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House Co-Sponsorship Memoranda
House of Representatives
Session of 2017 - 2018
Regular Session
MEMORANDUM
| Posted: | April 10, 2017 03:21 PM |
|---|---|
| From: | Representative Christopher M. Rabb |
| To: | All House members |
| Subject: | Automatic Renewal Provisions in Consumer Contracts |
| In the near future, I plan to reintroduce legislation (former HB 580) that increases protections for consumers who enter into contracts with automatic renewal provisions. Also known as “evergreen clauses,” automatic renewal provisions allow contracts to be automatically renewed without consumer notification. Currently, Pennsylvania law does not require sellers to alert consumers to a contract’s upcoming renewal, unless the contract is for a health club membership. As a result, consumers are forced to pay for goods and services they no longer want or use if they fail to cancel by a date that may be buried in a contract’s small print. This legislation increases protections for consumers who sign contracts with automatic renewal provisions in two ways. First, it requires automatic renewal provisions in contracts to be in a minimum font with a bold typeface. Secondly, it requires sellers to notify consumers of the upcoming automatic renewal of a contract 30 to 60 days prior to the renewal to ensure that consumers have an opportunity to cancel the contract. Failure to abide by the requirements of this legislation would be a violation of the Pennsylvania Unfair Trade Practices and Consumer Protection Law. I hope you choose to join me in increasing protections for consumers. Thank you for your support of this important legislation. |
Introduced as HB1369