800Razors Class Action Says Auto-Renewing Contracts Illegal

A class action lawsuit alleges that 800Razors.com violated California consumer protection laws by not providing proper disclosure of the terms and conditions of its automatically renewing razor orders.

The complaint states that 800Razors.com is an online marketplace for shaving supplies, such as razors. According to the lawsuit, consumers can order razors with a frequency of either “just once” or “every 4 months.” The class action alleges that the “every 4 month” option does not comply with California statutes on automatically renewing contracts.

The 800Razors automatic renewal class action lawsuit contends that the website does not provide the terms and conditions of the renewal offer “in a clear and conspicuous manner and in visual proximity to the request for consent to the offer before the subscription or purchasing agreement was fulfilled,” which is a California state law requirement.

The essential terms of the automatic renewal under California law are: 1, a statement that the contract will continue until it cancelled; 2, a description of the cancellation policy; 3, the reoccurring charges that the consumer will pay, and any changes to those charges, if known; 4, the length of the renewal term, unless it is chosen by the consumer; and 5, the minimum purchase obligation, if any.

While the website does have a “terms and conditions” link, those terms do not provide all the information required, and not at the point of sale as required by California law, according to the class action. The complaint includes screen shots of a subscription transaction on the 800Razors.com website, and argues that the renewal terms are not provided during the sale.

In addition, the complaint accuses 800Razors of charging consumers for the automatic renewal “without first obtaining [consumers’] affirmative consent to the agreement.” Finally, the class action alleges that 800Razors.com did not comply with California consumer protection statutes by failing to provide an “acknowledgment” of the automatic renewal terms to consumers, along with details on how to cancel the renewing contract.

Because of those violations of California law, the class action argues that “all goods, wares, merchandise, and/or products sent to Plaintiff and Class Members under the automatic renewal of continuous service agreements are deemed to be an unconditional gift.” The complaint continues that “Plaintiff and Class Members may use or dispose of the same in any manner they see fit without any obligation whatsoever on their part to Defendant, including, but not limited to, bearing the cost of, or responsibility for, Defendant’s services and products.”

Plaintiff Kristyne Hanberg, of California, says she ordered a razor subscription from 800Razors.com that was automatically renewed without her consent. Hanberg seeks to represent a Class of “all persons in California who, within the applicable statute of limitations period, purchased subscriptions for any products from 800Razors.com, LLC.” The class action requests restitution of money received by 800Razors.com for the automatically renewing subscriptions.

The plaintiff is represented by Gillian L. Wade of Milstein, Adelman, Jackson, Fairchild & Wade, LLP, and Scott J. Ferrell, Richard H. Hikida, David W. Reid, and Victoria C. Knowles of Newport Trial Group.

The 800Razors.com Automatic Renewal Contract Class Action Lawsuit is Kristyne Hanberg v. 800Razors.com LLC, Case No. 8:16-cv-00761, in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.