<
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2023/apr/13/accc-boss-wants-new-powers-to-crack-down-on-online-businesses-that-make-it-hard-to-cancel-subscriptions>
"If you want to unsubscribe from Amazon Prime in Europe, there is a simple
two-step process. But customers in Australia must navigate four convoluted
steps, with the wording and location of the cancellation button changing
between each screen.
Now Australian online businesses that put up hurdles to make it harder for
customers to unsubscribe from their services may face a crackdown from the
federal government, with plans to be unveiled later this year.
The practice of “forced continuity” or “subscription trapping” involves
building design features of a website or app in a way that impedes a customer’s
ability to cancel a particular service.
The chair of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), Gina
Cass-Gottlieb, said in a speech to the National Press Club on Wednesday a
prohibition on unfair trade practices would help protect consumers and small
businesses “exposed to manipulative practices designed to get them to agree to
unfair or unfavourable contract terms”.
The consumer watchdog has called for new powers in Australian consumer law to
crack down on such practices since 2017. A spokesperson for the regulator said
subscription traps can cause “significant harm to consumers and some small
businesses”.
“These practices make it difficult for consumers to cancel subscriptions after
fixed-term periods, with the consequence that many subscriptions roll over to
paid subscriptions despite consumers no longer utilising or wanting them,” the
spokesperson said.
The Amazon discrepancy was uncovered last year by the Consumer Policy Research
Centre (CPRC), which said Amazon agreed to shorten the cancellation process for
European customers following a 2022 finding by the European Commission that
Amazon had breached the unfair commercial practices directive."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
