Canceling a gym membership or an unused streaming service in New York City just got a lot less painful. As of October 1, NYC officially became the first city in the nation to enforce a “click to cancel” rule, forcing businesses to make ending a recurring subscription just as easy as signing up.
The municipal rule stems from an executive order by Mayor Zohran Mamdani. It gives local enforcement authority to the NYC Department of Consumer and Worker Protection (DCWP). Under the new guidelines, if a business lets you join online in two clicks, it cannot force you to sit on hold for 45 minutes, send a letter by mail, or show up in person just to cancel.
Penalties for trap subscriptions and a portal powered by real people
Unwanted subscriptions drain real money every month. A 2025 YouGov survey commissioned by CNET found that American adults spend about $1,080 a year on subscriptions, wasting an average of $205 on services they do not even use. Millennials spend the most at $1,215 annually. At the same time, FTC complaints about hard-to-cancel subscriptions jumped from 42 a day in 2021 to nearly 70 a day in 2024 (via CNBC).
To help residents fight back, NYC launched a dedicated online portal built in ten weeks by the Mayor’s Public Interest Technology Crew. Former FTC consumer protection chief and current DCWP Commissioner Samuel Levine emphasized that the portal will not divert people into an “AI chatbot doom loop,” relying instead on real human staff. Businesses caught hiding terms, delaying cancellations, omitting auto-renewal notices, or charging return shipping on “free” trial items face civil penalties starting at $525 per violation, alongside potential forced refunds.
Local leadership steps up as federal rules remain stalled
NYC’s local enforcement fills a major gap left by federal court battles. In October 2024, the FTC—led by Chair Lina Khan—adopted a national click-to-cancel rule. But in July 2025 it was struck down on procedural grounds by the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals after legal challenges brought by groups such as the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
The FTC under current Chair Andrew Ferguson is gathering public input to potentially revive the rule. State and local governments are taking charge, though. Over half of U.S. states have similar laws, but NYC is setting the pace at the city level, showing how local authorities can hold companies accountable when national standards stall.
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