Class Action Alleges Amazon Falsely Advertises that Prime Membership Comes with ‘Free’ Audible Titles

New to ClassAction.org? Read our Newswire Disclaimer

A proposed class action alleges Amazon has misleadingly advertised that a Prime membership includes “free titles” from audiobook and podcast platform Audible. 

The 11-page case in New York alleges that an Amazon Prime membership does not, in fact, include a free subscription to Audible, an Amazon subsidiary. According to the suit, Amazon “surreptitiously” enrolls Prime members into a paid Audible subscription, for which they’re charged a recurring monthly fee and through which they could potentially receive free titles. 

As a result, many Amazon Prime subscribers have paid monthly subscription fees for Audible services that they never asked for or used, the lawsuit says, alleging Amazon’s Audible enrollment process “deceives reasonable consumers.” 

“Audible membership is not adequately disclosed to the Prime members,” the case says. 

Moreover, the suit claims that Amazon makes it “exceedingly difficult” for Prime members to discontinue their Audible subscriptions once they discover the “improper charges.” The mega-retailer, the complaint alleges, then limits refunds of Prime customers’ monthly Audible subscription fees to only a few months of charges.

According to the lawsuit, Prime members must provide Amazon with a payment method that is maintained on file in the customer’s “wallet.” Per the case, one form of payment must be selected as the consumer’s default method, and that method allows Amazon to charge the customer for any digital purchases, including Audible subscriptions. 

The suit says that Prime members in particular are “targeted for enrollment” in Audible subscriptions through a rather murky process. As the lawsuit tells it, many Prime members “have no idea” that Audible is not a free service that comes with their Prime membership, and inadvertently enroll in a paid subscription. 

“Other Prime members have no idea how they were signed up for Audible until they later see Audible’s monthly charges,” the case claims. 

If a Prime member inadvertently enrolls in Audible, the consumer receives no conspicuous confirmation that they enrolled in the service or will subsequently pay monthly charges, the lawsuit alleges. In other instances, a Prime member will unsubscribe from Audible yet continue to be charged for the service, the case claims.

The complaint contends that because Prime members are not adequately apprised of the fact that they’ve enrolled in Audible, it can take months or years before they discover the truth, and months before they can stop their subscription. 

The lawsuit looks to represent consumers in New York who were charged for Audible between April 26, 2019 and the date of final judgment in the litigation. 

Get class action lawsuit news sent to your inbox – sign up for ClassAction.org’s free weekly newsletter here.