The Ask Crew charge on your bank or credit card statement is a recurring monthly subscription from JustAnswer, an online platform that connects users with professionals in fields like law, medicine, and auto repair. It usually appears after someone pays a small “join” fee of $1 or $5 to unlock a single expert answer and unknowingly signs up for automatic monthly billing. In January 2026, the Federal Trade Commission sued JustAnswer over this practice, alleging the company enrolls consumers in subscriptions costing $28 to $125 per month without clear disclosure or informed consent.1Federal Trade Commission. FTC Sues JustAnswer for Deceiving Consumers Into Enrolling in a Costly Recurring Monthly Subscription To make it stop, you cancel the subscription, ask JustAnswer for a refund, and if that fails, dispute the charges with your bank.
Where the Charge Comes From
ASKCREW.COM is a billing descriptor used by JustAnswer LLC. Most people encounter it after clicking an ad promising cheap access to an expert. The site asks for payment to unlock the answer and frames the initial cost as a small join fee. Entering card details also enrolls you in an automatic monthly subscription at a much higher price. As of late 2025, that recurring fee was $65 per expert category, and it keeps billing until you actively cancel.2Federal Trade Commission. JustAnswer Complaint Filed
That’s why the charge often surprises people. You pay $5 for one answer, forget about it, and then $65 shows up on your statement month after month. By the time you notice, several billing cycles may already have passed.
How to Cancel the Subscription
You have three ways to stop future charges:
- Online: Log into your JustAnswer account, open the “My Account” page, click the Membership button, and select “Cancel membership.” You may be routed through chat or feedback screens before reaching the actual cancellation page.
- Phone: Call JustAnswer customer service at 888-587-8220. The line is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
- Email: Send a cancellation request to support@justanswer.com. Include the email address you used to sign up and any account or member ID from your receipt.
Save your confirmation whichever route you use. Screenshot the cancellation page, keep the email receipt, or write down the date, time, and reference number of your phone call. This matters if charges continue after cancellation or if you later need to dispute the charges with your bank.
Requesting a Refund From JustAnswer
After cancelling, contact JustAnswer at 888-587-8220 or support@justanswer.com and ask for a refund of charges you didn’t knowingly authorize. Be specific. State the dates and amounts. Explain that you did not understand you were enrolling in a recurring subscription. If you signed up for what looked like a one-time $5 answer and were immediately billed $65, say that. If you never used the service after the first question, say that too.
Keep the request in writing when you can, so you have a paper trail. If JustAnswer agrees, refunds typically return to your original payment method within five to ten business days. Given the active FTC lawsuit, the company may be more willing to refund than in the past. Don’t count on it. If the merchant refuses or stalls, the next step is your bank.
Disputing the Charge on a Credit Card
The Fair Credit Billing Act gives you the right to dispute billing errors on credit card statements. Your written dispute must reach the card issuer within 60 days of the statement date on which the charge first appeared.3Office of the Law Revision Counsel. United States Code Title 15 – Section 1666 Send it to the billing inquiry address on your statement, not the payment address, and include your name, account number, the charge amount, and why you believe it’s an error.4Federal Trade Commission. Using Credit Cards and Disputing Charges
Once the issuer receives your dispute, it must acknowledge receipt within 30 days and resolve the investigation within two billing cycles, up to a maximum of 90 days.3Office of the Law Revision Counsel. United States Code Title 15 – Section 1666 One thing worth knowing: federal law does not require credit card issuers to provide a provisional credit during the investigation. Many do as a courtesy, but it isn’t guaranteed.
Attach your documentation: any screenshots of the sign-up page, your cancellation confirmation, and your correspondence with JustAnswer. The 60-day clock is firm. If you’ve been billed for several months before noticing, you may only be able to dispute the most recent charges under this law.
Disputing the Charge on a Debit Card
Debit card disputes are governed by the Electronic Fund Transfer Act and Regulation E. The stakes are higher because the money has already left your checking account, and your liability depends on how quickly you report the problem:
- Within 2 business days of learning about the charge, your maximum liability is $50.5Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Regulation E – Section 1005.6 Liability of Consumer for Unauthorized Transfers
- After 2 business days but within 60 days of your statement, your maximum liability rises to $500.
- More than 60 days after your statement, you could be liable for the full amount of unauthorized transfers that occur after the 60-day window.
Debit disputes do carry a provisional credit requirement. If your bank cannot finish its investigation within 10 business days, it must provisionally credit your account for the disputed amount while it continues investigating, with up to 45 days total to complete the review.6Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Regulation E – Section 1005.11 Procedures for Resolving Errors Because debit charges hit your available balance immediately, that provisional credit can matter a great deal.
The Federal Rules Behind Your Case
Two laws work in your favor when you’re dealing with a subscription you didn’t knowingly agree to.
The Restore Online Shoppers’ Confidence Act makes it illegal for an online seller to charge your card through a negative option feature unless the seller clearly discloses all material terms before collecting billing information, gets your informed consent before charging, and provides a simple way to cancel.7Office of the Law Revision Counsel. United States Code Title 15 – Section 8403 The FTC’s lawsuit against JustAnswer alleges violations of all three requirements.
The FTC’s amended Negative Option Rule, often called Click-to-Cancel, has been fully in effect since July 14, 2025. Cancelling a subscription must be at least as easy as signing up.8Federal Trade Commission. Federal Trade Commission Announces Final Click-to-Cancel Rule Making It Easier for Consumers to End Recurring Subscriptions If you signed up online, you must be able to cancel online, and you cannot be forced to interact with a live agent or chatbot to cancel if you didn’t have to interact with one to enroll.9eCFR. 16 CFR 425.6 – Simple Cancellation (Click to Cancel) If cancellation is harder than sign-up, that is itself a violation, and you can report it to the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.
Preventing the Next Surprise Subscription
The Ask Crew charge catches people because the checkout flow looks like a one-time payment. A few habits reduce the odds of this happening again:
- Look for the words “membership,” “subscription,” or recurring billing language near the payment button. A one-time purchase does not ask for recurring authorization.
- Use a virtual card number if your bank offers them. A $5 virtual card capped at a single use cannot be billed $65 the next month.
- Turn on transaction alerts in your banking app. A push notification the moment a $65 charge posts lets you act inside the tightest reporting windows.
- Review statements every month. The 60-day deadlines under the Fair Credit Billing Act and Regulation E mean that catching charges early preserves your strongest protections.
If you’ve already been billed several times, cancel today, then work backward: request refunds from JustAnswer for every charge, and dispute with your bank whatever is still inside the deadline.