The traps to know before you write
Negative-option billing. Subscriptions renew by your silence — that's the business model, and it's why regulators in many states and at the federal level have rules requiring clear renewal disclosure and simple cancellation. You don't need to cite anything; referencing "applicable automatic-renewal law" in a letter is enough to signal you know the terrain. Cancel where you signed up. A subscription billed through an app store or a reseller must be canceled there — a letter to the service about billing it doesn't control goes nowhere. The trial conversion. If a free trial converted, your letter should say the renewal was unauthorized and demand the charge back, not just stop future ones. The zombie charge. Charges that resume after cancellation are the strongest dispute material you'll ever have — provided the original cancellation left a record.
What your letter must pin down
- The account: the email on the account, any account or member ID, and the plan name.
- The cancellation: "effective [date], or the earliest date permitted under the agreement's cancellation terms, whichever is later" — and if a prior cancellation was ignored, its date, stated as fact.
- The billing stop: no further charges to the payment method on file after the effective date.
- The refund demand for any charge after a prior cancellation or an unauthorized trial conversion.
- Written confirmation of the cancellation and the final billing date — and the calm statement that further charges go to your card issuer as disputes.
Deliver it so it counts
Email to their support and billing addresses creates the timestamp; a mailed copy to the notices address in their terms makes it formal. Keep the sent email and any delivery proof with your card statements — if a dispute ever happens, that bundle wins it.
Cancel it in writing, in 60 seconds
Account identified, effective date locked, billing stopped, written confirmation demanded.
Create My Cancellation Letter — $9Common questions
The cancel button worked — do I still need a letter?
No. If the portal canceled you cleanly, screenshot the confirmation and keep it; that's your record. The letter is for when the button doesn't exist, doesn't work, or the charges continue anyway.
I'm being charged for a subscription I canceled months ago. What now?
Send a written cancellation that references your original cancellation date, demand a refund of every charge since it, and instruct them to stop billing. If the next charge still lands, dispute it with your card issuer with the letter attached — recurring charges after a documented cancellation are the cleanest dispute there is.
Where do I even mail a letter for an online-only service?
Their own terms of service almost always list a legal or notices address, and every company registered to do business has a registered agent on file with the state for exactly this purpose. Five minutes in their terms page usually produces the address.
More cancellation guides: Gym Membership · Storage Unit · Internet & Cable · Home Security Contract · Lawn Care & Pest Control · cancellation letters overview
WriteMyNotice.com is a self-help document preparation service, not a law firm, and this page is general information, not legal advice. Contracts vary — your agreement's terms control. For significant matters, consult a licensed attorney in your state.