AG Brown announced that his office is leading a coalition of 22 state law enforcement agencies that joined a lawsuit previously filed by the Federal Trade Commission against Uber Technologies, LLC and Uber USA, LLC, the operators of the popular rideshare and delivery company. The lawsuit is pending in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California, and trial is currently scheduled for February 2027.  

The lawsuit alleges that Uber used a variety of deceptive and unfair practices in offering and selling Uber One subscription services, which Uber promotes as saving money on rides and deliveries. Among other things, the lawsuit alleges that Uber improperly used negative option marketing tactics when it offered free trial subscriptions – a practice that automatically charges consumers if they do not cancel a free trial. The lawsuit alleges Uber misled consumers about the amounts they could save when subscribing to Uber One and that the companies made it extraordinarily difficult to cancel Uber One once enrolled. The complaint also alleges that Uber charged consumers before their billing date, including users whose free trial has not yet ended.  

“Free trials should actually be free – not traps that lock Marylanders into unwanted monthly charges. We’re filing this lawsuit to stop Uber’s practices that we believe are deceiving consumers and costing them their hard-earned money.” -AG Brown