The Federal Trade Commission filed a lawsuit against Uber on Monday, accusing the ride-share company of deceptive billing and cancellation practices with its subscription service.
The FTC alleged that Uber violated the FTC Act and the Restore Online Shoppers’ Confidence Act by providing misleading information about its Uber One subscription service, which says it provides delivery without fees and discounts on rides.
The agency has multiple other active lawsuits against tech giants including Google and Meta. This complaint marks the first FTC action against a major tech company since President Donald Trump took office in January.
“Americans are tired of getting signed up for unwanted subscriptions that seem impossible to cancel,” FTC Chairman Andrew Ferguson said in a press release.
The FTC has alleged that Uber “failed to deliver promised savings” for the Uber One service. Uber advertises savings of $25 a month, but the FTC stated that “Uber does not account for the cost of the subscription (up to $9.99/month) when calculating those savings.”
The lawsuit also claims Uber customers were enrolled without their consent and charged before the billing date. The lawsuit cites customers who signed up for a free trial but were automatically billed before the free trial ended.
The agency additionally claimed some users had to click through up to 23 screens and take 32 actions to cancel the subscription to Uber One.
“Some users are told they have to contact customer support to cancel but are given no way to contact them; others claim that Uber charged them for another billing cycle after they requested cancellation and were waiting to hear back from customer support,” the press release said.
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An Uber spokesman said in an email that the company is “disappointed” by the FTC’s complaint, noting that the company is confident the courts will rule in its favor.
“Uber One’s sign-up and cancellation processes are clear, simple, and follow the letter and spirit of the law,” the spokesman, Noah Edwardsen, said. “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.”
