Recently I spent the better part of two days in conversation with the fraud alert team at my bank. My debit card expired, and I was slow to update the information about the new card at all the various places where it’s registered. I knew the old card was expired; I had cut it up for extra security. I was merrily attempting to make my purchases online and in person using the new debit card with the new expiration date. But it was denied and kept being denied.
Since the old card was designated as the default payment, I was racking up a bunch of bouncebacks — denials — on attempted purchases which triggered the fraud algorithms. Though I ended up in several rounds of time-consuming conversations, I appreciated the assertive vigilance of the fraud team’s multiple-step verification process. And it turns out that being forced to navigate the process proved to be revealing in another way.
Reviewing the attempted charges with the fraud team, I discovered most of the denied purchases were subscriptions. My seemingly endless list of subscriptions —to everything from artisan cosmetic products to niche newsletters, to small household products, to a number of others allowing certain websites’ content. The fraud alerts shut down the automatic billings until I could verify the charges giving me a fresh look at my weekly, monthly, bi-monthly and yearly subscriptions.
Many of these subscriptions I had forgotten about or were impulse purchases that didn’t make any sense beyond the moment. Seriously, why do I have a subscription for a weekly specialty drink, when I rarely sip anything but water and coffee? Because in order to sample ONE of the specialty sips, I had to sign up for the free trial. I got distracted, missed the end of the free trial and here I am months later paying regularly for that singular sip. I haven’t even been back to the store to sample another!
Of course, it’s my fault. Savvy marketers know just how to entice consumers like me into subscribing because they also know we will likely fail to pay attention to the details. And when you do pay attention, they don’t make it easy for you to unsubscribe.
Truly, nobody has time or energy for the inevitable consumer tug-of-war best described by Michael Corleone’s iconic line from the Godfather Part 3 movie: “Just when I thought I was out, they pulled me back in.” The Federal Trade Commission, charged with enforcing consumer protection against fraud, deception, and unfair practices, has heard from thousands about the problem. The Commission’s recent proposal would require businesses to alert consumers that their subscriptions are about to renew, and to stop companies from making special offers coupled with high pressure tactics to make you keep the subscription. The so-called “click to cancel” proposal would make it as easy to unsubscribe as it is to subscribe.
The agency is soliciting public comment on the proposal. Let the FTC know we want out when we want out — and not when businesses say so. In the meantime, you can spot me at the drink counter trying to get my money’s worth.
