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A proposed class action alleges subscription streaming service FloSports has broken the law by routinely taking money out of consumers’ bank accounts without written authorization.
The 35-page complaint alleges Austin, Texas-based FloSports, who offers live and on-demand access to a wide variety of competitions across “25+ vertical sports categories,” has violated the federal Electronic Funds Transfer Act (EFTA) by initiating preauthorized electronic funds transfers from consumers’ bank accounts without consent and without providing a copy of the purported written authorization to those who were charged.
The case also accuses FloSports of violating New York’s Automatic Renewal Law, which requires a company offering an automatically renewing subscription service to clearly and conspicuously provide the terms of the automatic renewal offer, obtain consent, and offer an easy-to-use mechanism for canceling the contract, among other mandates.
More specifically, the plaintiff, a Tonawanda, New York resident, alleges that at the FloSports subscription checkout screen, consumers are misled into believing that they are signing up for a service for which they will be charged a monthly fee, only to discover that they were charged a substantially higher annual fee. Further, the suit claims FloSports is able to unilaterally charge customers renewal fees without their consent, as it possesses their billing information.
According to the suit, FloSports has “concocted a scheme” to charge sports fans on a yearly basis, without requisite consent or disclosures and “in reliance on consumer confusion,” as many subscribers believe they are agreeing to a monthly service that can be canceled at any time.
The 35-page complaint alleges Austin, Texas-based FloSports, who offers live and on-demand access to a wide variety of competitions across “25+ vertical sports categories,” has violated the federal Electronic Funds Transfer Act (EFTA) by initiating preauthorized electronic funds transfers from consumers’ bank accounts without consent and without providing a copy of the purported written authorization to those who were charged.
The case also accuses FloSports of violating New York’s Automatic Renewal Law, which requires a company offering an automatically renewing subscription service to clearly and conspicuously provide the terms of the automatic renewal offer, obtain consent, and offer an easy-to-use mechanism for canceling the contract, among other mandates.
More specifically, the plaintiff, a Tonawanda, New York resident, alleges that at the FloSports subscription checkout screen, consumers are misled into believing that they are signing up for a service for which they will be charged a monthly fee, only to discover that they were charged a substantially higher annual fee. Further, the suit claims FloSports is able to unilaterally charge customers renewal fees without their consent, as it possesses their billing information.
According to the suit, FloSports has “concocted a scheme” to charge sports fans on a yearly basis, without requisite consent or disclosures and “in reliance on consumer confusion,” as many subscribers believe they are agreeing to a monthly service that can be canceled at any time.
