- 23andMe users claim the company charged them renewal fees for canceled subscriptions.
- The FTC reported more than 100 customer complaints to Gizmodo.
- Users claimed that 23andMe turned auto-renewal back on without their knowledge and charged them additional fees.
If you know you canceled your 23andMe subscription but think you were charged a renewal fee, that's okay.
According to a new report from Gizmodo, users who are fed up with a genetic testing service claim that the company defrauded them by turning off auto-renewals and then turning them back on, charging them more than they originally agreed to. It is said that there is
The Federal Trade Commission has released more than 100 complaints filed by 23andMe users since early 2023 after Gizmodo filed a FOIA request for the documents.
Many of these complaints, including one published by Gizmodo, detail update practices that users considered questionable and unethical.
“I turned off automatic updates after the last unwanted update,” one user wrote in a complaint to the FTC, according to Gizmodo. “But I was still charged a renewal fee. I didn't allow this. I turned off auto-renewal, but this company doesn't make it easy and doesn't send me a confirmation. “I thought I would be charged again. Why am I being charged? I deactivated it 11 months ago.”
A 23andMe spokesperson told Business Insider: “Our policy is not to charge a renewal fee if a customer opts out of their membership before the renewal date. If a customer is charged in error, we encourage them to contact us to resolve the issue. It will be resolved.”
“We will send members a reminder email 30 days in advance with the renewal date and price, informing them of the renewal and the amount they will be charged. This email will also include links to manage their membership. , your payment settings also include an option to cancel your membership if you do not wish to renew it.
Another user accused the company of secretly turning auto-updates back on after turning them off several times.
Users also complained that 23andMe refused to issue refunds even after they told them they would still be charged after turning off auto-renewal.
“I canceled my 23andMe subscription in January 2022 and asked to be removed from automatic billing. Despite this, I was charged the annual fee on January 15, 2023. Customer service… We will not refund your money even though their practices are predatory,” the user wrote. According to Gizmodo, the FTC says:
23andMe told Gizmodo that it does not offer refunds for “partially used membership periods.”
Some people say 23andMe renewed their subscription without their knowledge and they were charged more money than the original membership they signed up for. One user said he was charged 10 times the amount of his original subscription, while another said he was charged 3 times the amount.
Others took to Reddit to report problems with 23andMe, with one Reddit user writing, “I couldn't believe it. I thought I'd been hacked.”
March 13, 2024: This article has been updated to include a statement from 23andMe.
