Cancellation button in online sales

As of 1 July 2022, the German legislature introduced section 312k of the German Civil Code (Bürgerliches Gesetzbuch ‒ BGB) to make it easier for consumers to cancel long-term contracts entered into via a website or other electronic means. Companies offering consumers online contracts for recurring deliveries or services must ensure that these contracts can be cancelled easily via a clearly recognisable cancellation button on their website. This measure is designed to protect consumers and make ending long-term contracts in electronic commerce simpler.

Recent decision of the Federal Court of Justice

We already reported on the cancellation button last year. In its judgment of 22 May 2025 ‒ Case Ref. I ZR 161/24, the Federal Court of Justice has once again significantly broadened the scope of section 312k of the German Civil Code. The Court ruled that operators of online subscription models must provide a cancellation button even if the contract ends automatically after a certain period of time and the agreed fee is paid only once. The judgment clarifies that long-term contracts are not dependent on ongoing payments by the consumer but can also exist in the case of a one-off payment, provided that the business continues to provide services during the contract term. Thus, the Federal Court of Justice did not follow the reasoning of the Hamburg Higher Regional Court (Oberlandesgericht Hamburg) of 22 August 2024, which had found that section 312k of the German Civil Code did not apply in such cases. The Court observed that a “cost trap”, which the legislature had had in mind when introducing section 312k, may also arise with a single payment. It pointed out that even in such cases, the remuneration owed is normally determined by the contract duration, and if the consumer ends the contract lawfully, they are entitled to a pro rata refund.

Implications for practice

Section 312k of the German Civil Code is repeatedly the subject of court decisions. The latest judgment by the Federal Court of Justice shows that section 312k is generally interpreted broadly by the courts in the interests of consumer protection. However, the provision is not only applicable to contracts that are automatically renewed. Rather it is sufficient if the main service is provided continuously by the business during a fixed or open-ended contract term. Following the latest judgment of the Federal Court of Justice, the way in which payment is made is no longer relevant.

Since the introduction of Section 312k of the German Civil Code, consumer protection organisations have been reviewing websites across different industries for legal compliance with the cancellation button requirement. Anyone who fails to comply with the requirements of section 312k risks not only warnings and injunction claims from consumer protection organisations and competitors but also enables consumers, under section 312k para. 6of the German Civil Code, to terminate the relevant long-term contract at any time without notice.

Alongside the withdrawal information and the order button (and the withdrawal button expected for 2026), the cancellation button is another consumer protection measure that must be considered when designing the customer journey in e-commerce. In practice, this requirement can be challenging for website operators to implement in detail.