NYC Launches Nation’s First Municipal Click-to-Cancel Rule
PYMNTS | ·
New York City’s Click-to-Cancel rule took effect Thursday (Oct. 1), making the city the first municipality in the country to implement such a rule, the Office of the Mayor said in a press release. The rule gives New York City new authority to crack down on businesses that make it difficult for consumers to cancel […] The post NYC Launches Nation’s First Municipal Click-to-Cancel Rule appeared first on PYMNTS.com .
New York City’s Click-to-Cancel rule took effect Thursday (Oct. 1), making the city the first municipality in the country to implement such a rule, the Office of the Mayor said in a press release.
The rule gives New York City new authority to crack down on businesses that make it difficult for consumers to cancel subscriptions. It can require those businesses to pay restitution and civil penalties, with fines starting at $525 per violation, according to the release.
To make it easy for the city’s residents to report possible violations of the rule and seek help, the administration launched a new online complaint portal , the release said.
Violations of the rule include incidents in which a business did not clearly explain the terms of the subscription; made it difficult to cancel; delayed canceling the subscription; sent products the consumer did not request and expected the consumer to return or pay for them; did not notify the consumer about changes to the subscription terms; or did not disclose that the subscription would automatically renew, per the release.
The rule follows Mayor Zohran Mamdani ’s Jan. 5 signing of Executive Order 10 , which directed the city’s Department of Consumer and Worker Protection to consider new rules to stop deceptive subscription practices, according to the release.
“If a company can take your money with one click, you should be able to get your money back with one click,” Mamdani said in the release. “And now, if they won’t let you cancel, the city is coming for them.”
CNBC reported Thursday that New York state already has a click-to-cancel rule , but New York City’s new rule enables local enforcement of its provisions.
More than half the U.S. states have laws governing subscriptions that automatically renew, according to the report.
The Federal Trade Commission finalized a national click-to-cancel rule in October 2024, but the rule was challenged in court and was vacated on procedural grounds in July 2025 before it took effect.
In January, the Unsubscribe Act ( H.R. 7048 ) was reintroduced in the U.S. House and aims to protect consumers from “ misleading subscription plans ” that trick consumers into paying monthly membership fees without their explicit consent, PYMNTS reported.
The post NYC Launches Nation’s First Municipal Click-to-Cancel Rule appeared first on PYMNTS.com .