{"id":292601,"date":"2026-07-10T19:52:08","date_gmt":"2026-07-10T19:52:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/292601\/"},"modified":"2026-07-10T19:52:08","modified_gmt":"2026-07-10T19:52:08","slug":"nyc-sees-new-junk-fee-ban-as-mamdani-hits-back-at-biz-bad-habit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/292601\/","title":{"rendered":"NYC sees new ‘junk fee’ ban as Mamdani hits back at biz ‘bad habit’"},"content":{"rendered":"

NYC is striking back against \u201cjunk fees\u201d by implementing the nation\u2019s first municipal Click-to-Cancel rule<\/a> \u2014 making it easier to scrub sneaky subscriptions for everything from gym memberships<\/a> to streaming services<\/a>. <\/p>\n

The new regulation, city officials say, will save cash-strapped city dwellers a whopping $162.5 million a year.<\/p>\n

The consequence for subscription-sellers in violation will be enforced starting October 1 \u2014 with offending companies being subject to $525 per evasion.<\/p>\n

Mayor Zohran Mamdani announced that starting on October 1, businesses that do not adhere for the call to transparent pricing will be subject to a $525 fine per violation. Andrew Schwartz \/ SplashNews.com<\/p>\n

The Department of Consumer and Worker Protection (DCWP) has released an explainer video<\/a> further outlining how the rule will work.<\/p>\n

The changes were announced at Manhattan\u2019s Asser Levy Recreational Center on July 10, with Mayor Zohran Mamdani, DCWP commissioner Samuel A.A. Levine, Deputy Mayor for Economic Justice Julie Su, Senator Kristen Gonzalez and former commissioner of the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Lina Khan as speakers.<\/p>\n

@hellodcwp<\/a> <\/p>\n

NYC moves to BAN junk fees! We\u2019re closing the door on surprise charges and opening a door to a new era, where the price you see is the price you pay. Learn more about the proposed rule at nyc.gov\/consumers<\/p>\n

\u266c original sound \u2013 NYC DCWP<\/a> <\/p>\n

\u201cRight now, companies make it easy to sign up for things and hard to cancel them,\u201d\u00a0 Su said in her opening remarks. \u201cThey advertise one price and charge you another.\u201d<\/p>\n

The \u201cClick-to-Cancel\u201d rule aims to make canceling subscriptions like gym memberships as easy as it is to sign up for them. James Messerschmidt for the NY Post<\/p>\n

When Mayor Mamdani stepped up to speak, he compared the increase in hidden recurring fees and the difficulty New Yorkers often face when trying to cancel them to a line in Adam Sandler<\/a>\u2019s 2006 comedy \u201cClick.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cChristopher Walken, in his role as Morty (the Angel of Death) begs us to \u2018Consider the leprechaun,\u2019\u201d Mamdani stated. \u201c\u2018He\u2019s always chasing the pot of gold,\u2019 Walken says. \u2018But when he gets there, at the end of the day, it\u2019s just cornflakes.\u2019 Whether it\u2019s an internet provider or a commercial gym, too many in our city have made and developed the bad habit of disguising cornflakes as gold.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNew Yorkers reckon with (this) as almost every part of the customer experience when they are not told how much something truly costs, and when they get a mess of hidden fees that they never signed up for, cannot cancel, cannot afford,\u201d he continued, emphasizing that the costs from hidden fees by airlines, credit card companies, hotel bookings<\/a> and streaming services \u201cadd up.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Mamdani administration gathered on July 10 to discuss the consumer-friendly changes. James Messerschmidt for the NY Post<\/p>\n

Per Consumer Reports, these sneaky fees cost the average family of four approximately $3,200 every year.<\/p>\n

But wait, there\u2019s potentially more \u2014 the Mamdani administration also proposed an adjacent act that would require fully transparent, all-in pricing on a slew of different services. A public comment period and public hearing on the additional rule will take place on Aug. 7.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Mamdani Administration is shutting the door on the era of fleecing New Yorkers with junk fees and subscription traps,\u201d said Commissioner Levine. <\/p>\n

\u201cThese two rules will ensure that the price you see is the price you pay\u2014no hidden charges, no endless subscription services and no advantages for businesses that cheat. Requiring companies to compete on price will lower costs for all New Yorkers and level the playing field for honest businesses.\u201d<\/p>\n

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