American Automobile Association (AAA) Membership Auto Renewal

The Lyon Firm is investigating potentially illegal automatic renewal schemes and deceptive billing practices on behalf of plaintiffs nationwide. If you have questions about an auto-renewal of your AAA membership, contact The Lyon Firm to review.

Deceptive billing schemes have become a frequent complaint for consumers across the country. Many modern business models rely on auto renewal contracts and companies feed on this continual cash flow. These companies are quick to charge you for a service, but they may be overlooking consumer protection laws that make them liable for deceptive billing violations.

American Automobile Association is a federation of motor clubs throughout North America. AAA is a privately held not-for-profit national member association and service organization with over 60 million members in the United States and Canada. If you have encountered membership issues, contact us for a free consultation.

Online automatic renewal programs are regulated by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) under the Restore Online Shoppers’ Confidence Act (ROSCA), which requires clear disclosures of contract terms, informed consent before a purchase, and an easy method to cancel the charges. Violations of this law are regarded as unfair or deceptive acts or practices under the Federal Trade Commission Act.

Joe Lyon is a class action consumer fraud lawyer investigating AAA membership auto-renewal claims, and other deceptive billing practice complaints for plaintiffs nationwide.

What Are the Requirements for Proper Auto-Renewal?

To be clear, entities like AAA can legally automatically renew subscriptions if they make all terms clear and obtain your written consent. Too often, however, companies rely on customer confusion, deliberately bypass these requirements and violate consumer fraud statutes.

There are specific components that must be included in subscription automatic renewal contracts:

• Clear disclosures about the offer: Companies must present the terms of any automatic renewal offer “clearly and conspicuously.”
• Disclosures about the contract period: The contract period must be clearly presented prior to a consumer purchase.
• Obtaining consent: Consent must be “express” and “informed.” Written consent is voluntarily given by a competent individual after details of the offer have been disclosed.
• Written confirmation following a purchase: Written acknowledgment must be given to the customer after a purchase, and must include the initial disclosures, and specific information on how to cancel. If a free trial is offered, this must also include details on how to cancel the subscription before being charged.
• Cancellation mechanisms must be simple: Methods to cancel a subscription must be cost-effective, timely, and easy.
• Renewal reminders must be timely: These vary by state, but companies should send proper notice to customers before their subscription is automatically renewed.

AAA Membership: What are Automatic Renewal Law Violations?

There have been allegations that AAA may not entirely comply with Florida Automatic Renewal Laws, and may be liable for relevant violations. Florida law requires the following:

Florida Auto Renewal law only applies service contracts that are automatically renewed for a service to be in effect for more than 6 months after the date of initiation of service.

A seller must: (i) disclose the automatic renewal provision clearly and conspicuously in the contract or contract offer; (ii) provide the consumer with written or electronic notification of the automatic renewal provision no less than 30 days and no more than 60 days before the cancellation deadline if the contract is for 12 months or more, and if automatically renews for more than one month, unless the consumer cancels the contract.

The notification must clearly and conspicuously disclose that unless the consumer cancels the contract. The methods by which the consumer may obtain details of the automatic renewal provision and cancellation procedure, whether by: (i) contacting the seller at a specified telephone number; (ii) referring the contract; and (iii) any other method.

Can I File a Lawsuit for Deceptive Billing Practices?

AAA Members who have been unwittingly entered into an automatic renewal agreement should contact a consumer fraud attorney and consider taking legal action. The Lyon Firm believes that companies that mislead their customers into agreements should be held liable and compensate customers for any violations.

You may ask yourself the following questions before contacting an attorney:

• Are your AAA membership terms and conditions clear and conspicuous?
• Did AAA clearly explain their automatic renewal program?
• Does the company have clear instructions on how to cancel a subscription?
• Did AAA obtain your affirmative consent before charging you for the product or service?
• Did the company give you proper notice (30-60 days) before your subscription contract was renewed?

Multiple states have updated consumer protection laws that prohibit companies from automatically renewing subscriptions without obtaining proper consent or clearly explaining the terms and conditions of the contract. Federal laws also protect consumers. According to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), businesses must take proper steps to ensure that charges to customers’ credit cards and accounts are authorized.

Any violations of the Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Practices Act by the AAA or another subscription-based entity may constitute an unlawful practice and affected individuals can contact an attorney to consider seeking compensation and justice.