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Mamdani launches NYC's click-to-cancel consumer rule
The rule takes effect Oct. 1 and requires businesses to make cancellations as simple as signups.
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Ankita Baidya - Mon, 13, Jul 2026
- 04:24 EDT
- 33
Mayor Zohran Mamdani announced a new consumer protection rule requiring businesses to simplify subscription cancellations. / File Photo/Wikimedia commons
Mayor Zohran Mamdani announced that New York City will become the first city in the United States to implement a Click-to-Cancel Rule, requiring businesses to make subscription cancellations as simple as signing up, according to a post on the mayor's official X account.
The rule will take effect on Oct. 1 and is projected to save New Yorkers between $21.5 million and $162.5 million annually, according to estimates cited by the mayor's office. Mamdani said the policy is intended to ensure that if a service can be purchased with a single click, it should be equally easy to cancel. The mayor's office said residents who experience difficulty canceling subscriptions can report businesses through the city's consumer protection portal at nyc.gov/Consumers.
Also read: Ro Khanna praises Mamdani's July 4 speech as patriotic
The Click-to-Cancel Rule was formally announced by Mamdani alongside New York City Department of Consumer and Worker Protection Commissioner Samuel A.A. Levine, according to a news release from the mayor's office. The rule applies to automatic renewal and continuous service subscriptions and requires businesses to clearly disclose subscription terms while providing consumers with a straightforward cancellation process. Businesses that violate the rule will be subject to consumer restitution and civil penalties beginning at $525 per violation.
The mayor's office said the rule was issued under Executive Order 10 and announced alongside a separate proposed regulation targeting hidden "junk fees." That proposal, issued under Executive Order 9, would require businesses to advertise the full price of goods and services upfront rather than adding mandatory fees during the purchasing process. The proposal was published for public comment on July 8 and would carry civil penalties starting at $350 per violation for businesses found in violation.
The announcement builds on other consumer protection measures introduced by the Mamdani administration, including a rule prohibiting hidden hotel fees. Levine, who previously served as director of the Federal Trade Commission's Bureau of Consumer Protection under then-Chair Lina Khan, has said junk fees and subscription traps cost New York families an average of $3,200 each year.
The city's action comes after a broader national effort to regulate subscription cancellation practices. A proposed Federal Trade Commission Click-to-Cancel rule was struck down by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit in 2025, leaving states and local governments to pursue their own consumer protection measures.
Mamdani, who was born in Kampala, Uganda, to Indian filmmaker Mira Nair and political scientist Mahmood Mamdani, was elected mayor of New York City in November 2025 after campaigning on issues including affordability, housing and the cost of living. His administration has identified consumer protection as a key component of its broader affordability agenda.
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