I can't find the post, but I recall reading an instance where someone used a disposable virtual card for a subscription service. After deleting the card, the company was somehow able to charge the user directly on the bank account that was linked to the digital card.

I hear this advice but there's one point I don't understand. Aren't you still owing the company money for the subscription? Couldn't they just continue providing the service and just send you a overdue notice and try collecting the money?

If you send a clear email to their support channel to cancel your subscription, even if they ignore it, I suspect that may help your case? IANAL and would like to hear if this is a valid strategy.

I don't know how it is in the US. However in Germany, this is a great way to get charged interest on your debt and hefty legal fees. It is also one of the ways to guarantee that you're not getting a new bank account, place to rent or any kind of credit for a while.

My account is a debit one so no way this could happen to me. It's one of the few reasons I use Wise.

The debt is between you and the company offering the subscription, it doesn't matter what type of an account you use. You entered a contractual agreement by signing up and then you didn't pay - or cancel. It's a quirk of the digital world that most companies don't pursue these claims against us in most places. In theory they could tally up your non-payments for the next 2 years and then send it to collections.

I'm not saying this because I agree with it, but because you should still be careful with what you sign up for. Simply declining to pay doesn't legally absolve you of your obligation to pay.

This is a good point.

But if they have very shady and cumbersome cancellation policies and procedures, wouldn't you be able to win by good faith?

I assume you could also lie and say that you lost your card and also prove that you didn't use the service anyway.

This would not fly in a court. I'm writing this again in the context of German legal system (and most of the continental Europe is similar).

To argue a good faith argument, you need to be paying the debt as long as the service is provided. You need to have strong proof that you have tried your best to cancel. Just claiming that you lost your card or not using the service is not an argument. in fact it would aggravate consequences for you since it can be interpreted as a bad faith argument from your side.

Usually this ends up sending them a letter with registration / delivery feedback (Einschreiben or Einwurf in German postal terminology).

The law tries to strike balance between contract law and consumer protection. You get a limited time to cancel without a reason and consequences. The contract also needs to be "fair" for both parties. For example a contract between you and an ISP cannot force you to pay when you move out and the said ISP cannot provide you an equivalent service. So it needs reasonable cancelation clauses for both sides.

Failing to pay a bill does not make the debt go away. If this is a $5 thing then yeah they're not going to bother sending it to collections, but this will turn out badly for anything big enough that they do.

Does not need to be virtual. Any Visa/Mastercard/Amex gift card with a $0 balance yields the same results.

I have to admit I don't even know if those exist in my country but this is definitely a good piece of advice too!