Florida Senate - 2021                                    SB 2000
       
       
        
       By Senator Gruters
       
       
       
       
       
       23-01678-21                                           20212000__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to automatic renewal and continuous
    3         service offers; creating s. 501.166, F.S.; defining
    4         terms; specifying unlawful practices relating to
    5         automatic renewal and continuous service offers;
    6         providing requirements for automatic renewal offers,
    7         continuous service offers, and unconditional consumer
    8         gifts; providing applicability, penalties, and
    9         exemptions; providing an effective date.
   10          
   11  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   12  
   13         Section 1. Section 501.166, Florida Statutes, is created to
   14  read:
   15         501.166Prohibited service offer practices.—
   16         (1)DEFINITIONS.—As used in this section, the term:
   17         (a)“Automatic renewal” means a plan or an arrangement in
   18  which a paid subscription or purchasing agreement is
   19  automatically renewed at the end of a definite period of time
   20  for a subsequent period of time.
   21         (b)“Automatic renewal offer terms” means the following
   22  clear and conspicuous disclosures:
   23         1.The subscription or purchasing agreement will continue
   24  until the consumer cancels.
   25         2.The description of the cancellation policy that applies
   26  to the offer.
   27         3.The recurring charges that will be charged to the
   28  consumer’s credit card, debit card, or payment account with a
   29  third party as part of the automatic renewal plan or
   30  arrangement, and that amount of the charge that may change, if
   31  applicable, and the amount the charge will change, if known.
   32         4.The length of the automatic renewal period or that the
   33  service is continuous, unless the length of the term is chosen
   34  by the consumer.
   35         5.The minimum purchase obligation, if applicable.
   36         (c)“Clear and conspicuous” means in larger type than the
   37  surrounding text, or in contrasting type, font, or color to the
   38  surrounding text of the same size, or set off from the
   39  surrounding text of the same size by symbols or other marks, in
   40  a manner that clearly calls attention to the language. In the
   41  case of an audio disclosure, the term means in a volume and
   42  cadence sufficient to be readily audible and understandable.
   43         (d)“Consumer” means any individual who seeks or acquires,
   44  by purchase or lease, any goods, services, money, or credit for
   45  personal, family, or household purposes.
   46         (e)“Continuous service” means a plan or an arrangement in
   47  which a subscription or purchasing agreement continues until the
   48  consumer cancels the service.
   49         (2)UNLAWFUL PRACTICES.—It shall be unlawful for any
   50  business making an automatic renewal or continuous service offer
   51  to a consumer in the state to:
   52         (a)Fail to present the automatic renewal offer terms or
   53  continuous service offer terms in a clear and conspicuous manner
   54  before the subscription or purchasing agreement is fulfilled and
   55  in visual proximity or, in the case of an offer conveyed by
   56  voice, in temporal proximity, to the request for consent to the
   57  offer. If the offer also includes a free gift or trial, the
   58  offer shall include a clear and conspicuous explanation of the
   59  price that will be charged after the trial ends or the manner in
   60  which the subscription or purchasing agreement pricing will
   61  change upon conclusion of the trial.
   62         (b)Charge the consumer’s credit card, debit card, or
   63  payment account with a third party for an automatic renewal or
   64  continuous service without first obtaining the consumer’s
   65  affirmative consent to the agreement containing the automatic
   66  renewal offer terms or continuous service offer terms, including
   67  the terms of an automatic renewal offer or a continuous service
   68  offer that is made at a promotional or discounted price for a
   69  limited period of time.
   70         (c)Fail to provide an acknowledgment that includes the
   71  automatic renewal or continuous service offer terms,
   72  cancellation policy, and information regarding how to cancel in
   73  a manner that is capable of being retained by the consumer. If
   74  the offer includes a free gift or trial, the business shall also
   75  disclose in the acknowledgment how to cancel and allow the
   76  consumer to cancel before the consumer pays for the goods or
   77  services.
   78         (3)AUTOMATIC RENEWAL.—
   79         (a)A business that makes an automatic renewal offer or a
   80  continuous service offer shall provide a toll-free telephone
   81  number; an electronic mail address; a postal address, only when
   82  the seller directly bills the consumer; or another cost
   83  effective, timely, and easy to use mechanism for cancellation
   84  that must be included in the notice pursuant to paragraph (c).
   85         (b)In addition to the requirements of subsection (2), a
   86  consumer who accepts an automatic renewal or continuous service
   87  offer online shall be allowed to terminate such renewal or
   88  service online, which may include a termination e-mail formatted
   89  and provided by the business that a consumer can send to the
   90  business without additional information.
   91         (c)In the case of a material change in the terms of the
   92  automatic renewal or continuous service offer that has been
   93  accepted by a consumer in the state, the business shall provide
   94  the consumer with a clear and conspicuous notice of the material
   95  change and provide information regarding how to cancel in a
   96  manner that is capable of being retained by the consumer.
   97         (4)APPLICABILITY.—The requirements of this section only
   98  apply before the completion of the initial order for the
   99  automatic renewal or continuous service, except as follows:
  100         (a)The requirement in paragraph (2)(c) may be fulfilled
  101  after completion of the initial order.
  102         (b)The requirement in subsection (5) shall be fulfilled
  103  before implementation of the material change.
  104         (5)UNCONDITIONAL GIFT TO CONSUMER.—If a business sends any
  105  goods, wares, merchandise, or products to a consumer, under a
  106  continuous service agreement or an automatic renewal of a
  107  purchase, without first obtaining the consumer’s affirmative
  108  consent, the goods, wares, merchandise, or products shall be
  109  deemed an unconditional gift to the consumer, who may use or
  110  dispose of the gift in any manner without any obligation to the
  111  business for the cost of, or the responsibility for, shipping
  112  any goods, wares, merchandise, or products to the business.
  113         (6)PENALTIES.—For any violation of this section, an
  114  application may be made by the Attorney General to a court
  115  having jurisdiction to issue an injunction, and upon notice to
  116  the defendant of not less than 5 days, to enjoin and restrain
  117  the continuance of such violations. If the court finds that the
  118  defendant has violated this section, an injunction may be issued
  119  by the court to enjoin and restrain any further violation
  120  without requiring proof that any person has, in fact, been
  121  injured or damaged thereby. In any such proceeding, the court
  122  may make allowances to the Attorney General and direct
  123  restitution. In connection with any such proposed application,
  124  the Attorney General may take proof and make a determination of
  125  the relevant facts and issue subpoenas. If the court determines
  126  that a violation of this section has occurred, the court may
  127  impose a civil penalty of not more than $100 for a single
  128  violation and not more than $500 for multiple violations
  129  resulting from a single act or incident. A knowing penalty of
  130  not more than $500 for a single violation and not more than
  131  $1000 for multiple violations resulting from a single act or
  132  incident. A business may not be deemed to have violated this
  133  section if such business shows, by a preponderance of the
  134  evidence, that the violation was not intentional and resulted
  135  from a bona fide error made notwithstanding the maintenance of
  136  procedures reasonably adopted to avoid such error.
  137         (7)EXEMPTIONS.—The following are exempted from this
  138  section:
  139         (a)Any service provided by a business or its affiliate
  140  where the business or its affiliate is doing business pursuant
  141  to a franchise issued by a political subdivision of the state.
  142         (b)Any entity regulated by the Department of Financial
  143  Services.
  144         (c)Security system alarm operators.
  145         (d)Banks, bank holding companies, or the subsidiary or
  146  affiliate of either, or credit unions or other financial
  147  institutions, licensed under state or federal law.
  148         (e)Sellers and administrators of a service contract, as
  149  defined in s. 501.165(1).
  150         Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2021.