Fortnite players who made in-game purchases may soon be eligible for a refund following action by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) against developer Epic Games.
Epic Games will pay a total of $520 million in relief and change default privacy settings over allegations that the company violated the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) and used so-called “design tricks” to dupe players into making unintentional purchases.
$245 million of that sum will be going towards refunds for Fortnite gamers who were affected by the game’s billing and refund practices, so read on below to see if you’re eligible.
Are you eligible for a Fortnite refund?
According to the FTC website, refunds will be available to those who fit any of the following criteria:
- Parents whose children made an unauthorised credit card purchase in the Epic Games Store between January 2017 and November 2018.
- Fortnite players who were charged in-game currency (V-Bucks) for unwanted in-game items (such as cosmetics, llamas, or battle passes) between January 2017 and September 2022.
- Fortnite players whose accounts were locked between January 2017 and September 2022 after disputing unauthorised charges with their credit card companies.
However as this is an FTC ruling, this refund scheme only looks to be available to Fortnite gamers in the US.
How to get a Fortnite refund
Those who are eligible should keep an eye on the FTC website for more updates on the refund program, and should receive an email notice in the near future. The FTC stresses that you never have to pay for a refund and you should never pay anyone for an FTC refund in return for a fee.
The $245 million settlement money, the FTC’s largest amount in a gaming case, was agreed upon after FTC allegations that Epic Games charged parents and other gamers for unwanted items and locked the accounts of customers who disputed wrongful charges.
The remaining $275 million was a monetary penalty for allegedly violating the COPPA rule by collecting personal information from children under 13 without notifying their parents or obtaining their parents’ verifiable consent.
In a blog post following the settlement, Epic Games shared a statement saying: “No developer creates a game with the intention of ending up here.
“The video game industry is a place of fast-moving innovation, where player expectations are high and new ideas are paramount. Statutes written decades ago don’t specify how gaming ecosystems should operate. The laws have not changed, but their application has evolved and long-standing industry practices are no longer enough.
“We accepted this agreement because we want Epic to be at the forefront of consumer protection and provide the best experience for our players.
“Over the past few years, we’ve been making changes to ensure our ecosystem meets the expectations of our players and regulators, which we hope will be a helpful guide for others in our industry.”
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