Cerebral, a behavioral telehealth company, will pay more than 16,000 consumers restitution for allegedly violating New York laws by making it difficult to cancel subscriptions to the platform.
According to a Dec. 28 news release from New York Attorney General Letitia James, Cerebral will pay $740,000 to the state for a "long and burdensome" cancellation process and allegedly charging consumers after they canceled subscriptions.
Of the settlement money, $540,000 will be paid to customers as restitution.
"It is illegal and unfair to make consumers spend extra time or jump through hoops to try to cancel a subscription they no longer need," Ms. James said in the news release. "The law is clear that companies must make it easy and simple to end a subscription and my office will continue to hold them to that standard."
According to the release, an investigation from the attorney general's office found Cerebral sometimes took more than a week to cancel subscriptions and would bill customers for the next month of service if the cancellation was delayed beyond their next billing cycle.
The company has now created a one-step "click-to-cancel" process, according to the release.
"We are pleased to report that Cerebral has reached a settlement with the New York Attorney General to close its investigation into Cerebral's business practices," a Cerebral spokesperson told Becker's. "The Attorney General acknowledged Cerebral for improving its cancellation process and implementing their recommendations. We look forward to continuing to be a trusted mental health partner to all who need care."