December 15, 2024
Are you or someone you know one of the more than 400 million people who play Fortnite?
If the answer is yes – you may be entitled to a portion of $245 million in refunds the federal government demanded Epic games return to players.
I’m going to tell you who qualifies for these refunds and how you apply for it in a second…but first – let me just quickly explain what’s happening.
Back in 2022 – the federal trade commission settled a lawsuit with epic games the creator of Fortnite. The FTC said the company engaged in flagrant violations of the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act and manipulative online practices to dupe millions of players into making unintentional purchases, letting kids rack up unauthorized charges without parental involvement and blocked some users who disputed those unauthorized charges from accessing what they paid for.
In December of 2022 Epic games agreed to pay a $275 million penalty for these violations and was also required to pay an additional $245 million in refunds to players. That is the largest ever penalty the federal government has imposed for violating the children’s online privacy protection act and the largest ever refund demand the government has secured for manipulative practices in a gaming case. The settlement also required Epic games to adopt new strong privacy default settings for kids and teens.
Ok – now to these refunds. Last week the FTC released the first round of refunds. They doled out $72 million to almost 630,000 players who were impacted. The average refund was $114. But they’re not done. There’s still about $170 million dollars left to be refunded. So how do you get your piece?
If you say yes to any of these three statements – you are qualified.
You were charged in-game currency for items you didn’t want between January 2017 and September 2022
Your child made charges to your credit card without your knowledge between January 2017 and November 2018
Your account was locked between January 2017 and September 2022 after you complained to your credit card company about wrongful charges
If you answered yes to any of those three statements then you can to apply. You have to be at least 18 years old. If you are under the age of 18 you can have your parent or guardian fill out the application for you. And most importantly – you have to meet the deadline which is January 10 2025.
You will either need your Epic account id or a claim number to fill out the forms. All valid claims will be paid out at some point in 2025.
Read more about about the refund here.
