In September, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) reached a $2.5 billion settlement with Amazon over its “deceptive” Prime subscription tactics. Of that total, $1.5 billion will go to consumers, with payouts beginning soon.
“The evidence showed that Amazon used sophisticated subscription traps designed to manipulate consumers into enrolling in Prime, and then made it exceedingly hard for consumers to end their subscription,” FTC Chairman Andrew N. Ferguson said in announcing the deal.
Who Is Eligible for a Payout?
Money will initially be disbursed in two ways: through auto-payments and via a claims process.
Automatic Payout
If you accidentally subscribed to Amazon Prime through what this lawsuit calls a “Challenged Enrollment Flow” (meaning you were duped into signing up because of vague or confusing language) between June 23, 2019, and June 23, 2025, and used no more than three Prime benefits in a 12-month period, Amazon will automatically send you up to $51.
People in this group don’t need to submit any claims to get paid, and Amazon is supposed to distribute funds within 90 days of this Sept. 25 court filing, which is Dec. 24, 2025.
If there are too many people in this group for everyone to get $51, the money will be prorated.
Claims Process
If there’s money left over once the automatic payouts are made, Amazon will establish a claims process for people who accidentally subscribed to Prime and used no more than 10 benefits within a one-year period. Amazon will send out claim forms to eligible customers within 30 days of completing autopayments (late January), and those people will have 180 days to respond. Amazon then has 30 days to accept or reject the claim.
Is That the Only Way to Get Paid?
If the automatic payments and the first round of submitted claims are less than $1 billion, Amazon will do another round of automatic payments, starting with those who used no more than four Prime benefits in a year, before moving up to five, and then six, etc., until the fund is exhausted.
Should I Do Anything Now?
No, the process just started, so keep an eye on your inbox or mailbox for news from Amazon if you’re expecting a payout. The FTC also recommends you bookmark FTC.gov/Amazon and sign up to get email updates about the refund program.
How Did We Get Here?
The FTC sued Amazon in 2023, alleging that it “knowingly duped” millions of US consumers into signing up for a Prime subscription. The case was set to go to trial last month, but Amazon avoided that by agreeing to this settlement.
That evidence included documents showing that Amazon executives “discussed these unlawful enrollment and cancellation issues, with comments like ‘subscription driving is a bit of a shady world’ and leading consumers to unwanted subscriptions is ‘an unspoken cancer.'” Two Amazon executives were charged for their role in the scheme: SVP Neil Lindsay and VP Jamil Ghani.
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“Amazon and our executives have always followed the law, and this settlement allows us to move forward and focus on innovating for customers,” says Mark Blafkin, Amazon spokesperson. “We work incredibly hard to make it clear and simple for customers to both sign up or cancel their Prime membership, and to offer substantial value for our many millions of loyal Prime members around the world. We will continue to do so, and look forward to what we’ll deliver for Prime members in the coming years.”
The settlement requires Amazon to “make meaningful changes” to how people enroll in Prime and cancel their subscriptions. That includes introducing “a clear and conspicuous button” for customers to decline Prime, which would replace the less-direct button that reads, “No, I don’t want Free Shipping.”
Amazon also needs to be more transparent about the terms of Prime during the enrollment process, including the cost, billing date, and frequency of charges, as well as whether the subscription auto-renews and how customers can cancel. Speaking of cancellations, Amazon must create “an easy way” to do it that is not costly or time-consuming. It has to be available using the same method that consumers signed up for Prime.
Finally, Amazon must pay for an independent, third-party supervisor to monitor its compliance with these changes. However, sources tell us Amazon has already implemented many of them.
The FTC has another open case against Amazon, backed by 18 states and Puerto Rico. They allege the tech company “is a monopolist that uses a set of interlocking anticompetitive and unfair strategies to illegally maintain its monopoly power.” The case is ongoing.
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