New York Attorney General Letitia James today secured $375,000 from 1-800-Flowers.com, Inc. (1-800-Flowers) for misleading consumers and enrolling customers in automatically-renewing paid subscriptions. 1-800-Flowers sells flowers, food, and other gifts through a host of brands, including 1-800-Flowers.com, 1-800-Baskets.com, Cheryl’s Cookies, Harry & David, Shari’s Berries, The Popcorn Factory, and more. An investigation by the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) found that 1-800-Flowers failed to clearly disclose the terms of a subscription service that included free shipping, failed to provide consumers with the subscription acknowledgment required by New York law, and did not notify subscribers before the subscription renewed automatically. As a result, many customers did not realize they had signed up for a yearly subscription and were charged recurring fees for a service they never used. Under the settlement with OAG, 1-800-Flowers must pay $375,000 in penalties, change its subscription practices, and offer restitution to subscribers.

“Companies that trick consumers into signing up for recurring subscriptions are breaking the law and costing New Yorkers their hard-earned money,” said Attorney General James. “1-800-Flowers buried their terms in fine print and failed to warn consumers they were signing up for automatically renewing subscriptions. My office is putting a stop to these deceptive practices and ensuring New Yorkers get their money back.”

New York law requires subscription terms to be clearly disclosed to customers, including the minimum term length, the fact that the subscription renews, and the cancellation policy. Businesses must also get affirmative consent for automatic renewals, provide a post-purchase acknowledgment, and offer an easy cancellation process.

1-800-Flowers offers a “Celebrations Passport” subscription across its brands that eliminates shipping fees and service charges on orders for a yearly fee priced between $14.99 and $29.99. The OAG found…