Route quietly adding shipping fees

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Route's shipping and package protection services are added by default when used through e-commerce websites. These fees may appear to be mandatory when displayed during checkout.

Background

Route is an American company based in Utah and was founded in 2018 by Mike Moreno. It offers a shipping protection service to consumers through e-commerce websites, with their primary service acting as a middle-man between the consumer and the business.^{[citation needed (21 Oct 2026)]} All fees for the service are paid by the customer during checkout. Rather than making a complaint to the merchant, the consumer would settle compensation through Route's claims process. Shipping protection services are frequently added to the shopping cart by default, requiring the buyer to opt out manually. Shopify prohibited all "on by default" optional charges that were added without the buyers explicit consent. In response, Route changed their checkout process in Shopify by combining shipping and their package protection service into one checkmark that is selected by default. There is an option to select shipping without their protection service, but it must be manually selected. These restrictions, however, are not required for most other e-commerce websites.

"Junk fees"

When at checkout on an e-commerce platform that partners with Route, a widget built into the commerce app enables shipping protection by default. Most e-commerce websites do not have a clause prohibiting optional charges being selected by default, which Route takes note of. On Route's merchant support FAQ, they encourage non-Shopify merchants to keep settings enabled so their services are checked on by default for shoppers.

Lawsuit

A class action lawsuit was filed 3 June 2026, by New York residents Anthony Mertson and Michael Schirano, in the Northern District of New York.

Claims

The suit alleges that Route intentionally hid the option to disable their shipping protection service resulting in "junk fees" added to the total cost. The suit also alleges that the extra fees in checkout are designed to appear mandatory, causing customers to pay for a service they might not have wanted to.

Rebuttal

On 7 October 2026, Route moved to have the case dismissed, arguing that their terms and conditions disclose that their shipping protection service is optional.

Among other claims, the following was also argued:

• Failure to state a claim "under Rule 12(b)(6) because Route's alleged conduct is not consumer-oriented and because Plaintiffs never saw the fee they allege was a misleading misrepresentation."
• Lacking Article III standing "because they cannot trace any cognizable injury to conduct by Route and because they cannot represent a nationwide class of purchasers from retailers they never visited."

Outcome

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Consumer response

Consumers argue that the fees are not adequately disclosed, and often appear to be mandatory.