White House cracks down on customer service ‘doom loops’ and subscription traps
The Biden administration has announced new actions that aim to make it easier for consumers to cancel subscriptions, get refunds, submit healthcare and insurance forms online, and access customer service.
The multi-agency ‘Time is Money’ initiative targets corporate practices that officials claim are designed to waste consumers’ time, such as excessive paperwork, long phone hold times, and frustrating automation.
“These hassles don’t just happen by accident,” a statement from the White House said. “Companies often deliberately design their business processes to be time-consuming or otherwise burdensome for consumers, in order to deter them from getting a rebate or refund they are due or cancelling a subscription or membership they no longer want – all with the goal of maximising profits.”
Among the government actions outlined, the Federal Trade Commission has proposed a rule that would require companies to make it as easy to cancel a subscription or service as it is to sign up for one. The Federal Communications Commission is looking into whether to extend similar requirements to companies in the communications industry.
Single-click help
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and other agencies are working on new rules that would require companies to let customers talk to a human by pressing a single button, rather than navigating a “doom loop” of options and automated responses.
The CFPB is also planning to issue rules or guidance to crack down on “ineffective chatbots used by banks and other financial institutions in lieu of customer service”.
To help people secure health coverage, the Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Labor have urged insurance companies to allow customers to fill in forms online, rather than needing to print them out.
Recently, the Department of Transportation issued an automatic refunds rule that requires airlines to pay consumers back the airfare when their flight is cancelled or significantly changed and they are not offered alternatives.
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Simplifying government services
While the Time is Money initiative targets the private sector, the administration has already announced steps to reduce obstacles to accessing government services. In December 2021 the President signed an executive order directing federal agencies to streamline services and simplify customer experiences.
The White House highlighted several achievements, including the beta release of the State Department’s online passport renewal system, invitations to all 50 states to adopt the Internal Revenue Service’s Direct File tax tool, and efforts by the Department of Health and Human Services to enable automatic health coverage renewals.
Additionally, the Department of Homeland Security says it reduced the amount of time the public spends accessing its services by 21 million hours in 2023, with a goal to cut another 10 million hours in 2024.
About Sarah Wray
Sarah has over 15 years’ experience as a journalist with a specialism in the public sector and topics such as digitalisation and climate action. Sarah was formerly the editor of Cities Today and Smart Cities World, as well as a specialist video-based publication in the aerospace sector. She has also written for publications including Smart Cities Dive, Mobile Europe, Mobile World Live and Computer Weekly.
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