FTC Says Uber Enrolled People Into Its Subscription Service Without Consent

On Monday, the FTC announced that it is suing Uber for deceptive billing and cancellation practices surrounding its subscription service, Uber One.

In its complaint, the FTC claimed that Uber would enroll customers without their consent and bill those who were using a free trial early. Despite its “cancel anytime” promise, Uber also made the process needlessly difficult. Some people had to navigate up to 23 screens to cancel, while others were told to contact customer support without being given a way to reach them. For those who actually got through to customer support, some were still billed for another cycle while waiting to hear back.

“Americans are tired of getting signed up for unwanted subscriptions that seem impossible to cancel,” the FTC’s Chairman Andrew Ferguson said in a press release. “The Trump-Vance FTC is fighting back on behalf of the American people. Today, we’re alleging that Uber not only deceived consumers about their subscriptions, but also made it unreasonably difficult for customers to cancel.”

Uber has allegedly violated the FTC Act and the Restore Online Shoppers’ Confidence Act. But the FTC isn’t only side-eyeing sign-up and cancellation processes. According to its complaint, Uber claims its subscription services will save customers $25 a month due to benefits like $0 delivery at select stores or discounted services. (Currently, Uber’s site boasts that members save on average $27 per month.) However, the FTC claims that number is inaccurate and doesn’t account for the subscription’s monthly cost.

According to CNBC, Uber spokesperson Noah Edwardsen denied the FTC’s claims via email, writing that the company’s processes “are clear, simple, and follow the letter and spirit of the law.” He added, “Uber does not sign up or charge consumers without their consent, and cancellations can now be done anytime in-app and take most people 20 seconds or less.”

This isn’t the first time that the FTC has taken action against Uber. In 2017, Uber agreed to pay the FTC $20 million after misleading prospective drivers, and months later, the company also agreed to regular audits after lying about privacy protections. However, that’s not to say the FTC has always been a big help when it comes to companies like Uber. In 2018, Uber even avoided FTC fines over a 2016 data breach that it paid hackers to cover up.

In December, Uber and its CEO Dara Khosrowshahi joined a long list of tech companies and executives trying to woo the then-incoming president Trump with donations to his inaugural fund. But last month, Ferguson told CNBC that Big Tech is one of the FTC’s priorities. Now, Uber is the first company that the FTC has taken action against in Trump’s second term.