Amazon Prime has issued payments to millions of customers following a lawsuit settlement, and there’s still an opportunity to claim some cash before the deadlines pass.
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) accused Amazon Prime of misleading practices last year.
The FTC claimed that the company, owned by Jeff Bezos, duped people into Prime memberships and made it challenging to cancel them.
While Amazon maintained its innocence, the company agreed to a $2.5 billion settlement aimed at compensating around 35 million customers and moving forward.
A statement from the company last September said: “Amazon and our executives have always followed the law and this settlement allows us to move forward and focus on innovating for customers.
“We work incredibly hard to make it clear and simple for customers to both sign up or cancel their Prime membership.”
Customers may be eligible for up to $51 each as part of the settlement.
However, not everyone with a Prime account will qualify for a payout. The initial round of payments has been distributed.
This initial distribution targeted individuals who subscribed to a Prime membership between June 23, 2019, and June 23, 2025, in the US and used Prime benefits three or fewer times in any given year of their membership. Now, Amazon is widening the eligibility criteria.
The first payments were sent directly to customers’ PayPal or Venmo accounts between November 12 and December 24. If these were not accepted, Amazon mailed checks to the account-associated addresses.
For those anticipated to be eligible for the second round of payouts, the process is not automatic, requiring individuals to complete a claim form.
Amazon spokesperson Mark Blafkin informed NBC News: “If consumers are eligible to submit a claim but were not eligible for automatic payments, they will be notified between December 24th and January 23, 2026.”
In this second scenario, qualification requires that you used Prime benefits 10 or fewer times annually during the same period.
Claims must be submitted by July 23, 2026.
The FTC has issued a warning to customers to avoid falling victim to scams while attempting to obtain an Amazon refund. They emphasized that FTC representatives will not contact individuals about a refund.
The FTC’s website states: “The FTC is not contacting people about refunds in the Amazon matter.
“If you get a call from someone who claims to be from the FTC, it’s a scam.”