New Georgia law aims to make canceling subscription services easier

Miguel Legoas, Augusta Chronicle
·2 min read
FILE - Many subscribers to streaming services forget to cancel before the end of their free trial, but Georgia HB 528 will prevent them from losing money they don't have to.
FILE - Many subscribers to streaming services forget to cancel before the end of their free trial, but Georgia HB 528 will prevent them from losing money they don't have to.
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As we continue to rely more on the internet, the need for accountability will rise. One of Georgia's new laws helps reinforce that.

Gov. Brian Kemp signed the House Bill 528 last May, establishing the "Georgia Online Automatic Renewal Transparency Act" and the "Georgia Online Third-Party Delivery Service Transparency Act," both of which went into effect New Year's Day.

The first part of this bill targets online subscription services, like Netflix or HelloFresh. Often, first-time users for a subscription will be given a free trial window, but then will forget about the window and their account will be charged. But under the new law, a new Georgia subscriber must be given the subscription's terms ahead of time and will not be charged after the free trial is over unless they agree to a renewal.

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The automatic renewal act also requires subscription-based companies to provide its customers notices for each charge and provide an online method of cancellation which may be either of these two options:

  • A clear and conspicuous link to a website or other online cancellation service.

  • A cancellation email formatted and provided by the business that a customer can send to the business without additional information.

These new measures will likely affect a lot of wallets as about 74% of subscribers say it's easy to forget about their recurring monthly charges and 42% say they have forgotten about a subscription they aren't even using anymore, according to a 2022 study by C+R market researchers in Chicago.

The second part of the bill targets online third-party delivery services like DoorDash and Uber Eats. Under the law, DoorDash will not be able to offer delivery from a Georgia restaurant or use its likeness without that restaurant's consent.

Grubhub was accused in 2020 of adding 150,000 restaurants without their permission to the app, according to CBS News. Georgia's new law provides penalties for when a delivery service non-consensually uses a restaurant, including a $1,000 fine for the first penalty, $2,000 for the second, and $10,000 for the third and any subsequent violations.

To access the full text of HB 528, go to legis.ga.gov.

This article originally appeared on Augusta Chronicle: How Georgia's HB 528 affects subscriptions, streaming, food delivery