The US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has sued ride-hailing company Uber, alleging it engaged in deceptive billing and cancellation practices. The consumer protection agency claims Uber charged customers without consent and made it difficult to cancel subscriptions.
Uber’s Uber One subscription service, launched in 2021, offers perks such as no-fee delivery and discounts on rides and orders for $9.99 a month or $96 a year. However, the FTC says Uber has made cancelling these subscriptions extremely hard for consumers, requiring up to 32 actions to cancel.
Uber disputes this claim, saying cancellations can now be done in-app within 20 seconds. The company previously required customers to contact support within 48 hours of their next billing period but no longer does so.
The FTC also alleges that many consumers were enrolled in Uber One without giving their consent. Uber denies signing up or charging consumers without their consent.
This lawsuit marks the FTC’s first major action against a US tech company since President Trump took office for his second term in January. The agency is also facing a similar case against Meta, which it initiated during the previous administration.
The FTC alleges that Meta secured a social media monopoly through its acquisitions of Instagram and WhatsApp, but Meta has said the lawsuit is “misguided.”
Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c1drkq0dy07o