Uber was accused by US regulators on Monday of deceiving customers about special discounts at the Uber One subscription service and even enrolling them without their permission.
In a lawsuit, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) claimed that the San Francisco-based business had used practices at Uber One that were against the Restore Online Shoppers’ Confidence Act.
“Americans are tired of getting signed up for unwanted subscriptions that seem impossible to cancel,” FTC chair Andrew Ferguson said in a release announcing the suit.
“We’re alleging that Uber not only deceived consumers about their subscriptions, but also made it unreasonably difficult for customers to cancel.”
Uber One subscribers get discounts on rides or food deliveries made using an Uber Eats service.
Typically, a subscription costs $10 per month. According to the complaint, Uber promised $25 in monthly savings to persuade consumers to sign up, but that did not apply to subscription fees.
Uber’s monthly savings promise was deceptive, according to FTC lawyers, and the business made it hard for customers to cancel their Uber One memberships even though it claimed that they could “cancel anytime.”
Uber maintained that most subscription cancellations take less than 20 seconds through the app and denied registering users without their authorization.
“We are disappointed that the FTC chose to move forward with this action,” an Uber spokesperson told AFP.
The spokesperson added that Uber was “confident that the courts will agree with what we already know: Uber One’s sign-up and cancellation processes are clear, simple, and follow the letter and spirit of the law.”
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