can sign up with a click, you must be able to cancel with one,” Mamdani said in a post on X on October 11, directing consumers to the city’s online complaint portal at nyc.gov/click-to-cancel.
The portal allows New Yorkers to file complaints against businesses that impose unnecessary hurdles when customers try to end recurring subscriptions. The city’s Department of Consumer and Worker Protection (DCWP) will review complaints and can work with consumers and businesses to resolve disputes.
The reminder follows the implementation of New York City’s “Click-to-Cancel” rule, which requires businesses to provide a straightforward cancellation process and clearly disclose subscription terms and consumers’ rights.
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Under the rule, businesses must make cancellation as straightforward as enrollment. For example, customers who sign up for a service online should not be forced to cancel by telephone or in person.
The requirements cover automatically renewing subscriptions and continuous-service offers, including arrangements in which free trials convert into paid subscriptions. Businesses must also disclose automatic renewals and inform consumers of changes to subscription terms.
Violations can result in civil penalties starting at $525 per violation. Businesses may also be required to provide restitution to affected consumers.
New Yorkers can submit complaints if a business makes cancellation difficult, delays ending a subscription, fails to disclose automatic renewal terms or sends products customers did not request and then requires them to return or pay for those products.
The complaint system also allows consumers to check the status of a submission using the complaint number they receive. Complaints can be filed online, by mail or by fax.
City officials have said the regulation could save New Yorkers up to $162.5 million annually by addressing unwanted subscription charges and deceptive billing practices, according to an estimate from the Roosevelt Institute cited by the mayor’s office.
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The rule builds on an initiative Mamdani announced in July, when his administration proposed a municipal regulation aimed at making subscription cancellations easier and tackling practices that burden consumers with unwanted recurring payments.
The American Bazaar previously reported on the initiative in its July 12 article, “Mamdani unveils ‘click-to-cancel’ rule targeting subscription traps.” The Oct. 1 implementation marked the start of enforcement under the finalized rule and the launch of the complaint portal.
New York City is the first municipality in the United States to implement a Click-to-Cancel rule, according to the mayor’s office.