FTC expands Amazon Prime refund program, raises payment cap to $200

A federal court has approved changes to Amazon's (NASDAQ: AMZN) consumer redress program stemming from a $2.5 billion settlement with the Federal Trade Commission, expanding eligibility and raising the maximum payment cap from $51 to $200.

The settlement, reached in September 2025, resolved FTC allegations that Amazon enrolled millions of consumers in Prime subscriptions without their consent and made cancellation intentionally difficult. The agreement required Amazon to pay up to $1.5 billion in consumer redress and a $1 billion civil penalty. As of September 2026, Amazon has issued more than $845 million in refund payments.

Under the revised court order, consumers who used between 11 and 20 Prime benefits during a one-year period will now qualify for automatic refunds beginning October 1, 2026. These consumers were excluded from earlier payment phases. Payments will be distributed via Venmo, PayPal, or mailed check without requiring consumers to file claims or submit paperwork.

If total accepted payments do not reach a required threshold by February 2027, Amazon will issue supplemental automatic payments of up to $149 to consumers who previously received refunds, bringing the total possible payment to $200. That final round of payments is scheduled to begin by April 2027.

"The revised order will ensure more consumers who were harmed by Amazon's deceptive enrollment and cancellation practices benefit from the FTC's historic settlement," said Christopher Mufarrige, Director of the FTC's Bureau of Consumer Protection.

Amazon is responsible for administering the refund program. The FTC stated it is not contacting consumers directly regarding the refunds and warned that anyone claiming to be from the FTC seeking money is likely running a scam.

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