Amazon begins automatic Prime settlement refunds on October 1 under revised $2.5bn FTC deal

Amazon begins issuing automatic redress payments from today, October 1, to millions of additional Prime customers under the revised $2.5bn settlement with the Federal Trade Commission, the FTC has announced.

The expanded group covers consumers who used between 11 and 20 Prime benefits during a one-year period — customers who were excluded from the earlier payment phases. Payments go out automatically via Venmo, PayPal or mailed cheque, with no claims, forms or notices required, according to the FTC’s announcement.

Under the revised order, approved by a federal court last month, the maximum total payment rises from $51 to $200. If consumer-accepted payments fall short of the required threshold by February 2027, customers who already received refunds will get an additional $149, bringing their total to $200. That final supplemental round starts by April 2027 and will also be distributed automatically, USA Today reported.

The settlement resolves FTC allegations that Amazon enrolled millions of customers in Prime without consent and made cancellation deliberately difficult. Amazon was required to pay up to $1.5bn in consumer redress plus a $1bn civil penalty; it has issued more than $845m in refunds as of September 2026.

“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.

The FTC warns that neither it nor Amazon contacts consumers about the refunds, and that Amazon never asks for money to process a refund — anyone claiming otherwise is likely a scammer.