Yes. Restaurants can file their own lawsuits over mislabeled or undisclosed processing fees. Toast Inc., the restaurant point-of-sale and payments company, faces both government enforcement and potential private claims on this issue. According to Venable LLP, merchants have for decades brought breach-of-contract and unfair-practice claims over such fees merchant fee litigation history.
According to the Federal Trade Commission, it joined state enforcers to sue Toast on Oct. 29, 2026 federal enforcement announcement. California, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, Oklahoma and Utah joined the action. California participated through Los Angeles County Counsel and the San Francisco City Attorney.
Table of Contents
- What fees are at issue?
- Who could be affected?
- Can a private case move forward alone?
- What should restaurants save before acting?
What fees are at issue?
According to the Illinois Attorney General, Toast sold a Pay-as-you-Go plan as $0 per month for hardware and software Illinois enforcement summary. The Attorney General alleges the plan offset that price with higher per-transaction processing fees that obscured the true cost.
According to the Federal Trade Commission, Toast added a $0.99 fee to certain online orders over $10. Regulators allege the charge ran from September 2021 through late July 2023 without adequate disclosure. They allege Toast kept the proceeds itself.
Who could be affected?
According to the San Francisco City Attorney, affected parties include Toast-using restaurants and diners who paid the surcharge. The impact centers on small independent operators paying subscriptions and processing charges.
For example, an independent pizzeria using Toast for orders and payments could face both monthly and per-order costs. Diners are separate: only those who paid the online-order surcharge have that specific payment at stake.
Can a private case move forward alone?
Yes. A private claim does not depend on the government case winning first. According to Venable LLP, merchants often allege breach of contract and unfair practices over fees labeled as PCI, Safe-T or Other Fees. A restaurant must still prove its own contract, disclosure and loss.
According to the FTC case page, the 71-page complaint was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. It invokes the FTC Act, the Restore Online Shoppers Confidence Act and related state laws. It seeks injunctions, refunds and civil penalties.
What should restaurants save before acting?
According to Subscription Insider, restaurants should preserve key payment records before suing or canceling. Early review can reveal auto-renewal, early-termination and loan-acceleration risk. Have counsel review auto-renewal, early-termination and loan-acceleration terms before acting.
According to Digital Transactions, Toast strongly disagrees and says it will vigorously defend itself. That report notes the allegations remain unproven and the case is pending. According to the same report, Toast disputes applying ROSCA to negotiated business-to-business agreements.
- contracts and fee schedules
- monthly processing statements
- add-on consents and support messages
- cancellation requests and confirmations