--- sector: subscription title: Subscriptions — how complaints work last_verified: 2026-10-12 --- ## In short Cancel with whoever bills you: the company itself, or Apple, Google Play, Roku or a carrier if you subscribed through them. Deleting an app does not cancel anything. Cancel at least a day before renewal or before a free trial ends, and keep the confirmation. The FTC's 2024 "click-to-cancel" rule was vacated and is not in force; cite ROSCA and state automatic renewal laws (California, New York and others) instead. If charges continue after you cancel, dispute them with your card issuer and send a written notice by certified mail with a return receipt. ## How complaints work in this industry - Billing decides where you cancel. Apple says that if you have no Apple receipt for a subscription, you may have bought it from another company; check your statement and contact that company. [Apple: cancel a subscription](https://support.apple.com/en-us/118428) - SiriusXM, for example, tells subscribers billed by Apple, Google Play, Roku or T-Mobile to cancel with that company, and says uninstalling the app does not cancel an Apple or Google Play subscription. [SiriusXM: manage or cancel service](https://www.siriusxm.com/help/manage-or-cancel-service) - The FTC's 2024 click-to-cancel amendments were vacated in full by the Eighth Circuit on July 8, 2025 and never took effect (rule `ftc-click-to-cancel`). [Eighth Circuit opinion, Custom Communications v. FTC](https://ecf.ca8.uscourts.gov/opndir/25/07/243137P.pdf) - Effective February 12, 2026 the FTC restored the pre-2024 Negative Option Rule, which covers only prenotification plans; a new rulemaking is at the advance notice stage with no proposed text. [Federal Register, February 12, 2026](https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2026-02-12/html/2026-02866.htm), [FTC: Negative Option Rule](https://www.ftc.gov/legal-library/browse/rules/negative-option-rule) - Enforcement continues under ROSCA: Amazon settled the FTC's Prime case for $2.5 billion in September 2025, and the Justice Department announced a proposed $150 million settlement with Adobe on March 13, 2026 (pending court entry). [FTC: Amazon refunds](https://www.ftc.gov/enforcement/refunds/amazon-refunds), [Justice Department, March 13, 2026](https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/adobe-agrees-150-million-settlement-and-injunction-resolve-alleged-violations-restore-online) - The FTC, 21 states and DC are suing Uber over Uber One enrollment and a cancellation path of up to 23 screens and 32 actions; the case is pending. [FTC press release, December 15, 2025](https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2025/12/ftc-states-file-amended-complaint-against-uber-deceptive-billing-cancellation-practices) ## Your leverage - ROSCA (rule `rosca-negative-option`): for online negative-option sales the seller must disclose all material terms before taking billing information, get your express informed consent before charging, and provide "simple mechanisms for a consumer to stop recurring charges." [15 U.S.C. 8403](https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/15/8403) - California (rule `ca-automatic-renewal-law`): if you signed up online you must be able to cancel online at will; a save offer must sit next to a "click to cancel" button, and on the phone you can end the call by saying you want to "cancel". [Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code 17602](https://california.public.law/codes/business_and_professions_code_section_17602) - California also requires notice 3 to 21 days before a free trial longer than 31 days ends, and 7 to 30 days before a price change. [Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code 17602](https://california.public.law/codes/business_and_professions_code_section_17602) - New York (rule `ny-automatic-renewal-law`): cancellation must be as easy as sign-up and available in every medium used to sign up; a retention offer may not block or delay it. [N.Y. Gen. Bus. Law 527-a](https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/laws/GBS/527-A) - A New York court found in November 2024 that SiriusXM's agent-only cancellation violated ROSCA and ordered a method that does not require a live agent. [New York Attorney General, November 22, 2024](https://ag.ny.gov/press-release/2024/attorney-general-james-stops-siriusxm-trapping-new-york-customers-unwanted) - When a company keeps charging after you cancel, the FTC says to dispute the charge with your card issuer, follow up by certified mail with a return receipt, and keep copies of every request and note. [FTC: free trials, auto-renewals and subscriptions](https://consumer.ftc.gov/articles/getting-and-out-free-trials-auto-renewals-and-negative-option-subscriptions) ## Traps - Free trials convert automatically. Adobe charges your payment method when the trial ends, and Apple says to cancel at least 24 hours before a trial ends. [Adobe Subscription and Cancellation Terms](https://www.adobe.com/legal/subscription-terms.html), [Apple: cancel a subscription](https://support.apple.com/en-us/118428) - "Annual, billed monthly" plans can carry early termination fees: Adobe charges 50% of the remaining contract after 14 days (30% of the annual commitment in California). [Adobe Subscription and Cancellation Terms](https://www.adobe.com/legal/subscription-terms.html) - Benefits from a free period end the moment you cancel Uber One or DashPass, and an Uber One charge is non-refundable once the billing cycle begins. [Uber One terms](https://www.uber.com/legal/en/document/?name=renewable-passes-terms&country=united-states&lang=en), [DoorDash: cancel DashPass](https://help.doordash.com/consumers/s/article/How-do-I-cancel-my-DashPass-subscription?language=en_US) - Renewal cutoffs come before the renewal date: SiriusXM and DashPass both require cancellation at least 24 hours before renewal or the next payment. [SiriusXM Customer Agreement](https://www.siriusxm.com/customer-agreement), [DoorDash: cancel DashPass](https://help.doordash.com/consumers/s/article/How-do-I-cancel-my-DashPass-subscription?language=en_US) - Refund windows are short: SiriusXM gives a pro-rata refund only on request within 7 days (monthly) or 30 days (non-monthly); Adobe gives a full refund only within 14 days of the initial order. [SiriusXM Customer Agreement](https://www.siriusxm.com/customer-agreement), [Adobe Subscription and Cancellation Terms](https://www.adobe.com/legal/subscription-terms.html) - Do not cite the FTC click-to-cancel rule in a complaint; it was vacated. Cite ROSCA and your state's law. [FTC: Negative Option Rule](https://www.ftc.gov/legal-library/browse/rules/negative-option-rule) ## Scams to watch for - Fake renewal and subscription-charge messages: Amazon lists fake membership renewals and fake subscription charges, and Best Buy shows fake Geek Squad renewal notices. Check the account directly, not through the message. [Amazon scam trends](https://trustworthyshopping.aboutamazon.com/amazon-scam-trends), [Best Buy: protect yourself](https://www.bestbuy.com/site/privacy-policy/protect-yourself/pcmcat266100050002.c?id=pcmcat266100050002) - Streaming phishing: Netflix says it never asks for card numbers, bank details or passwords by text or email (report to phishing@netflix.com), and Spotify says an email is suspicious if the sender does not end in @spotify.com (report to spoof@spotify.com). [Netflix: phishing](https://help.netflix.com/en/node/65674), [Spotify: is this email legit?](https://support.spotify.com/us/article/spotify-email-legit/) - BBB Scam Tracker listed Warner Brothers Discovery (WBD Global Streaming), HBO Max's parent company, as the No. 4 most impersonated brand in 2025, with 681 reports. [BBB Scam Tracker Risk Report 2025](https://bbbmarketplacetrust.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/Risk-Report-2025-US.pdf) - Tech support scams: Microsoft says its error messages never include a phone number and it never asks for payment in gift cards or cryptocurrency. [Microsoft: tech support scams](https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/protect-yourself-from-tech-support-scams-2ebf91bd-f94c-2a8a-e541-f5c800d18435) - Google says someone may be trying to scam you if they ask you to buy a Google Play gift card and share the code; the cards can only be used on Google Play. [Google Play: gift card scams](https://support.google.com/googleplay/answer/9057338?hl=en)