Class Action Lawsuit Claims Route App Enables Unlawful Junk Fees

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A proposed class action lawsuit alleges that the services provided by Route App, Inc. enable online retailers to quietly charge pre-selected shipping protection fees that provide little to no additional value to consumers while increasing the overall costs of purchases.

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The 18-page complaint contends that the “Shipping Protection” or “Package Protection” fees assessed by online retailers associated with Route amount to unlawful junk fees because they are not adequately disclosed and effectively serve to raise the advertised price that consumers expect to pay.

The suit even goes so far as to allege Route “ingratiates itself” with retailers by promising to bolster profits via this optional surcharge, which is automatically tacked onto consumers’ purchases due to a pre-selected checkout toggle.

The complaint claims, specifically, that retailers using Route’s services install a widget that adds a hidden, pre-selected toggle regarding the addition of shipping protection fees on their sites. Route allegedly encourages merchants to keep this toggle setting enabled by default, as it ostensibly serves to increase revenue.

As a result, the suit claims, shipping protection fees are automatically added to consumers’ orders without any affirmative action on their part—even on orders that retailers independently promote as having free or flat-price shipping.

“This method of adding on fees is designed to go undetected by consumers and thus provide additional revenue to both Route and e-commerce retailers who use it,” the complaint charges.

Related Reading: TA3 Customer Files Class Action Lawsuit Over Allegedly Hidden ‘Route Shipping Protection’ Fee

The case alleges that consumers who notice the fee are not clearly informed that it is optional. Moreover, many shoppers may proceed with their orders anyway, considering the significant time and effort already invested in the purchasing process, the filing says.

The lawsuit also challenges the value of the shipping protection service itself, noting that the fee is separate from the retailer’s shipping obligations and that a significant portion of the fee does not actually go towards any protections during the shipping process.

Per the suit, Route retains roughly half of the fees consumers pay.

The lawsuit references reporting by The Wall Street Journal regarding shipping protection fees, stating that they are “made to appear mandatory” and are only disclosed in small text. Similarly, the suit notes that Shopify, an infrastructure provider for many online retailers, announced that merchants would no longer be permitted to automatically opt consumers into additional charges as of February 2025.

The complaint further highlights scrutiny from agencies like the Federal Trade Commission, which have stated that fees should be disclosed before consumers make purchasing decisions and that a “'pre-checked box’ does not constitute affirmative consent.”

The Route class action lawsuit seeks to represent all consumers who paid a shipping protection or other similar fee for a service provided by Route during the applicable statute of limitations period preceding the filing of the action to the date of class certification.

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