Amazon Prime refunds are coming. Scammers may be, too

SALT LAKE CITY — An unexpected payment from Amazon would normally be a reason to be suspicious. But for millions of people, unexpected Amazon money could actually be real.

It's been almost exactly a year since the FTC announced that Amazon had agreed to pay billions of dollars to settle allegations that it signed people up for Prime without their permission, then made it too difficult to cancel.

Now, a federal judge has expanded who gets paid, and millions of additional Prime customers qualify.

If you are one of them, you don't need to do anything.

Under the revised order, starting Oct. 1, 2026, Amazon will begin automatically sending an additional round of refunds through Venmo, PayPal or mailed checks.

As the settlement window opens, consumer advocates say Amazon customers should be vigilant. Anytime there is big news involving big money and a big company, you can bet crooks will try to take advantage.

A scammer might send an email asking you to click a link to receive your refund, when they are really trying to get you to download malware. Or they may try to trick you into giving them access to your bank account.

This is one of those rare situations where surprise money showing up really can be legitimate.

But somebody contacting you and asking you to do something to "release" that money is when your scam radar should go off.

The FTC warns that the agency "is not contacting people about refunds," and states that, "if you get a call from someone who claims to be from the FTC, it's a scam."

Amazon agreed last year to pay $2.5 billion to settle Federal Trade Commission allegations that it "enrolled millions of consumers in Prime subscriptions without their consent and knowingly made it difficult for consumers to cancel." In the year since, Amazon has paid about $845 million, according to the FTC.

More information about who qualifies for a refund can be found on the FTC's website.

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