The FTC has issued an additional round of refunds toFortniteplayers. This action stems from the $245 million settlement made by Epic Games in 2022, following accusations that the company used “deceptive practices” to entice unwanted purchases from consumers. The first round of refunds came in December 2024, and it included 629,344 individual payments toFortniteplayers who made a claim for compensation.
When theFTC initially announced this refund toFortniteplayers, it made a statement regarding the reasons for this decision. One of the main issues that led to this settlement was what the FTC described as a “counterintuitive, inconsistent, and confusing button configuration” that encouraged accidental purchases. The average payment issued during the initial refund was $114, and that is likely the figure that claimants should expect in this round as well.
In its most recent announcement, the FTC declared it has issued approximately $126 million in the second round of refunds toFortniteplayers on June 25 and June 26. Combined with the first round of refunds, the FTC has now sent a total of $198 million to players who filed a claim. This leaves roughly $47 million left in the settlement, and the process of submitting a claim for a refund fromFortnitehas been officially reopened. Players who are eligible will now have until July 9 to visitftc.gov/fortniteand make a claim to receive a refund. For those who don’t remember, there are three ways toqualify for theFortniteFTC refund.
FTC Reopens Fortnite Refund Claim Applications
The only stipulation for players who are eligible for this refund is that payments via PayPal must be accepted within 30 days, while payments made via check must be cashed within 90 days. The original claim made by the FTC was thatEpic Games had violated COPPAwhen the company collected the personal data of minors. The second complaint was focused on unwanted purchases caused by confusing button mapping, and that seems to be the focus of these refunds.
Part of the FTC settlement also requiredFortniteto receive positive consent before making any charges, ensuring fewer mistaken purchases. Another stipulation required Epic Games to stop locking players out of their accounts over disputed charges. Needless to say, the FTC got more than just a refund out of the company, and those changes are also important. That said, this is far from the first time thatEpic Games has had to issue refundsfor one reason or another, so it remains to be seen whether the company will eventually fix these problems.
