What is a subscription trap? And what can you do if the goods are bad?
A subscription trap is a subscription hidden in the fine print. Up front, a smash price lures you in. In the back, it says a new delivery will arrive every month, and you have to pay for it. In Germany, a surprise clause like that, one nobody could see coming, doesn’t count. And if the goods are bad or broken, the seller has a problem, not you: the seller first has to send a replacement.
Good to know: we explain how things work in Germany, where the books are set. Rules and numbers can be different where you live.
How the guinea pigs explain it in Volume 2: The Lazy Supplier
What is a subscription trap?
The fine print says that by ordering that one box, you’re signing up for a twelve-month subscription at €12.90 every month. Christian does the math: over €150 a year. Mojito calls it the oldest trick in the fine print: Up front the smash price lures you in, in the back the subscription sticks. The first warning sign was the flyer itself. Too cheap, says Mojito, always smells like a catch.
Does a subscription hidden in the fine print count?
No. Mojito explains: the fine print can explain things and set rules, but it can’t sneak in a nasty trap that nobody could see coming. If you order one box to try it out, you don’t have to expect a yearly subscription. In Germany, a surprise clause like that simply doesn’t count. It’s as if it had never been written there.
What can you do if the things you bought are bad or broken?
Then the seller has a problem, says Mr. Grey. Musty hay and dust instead of pellets are a defect. Under German law, when something has a defect, the seller first has to send a replacement. If the seller won’t or can’t, you pay less or send it all back. A line like “A sale is a sale” can’t make those rights disappear. The law is stronger than any ant-sized print.
How do you make a complaint the right way?
Politely, clearly and with everything on the table. Mojito’s line: Whoever has rights doesn’t need to shout. Mr. Grey crosses out Rocky’s “With HORROR.” Christian writes down the facts: ordered on, delivered on, defect one, two, three. Toffy adds the spat-out carrot as evidence. And Daria writes the ending: fresh food or they’re sending the order back, and they never wanted the subscription.
- Too cheap always smells like a catch. The first warning sign is the smash price.
- A nasty hidden rule doesn’t count. As if it had never been there.
- Make a complaint politely, clearly and with everything on the table. Whoever has rights doesn’t need to shout.
Abofalle
subscription trap
In the books, every paragraph is in German with the English right below it. That way you pick up new words in both languages along the way.
Your turn: take the quiz
No account, no score, nothing gets saved. Just tap an answer.
1. What’s hiding in the fine print of the Mega Nibble Box?
2. What does the seller have to do first if the goods have a defect?
3. What’s the right way to complain?
Volume 2: The Lazy Supplier
What is a contract? What rights do buyers have? For kids ages 10 and up, bilingual German and English, 46 pages, illustrated in full color throughout.
