§2.9.6 Free trials and subscription traps

Free trials are marketing tools that allow consumers to order a product or subscribe to a service without costs or for a small amount (i.e. postage of the sample). Some free trials involve unfair commercial practices that mislead consumers into subscriptions. A 2017 Commission study on online free trials and subscription traps reported the prevalence of various practices described below (219). If a trader fails to provide his geographical address and identity in an invitation to purchase it can be contrary to Article 7(4)(b) UCPD. In addition, Article 6(1) of the CRD and Article 5(1)(c) of the e-Commerce Directive require online traders to render accessible information that allows consumers to contact them. The requirements of these Directives qualify as material information under Article 7(5) UCPD. If a trader does not make it clear to consumers that they may enter into subscriptions by signing up to a free trial, they may infringe Article 7(1), 7(2) and 7(4)(a) of the UCPD by omitting material information. Depending on the circumstances, there may also be an infringement of Article 6(1)(a) UCPD. Omitting or providing information in an unclear manner on the recurring costs of a subscription may be contrary to Articles 6(1)(d) and/or 7(1), 7(2) and 7(4)(c) UCPD. For example: — A telecom operator advertised on billboards that consumers could receive either two tablets or one mobile phone and a tablet for the price of PLN 1,-. However, the trader did not clearly inform consumers that, in order to take advantage of this offer, they would have to sign both a subscription contract for 24 months and a purchase contract for the products with 36 monthly instalments. A consumer authority found this advertising misleading within the meaning of Article 6(1)(d) of the UCPD (220). — In 2021, the Commission and national consumer authorities took action concerning the lack of clear information when making purchases with credit cards, which may involve problems such as concealing actual costs in hidden or small print about recurring payments (221). While credit card companies are not the ones running these schemes, they have a duty to properly inform their customers. In the payment window where consumers enter their credit card information when shopping online, there is often only information about a one-off payment amount, not the recurring subscription. Under the UCPD and Payment Services Directive, consumers must be made aware of the specific amounts for all payment transactions, including recurring ones. — In 2020, a national authority fined the operator of two dating websites for breaches of the UCPD concerning the websites’ subscription models. Specifically, the authority found that although the websites were advertised as free of charge, essential services (e.g. contacting other users) were subject to a fee, providing misleading information to consumers on subscriptions, renewals and fees. Further, the high number of consumer complaints, as well as their poor handling indicated the trader’s refusal to change its communication practices (222). Moreover, the CRD contains specific rules to improve the transparency of payments on the internet in its Article 8(2). According to Article 8(2), in distance contracts concluded by electronic means, information relating to the main characteristics of the good or service, the price inclusive of taxes and the duration of the contract and of the consumers' obligations must be provided in a clear and prominent manner, and directly before the consumer places his order; it does not suffice to provide this information in the previous steps of the ordering process. In addition, the consumer must be given the possibility to explicitly acknowledge that the order implies an obligation to pay, including recurring amounts, e.g. by activating an unambiguously labelled ordering button. Both the amount of a one-off payment as well as the amount of recurring payments that may follow should be clearly provided to the consumer. For example: A trader contacted consumers via telemarketing to promote the sale of a free puzzle book together with a 6 month subscription, which entails five additional books at a cost. A national court considered that, based on the information provided and the emphasis on the first free book, consumers may have thought that they committed themselves to a one-off payment, while in fact they engaged in a subscription. The trader was found to infringe Article 6(1)(a) UCPD by not providing clear information about the nature of the product (223). In addition, describing a products as ‘gratis’, ‘free’, ‘without charge’ or similar if the consumer has to pay anything other than the unavoidable cost of responding to the commercial practice and collecting or paying for delivery of the item’ is a commercial practice which is in all circumstances considered unfair and thus prohibited under the UCPD. This follows from No 20 of Annex I of the Directive. Inertia selling (demanding payment for or the return or safekeeping of products not solicited by the consumer) is also a commercial practice which is in all circumstances prohibited under the UCPD. This follows from No 29 of Annex I of the Directive.

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Source: EUR-Lex (Cellar) · retrieved 2026-09-07