Requires businesses to notify consumers of an upcoming automatic renewal or continuous service charge to the consumer's account forty-five days prior to such charge; requires businesses to include instructions on how to cancel such renewal or charge in the notice to the consumer.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
3245--D
Cal. No. 37
2023-2024 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
February 2, 2023
___________
Introduced by M. of A. PAULIN, SAYEGH -- read once and referred to the
Committee on Consumer Affairs and Protection -- committee discharged,
bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said
committee -- reported from committee, advanced to a third reading,
amended and ordered reprinted, retaining its place on the order of
third reading -- again amended on third reading, ordered reprinted,
retaining its place on the order of third reading -- again amended on
third reading, ordered reprinted, retaining its place on the order of
third reading
AN ACT to amend the general business law, in relation to requiring busi-
nesses to notify consumers of an upcoming automatic renewal or contin-
uous service charge forty-five days prior to such charge
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Subdivisions 3 and 8 of section 527-a of the general busi-
2 ness law, as added by chapter 267 of the laws of 2020, are amended to
3 read as follows:
4 3. a. In addition to the requirements of subdivision two of this
5 section, a consumer who accepts an automatic renewal or continuous
6 service offer online shall be allowed to terminate the automatic renewal
7 or continuous service exclusively online, which may include a termi-
8 nation email formatted and provided by the business that a consumer can
9 send to the business without additional information.
10 b. A business that allows a consumer to accept an automatic renewal or
11 continuous service offer for an initial paid term of one year or longer,
12 provided that such automatic renewal or continuous service renews for a
13 paid term of six months or longer, shall notify such consumer of such
14 upcoming automatic renewal or continuous service charge to such consum-
15 er's account at least fifteen days before, but not more than forty-five
16 days before, the cancellation deadline for such automatic renewal. Such
17 notice shall include instructions on how to cancel such renewal charge.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD03135-07-3
A. 3245--D 2
1 c. The provisions of paragraph b of this subdivision shall not apply
2 to any business, or subsidiary or affiliate thereof, regulated by the
3 public service commission or the federal communications commission.
4 8. The following are exempt from the requirements of this article:
5 a. any service provided by a business or its affiliate where either
6 the business or its affiliate is doing business pursuant to a franchise
7 issued by a political subdivision of the state;
8 b. any entity, or subsidiary or affiliate thereof, regulated by the
9 department of financial services;
10 c. security system alarm operators;
11 d. banks, bank holding companies, or the subsidiary or affiliate of
12 either, or credit unions or other financial institutions, licensed under
13 state or federal law; and
14 e. sellers and administrators of a service contract, as defined pursu-
15 ant to section seven thousand nine hundred two of the insurance law.
16 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
