When You Reject Cookies, You Might Be Agreeing to Arbitration–Alba v. Harbor Freight

Starting in 2024, Harbor Freight deployed the following cookie banner: The court accepts Harbor Freight’s claim that the “2024 Cookie Banner was displayed on each page on the Website until the user interacted with it, even if the user had previously visited the Website and interacted with the prior cookie banner.” In 2025, Harbor Freight added an arbitration clause to the TCU. The TCU also contains a class action waiver. The named plaintiff, Alba, says he visited the website at least once a year since 2020, including after the arbitration clause was added to the TCU. Alba allegedly selected the “Reject All Cookies” button. What Terms Apply The court accepts Harbor Freight’s evidence of its user interface: Harbor Freight has satisfied its burden of proof and demonstrated that Alba was shown the 2024 Cookie Banner. It is undisputed that Alba visited the Website as recently as October 2025. Harbor Freight’s unrebutted evidence that the 2024 Cookie Banner was shown to all users following…