Here’s how to get a refund from the historic Amazon Prime settlement

By Auzinea Bacon, CNN

(CNN) — Amazon will soon have to refund some Prime members as part of a $2.5 billion settlement with the Federal Trade Commission – $1.5 billion of which will be returned directly to customers. It’s the FTC’s largest-ever settlement and the second-highest refund award in history.

The FTC said in a statement Thursday that Amazon “used sophisticated subscription traps” to trick online shoppers into enrolling in the company’s Prime services. It wrapped up a two-year dispute over the e-commerce giant allegedly manipulating consumers into signing up and then making it difficult for subscribers to cancel.

The FTC estimated that about 35 million customers were “harmed by (Amazon’s) deceptive Prime enrollment practices” and could be eligible for a refund.

Here’s what you need to know.

Who’s eligible?

Anyone who signed up for Amazon Prime or “unsuccessfully attempted to cancel” their Prime subscription in the United States between June 23, 2019, and June 23, 2025, is eligible for a share of the settlement.

How much are the refunds?

Customers who used “no more than 3 Prime Benefits” within a year of enrollment and signed up for Amazon Prime through a “challenged enrollment flow” will receive an automatic refund from Amazon. The FTC’s final order said customers eligible for the refund enrolled for Amazon Prime services via the Universal Prime page, the shipping option select page, Prime Video, or the Amazon’s single page checkout.

Automatic payments will be issued first and within 90 days of the FTC order. Those customers will be paid back for up to the total amount of the membership fees they paid, but no more than $51.

Anyone who submits a valid claim to Amazon and is approved will also be paid up to $51.

Claims for unintentional enrollment will be paid after automatic payments are issued, for the total amount of membership fees paid (up to $51) while they had an Amazon Prime subscription.

Prime subscribers who were unable to cancel will be refunded in the next group, for the total amount of membership fees paid, up to $51.

If the remaining funds aren’t enough to refund all claimants, Amazon will refund on a “pro rata basis, taking into account the total amount” claimants were eligible to receive and the number of Prime Benefits used. As is typical with massive settlements such as this one, that pro rata arrangement means many customers will probably receive less than the maximum refund allowed by the settlement – and significantly less than the fees they paid Amazon.

How to file a claim

A website with details on the claims process and information about the settlement has not yet been made public.

When it is available, links to the website will be on amazon.com and the Amazon Prime page, or a similar page on the company’s app, according to the FTC’s final order.

The settlement says that within 30 days after Amazon finishes its automatic payments, anyone eligible to submit a claim will be notified by e-mail and mailed letters.

When is the deadline to submit a claim?

Claims eligible customers will have “up to 180 days after receiving the claims form to submit it to Amazon via electronic mail,” pre-paid mail, or the settlement website, according to the order.

How has Amazon responded?

Amazon said that the company and its executives “have always followed the law” in a Thursday statement.

“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 company added.

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CNN’s Jordan Valinsky contributed to this report.