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Public Act 103-0070 |
SB0328 Enrolled | LRB103 27045 SPS 53413 b |
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AN ACT concerning business.
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Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
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represented in the General Assembly:
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Section 5. The Automatic Contract Renewal Act is amended |
by changing Sections 5, 10, and 20 as follows:
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(815 ILCS 601/5)
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Sec. 5. Definitions. In this Act:
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"Automatic renewal offer terms" means the following clear |
and conspicuous disclosures: |
(1) that the paid subscription or purchasing agreement |
will continue until the consumer cancels; |
(2) the timeframe in which the consumer must cancel in |
order to avoid being charged for a subsequent term; |
(3) the recurring charges that will be charged to the |
consumer's credit or debit card or payment account with a |
third party as part of the automatic renewal contract, and |
that the amount of the charge may change, if that is the |
case, and the amount to which the charge will change, if |
known; |
(4) the length of the automatic renewal term or that |
the service is continuous, unless the length of the term |
is chosen by the consumer; and |
(5) the minimum purchase obligation, if any. |
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"Clear and conspicuous" means in larger type than the |
surrounding text, or in contrasting type, font, or color to |
the surrounding text of the same size, or set off from the |
surrounding text of the same size by symbols or other marks, in |
a manner that clearly calls attention to the language. In the |
case of an audio disclosure, "clear and conspicuous" means in |
a volume and cadence sufficient to be readily audible and |
understandable. |
"Contract" means a written
agreement between 2 or more |
parties.
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"Parties" includes individuals and other legal entities, |
but does not include
the federal government, this State or |
another state, or a
unit of local government.
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(Source: P.A. 101-412, eff. 8-16-19; 102-558, eff. 8-20-21.)
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(815 ILCS 601/10)
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Sec. 10. Automatic renewal; requirements. |
(a) Any person, firm, partnership, association, or |
corporation that sells or offers to sell any products or |
services to a consumer pursuant to a contract, where such |
contract automatically renews unless the consumer cancels the |
contract, shall : |
(i) disclose the automatic renewal offer terms clause |
clearly and conspicuously in the contract before the |
subscription or purchasing agreement is fulfilled and in |
visual proximity, or in the case of an offer conveyed by |
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voice, in temporal proximity, to the request for consent |
to the offer; , including the cancellation procedure.
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(ii) not charge the consumer's credit or debit card or |
other payment mechanism for an automatic renewal service |
without first obtaining the consumer's consent to the |
contract containing the automatic renewal offer terms; |
(iii) provide an acknowledgment that includes the |
automatic renewal offer terms, cancellation policy, and |
information regarding how to cancel, which may be |
accomplished by linking to a resource that provides |
instructions that account for different platforms and |
services, in a manner that is capable of being retained by |
the consumer; and |
(iv) if the offer includes a free gift or trial, |
disclose how to cancel the contract, which may be |
accomplished by linking to a resource that provides |
instructions that account for different platforms and |
services, and allow the consumer to cancel before the |
consumer pays for the good or services. |
(b) Any person, firm, partnership, association, or |
corporation that sells or offers to sell any products or |
services to a consumer pursuant to a contract, where such |
contract term is a specified term of 12 months or more, and |
where such contract automatically renews for a specified term |
of more than one month unless the consumer cancels the |
contract, shall notify the consumer in writing of the |
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automatic renewal. Written notice shall be provided to the |
consumer no less than 30 days and no more than 60 days before |
the cancellation deadline pursuant to the automatic renewal |
offer terms clause . Such written notice shall disclose clearly |
and conspicuously , in a retainable form : |
(i) that unless the consumer cancels the contract it |
will automatically renew; and |
(ii) a mechanism for cancelling the contract, which |
shall be offered in a manner in which the consumer |
commonly interacts with the business; and where the |
consumer can obtain details of the automatic renewal |
provision and cancellation procedure (for example, by |
contacting the business at a specified telephone number or |
address or by referring to the contract).
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(iii) the deadline by which the consumer must cancel |
in order to avoid being charged for a subsequent term. |
(b-5) A person, firm, partnership, association, or |
corporation that makes an automatic renewal offer or |
continuous service offer online shall provide a toll-free |
telephone number, electronic mail address, a postal address if |
the seller directly bills the consumer, or another |
cost-effective, timely, and easy-to-use mechanism for |
cancellation that shall be described in the notice required in |
subsection (b). A consumer who accepts an automatic renewal or |
continuous service offer online must be allowed to terminate |
the automatic renewal or continuous service exclusively |
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online, which may include a termination email formatted and |
provided by the business that a consumer can send to the |
business without additional information , or a link to a |
website or other online service consumers can use to cancel . |
(c) A person, firm, partnership, association, or |
corporation will not be liable for a violation of this Act or |
the Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act if |
such person, firm, partnership, association, or corporation |
demonstrates that, as part of its routine business practice: |
(i) it has established and implemented written |
procedures to comply with this Act and enforces compliance |
with the procedures; |
(ii) any failure to comply with this Act is the result |
of error; and |
(iii) where an error has caused a failure to comply |
with this Act, it provides a full refund or credit for all |
amounts billed to or paid by the consumer from the date of |
the renewal until the date of the termination of the |
account, or the date of the subsequent notice of renewal, |
whichever occurs first.
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(Source: P.A. 102-517, eff. 1-1-22 .)
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(815 ILCS 601/20)
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Sec. 20. Applicability. |
(a) This Act does not apply to a contract
entered into |
before the effective date of this Act.
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(b) This amendatory Act of the 93rd General Assembly does |
not apply to a contract entered into before the effective date |
of this amendatory Act of the 93rd General Assembly.
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(c) This Act does not apply to business-to-business |
contracts.
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(d) This Act does not apply to banks, trust companies, |
savings and loan associations, savings banks, or credit unions |
licensed or organized under the laws of any state or the United |
States, or any foreign bank maintaining a branch or agency |
licensed or organized under the laws of any state of the United |
States, or any subsidiary or affiliate thereof.
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(e) This Act does not apply to a contract that is extended |
beyond the original term of the contract as the result of the |
consumer's initiation of a change in the original contract |
terms.
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(f) This Act does not apply to a contract for the sale of |
any product or service by a provider that is subject to Article |
XXII of the Public Utilities Act. |
(g) This Act does not apply to a party, or an affiliate of |
the party, regulated by the Director of the Department of |
Insurance. |
(Source: P.A. 93-950, eff. 1-1-05.)
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