By Kimberly Palmer, NerdWallet
One frustrated Reddit user recently shared that canceling a subscription seemed impossible. They had used a now-defunct work email address to sign up for a web services company. With that email no longer accessible, the service said it was unable to process a cancellation.
Subscription cancellation headaches are so common that the Federal Trade Commission recently took action to ease the process: In a rule that fully goes into effect later this year, sellers must make it as easy to cancel their subscription as it was to sign up.
The FTC says that it received about 70 consumer complaints a day in 2024 about recurring subscriptions, up from 42 per day in 2021.
“Companies are on notice that they have to clean up their act,” says Chuck Bell, financial policy advocate at Consumer Reports.
In the meantime, consider these four tips for canceling subscriptions.
Search using the company’s name
Bell says conducting a web search using the company’s name, such as, “how do I cancel my subscription for x,’ can lead to specific tips for reaching the right contact number. “Other people might have had that problem in the past and you might find a point of contact,” he says.
Getting beyond a chatbot and finding the right person is often the first step to resolving these types of problems, he says.
Escalate the complaint
If you continue to struggle with canceling, Bell suggests going to a more senior person at the company, posting on social media about the problem (and tagging the company) or filing a complaint with federal or state regulators. The FTC, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and your state’s attorney general’s office all collect consumer complaints, though in some cases they are looking for trends rather than following up individual circumstances.
You can also file complaints with the Better Business Bureau, a nonprofit that collects and shares business complaints and reviews and works to resolve them directly with each company.
The BBB complaint process is free (as is filing complaints with the government agencies noted above) and can take up to 30 days to resolve, says Melanie McGovern, national spokesperson. The Better Business Bureau accepts complaints on companies of all kinds, even those not currently listed on its website, bbb.org.
“If you’re hitting a brick wall, come to the BBB,” McGovern says.
Ask your bank or credit card issuer for help
If you’ve already tried working directly with the company and failed to cancel the subscription, then Bell suggests disputing the charge with your credit card issuer or filing a “stop payment” order with your bank.
“It’s a hassle for you,” Bell adds. You often have to call your financial institution then follow a process for documenting the problem, he says. Plus, the bank might charge a fee, so use this method as a last resort.
Keep a paper trail and use your personal email address
To avoid getting stuck with a subscription that’s hard to cancel because you no longer have access to an old work email address, like the Reddit user experienced, McGovern suggests using your personal email for personal subscriptions.
She also suggests providing a back-up email address or phone number if the company asks for one, so you have another way of verifying your identity if needed.
“Canceling can be a process, so keep good records,” McGovern adds, referring to all the communication you receive from the company when you first sign up.
Saving those emails in a folder labeled “subscriptions” can make finding them a little easier when you need them.
Reddit is an online forum where users share their thoughts in “threads” on various topics. The popular site includes plenty of discussion on financial subjects like [topic – e.g., life insurance], so we sifted through Reddit forums to get a pulse check on how users feel about [providers and products – e.g., insurers]. People post anonymously, so we cannot confirm their individual experiences or circumstances.
Kimberly Palmer writes for NerdWallet. Email: kpalmer@nerdwallet.com. Twitter: @kimberlypalmer.
The article Is There an Easier Way to Cancel Subscriptions? originally appeared on NerdWallet.
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