New York Attorney General Letitia James has filed a lawsuit against SiriusXM Radio, accusing the satellite radio company of “trapping consumers in unwanted subscriptions” through deceptive and burdensome cancellation practices.
The lawsuit, filed on December 20, 2023, is based on an investigation by the Office of the Attorney General (OAG), according to a press release from James’ office.
It alleges that SiriusXM forces its subscribers to endure lengthy and frustrating cancellation processes, often exceeding 30 minutes, and trains its agents to pressure customers into staying with the service instead of respecting their wishes to cancel.
“Having to endure a lengthy and frustrating process to cancel a subscription is a stressful burden no one looks forward to, and when companies make it hard to cancel subscriptions, it’s illegal,” James said.
“Consumers should be able to cancel a subscription they no longer use or need without any issues, and companies have a legal duty to make their cancellation process easy. New Yorkers can trust that when companies like SiriusXM try to take advantage of them and violate the law, my office will step in to stop them.”
“Consumers should be able to cancel a subscription they no longer use or need without any issues, and companies have a legal duty to make their cancellation process easy. New Yorkers can trust that when companies like SiriusXM try to take advantage of them and violate the law, my office will step in to stop them.”
New York Attorney General Letitia James
SiriusXM, headquartered in New York City, boasts about 35 million subscribers, with nearly 2 million residing in the state of New York. The OAG initiated the investigation after receiving numerous consumer complaints regarding difficulties in canceling subscriptions.
While SiriusXM claims cancellations take an average of 11.5 minutes by phone and 30 minutes online, the OAG found that many subscribers face significantly longer wait times, often exceeding 20 minutes for an online chat.
Furthermore, the OAG discovered that SiriusXM can easily cancel subscriptions with a single click, yet they choose to implement complex and time-consuming procedures.
James’ office said numerous consumer affidavits submitted to the OAG detail the difficulties they faced when trying to cancel their SiriusXM subscriptions.
One customer allegedly endured a 40-minute online chat with an agent who ignored repeated cancellation requests, and the company allegedly continued to charge them even after they documented the conversation. Another complaint describes a 40-minute phone call with an agent who employed aggressive tactics to prevent cancellation.
The OAG’s lawsuit claims that SiriusXM violates state and federal laws concerning automatic renewals by failing to provide a simple, timely, and easy-to-use cancellation mechanism. Additionally, the lawsuit alleges that the company engages in fraud and deception by misleading customers seeking to cancel.
Attorney General James is seeking full restitution for all impacted subscribers across the US, including compensation for the time the company allegedly put subscribers through a lengthy cancellation process. The Attorney General is also seeking disgorgement, penalties, and costs, and to require SiriusXM to implement a simple and easy-to-use cancellation process.
SiriusXM plans to fight the lawsuit, with spokesperson Jessica Casano-Antonellis telling The Verge: “It’s telling that the New York Attorney General issued a press release before providing SiriusXM with a copy of the complaint.”
Casano-Antonellis added: “Like a number of consumer businesses, we offer a variety of options for customers to sign up for or cancel their SiriusXM subscription and, upon receiving and reviewing the complaint, we intend to vigorously defend against these baseless allegations that grossly mischaracterize SiriusXM’s practices.”
“upon receiving and reviewing the complaint, we intend to vigorously defend against these baseless allegations that grossly mischaracterize SiriusXM’s practices.”
Jessica Casano-Antonellis, SiriusXm
The development marks the latest lawsuit against SiriusXM, after the company was sued in August 2023 by US performance rights organization SoundExchange over what it claims are “substantial unpaid royalties and late fees owed under the Copyright Act” for the use of sound recordings on the satellite streaming service.
SoundExchange had claimed that SiriusXM has “wrongfully withheld more than $150 million in unpaid royalties over the past several years”.
In response, SiriusXM said it was “surprised” and “disappointed” by the SoundExchange lawsuit, and argued its method of calculating the royalties it owes is “rigorous, tested and fair.”
SiriusXM said it has “always respected the rights of creators and artists, and over the past ten years has paid SoundExchange royalties of over $5 billion… Today, royalty payments from SiriusXM represent over 80% [of] the statutory royalties that SoundExchange distributes to record labels and performers.”
Music Business Worldwide
