Amazon customers could be owed a payout due to reported issues and delays in receiving refunds. A $309.5 million class action settlement has been reached over allegations that Amazon’s return policies and practices violate Washington consumer protection laws and other laws.
The class-action lawsuit claimed that customers who requested a refund did not receive it at all, or were re-charged the amount to their card after the refund had been processed. While the e-commerce retailer denies wrongdoing, Amazon will be paying out a share of the money to ‘among other things, avoid additional litigation burdens and expenses’.
Certain customers who applied for their share of the settlement before December 1, 2026, will be paid from the settlement only after the Court grants final approval at the Final Approval Hearing on March 16, 2027, and any appeals (if any) are resolved.
Here’s how to check if you are eligible for compensation.
If you are a US customer, you should definitely check the website
If you are a US customer whose purchases/returns were processed in the U.S., and you submitted a return or requested a refund between September 5, 2017, and February 12, 2026, you are eligible to claim if you did not receive a refund, were refunded the incorrect amount, or got the refund and were charged again for the same product.
As with many class action lawsuits, customers are split into two categories. Settlement Subclass A members will automatically receive a payment under the Settlement and do not need to submit a Claim Form. You will be in Subclass A if your refund has already been identified by Amazon itself. According to the Settlement Website: “These people do not need to provide proof of their transaction and will automatically receive payment. While this group will not have to submit a claim, they will have to provide a payment method for their payout, which is done via the claims website”.
Settlement Subclass B members must submit an eligible Claim Form in order to receive a payment under the Settlement. You will be in Subclass B if Amazon has not already identified you. To claim your share, you must submit a claim before December 1, 2026, on the Settlement Website, with proof that you requested a refund and did not receive it between September 5, 2017, and February 12, 2026.
The statement continues: “The Court has not made any finding that Amazon has engaged in any wrongdoing or misconduct of any kind, or is liable in any way. The Court also has not made any determination that this lawsuit should proceed as a class action, as opposed to individual claims brought by Plaintiffs. This Notice should not be interpreted as an expression of the Court’s opinion on the merits of the lawsuit. If the Parties had not reached a settlement, Amazon would have continued to vigorously defend the lawsuit, and it also would have opposed any attempt to have this case certified as a class action.”
If you like, you can attend the Final Approval Hearing on March 16, 2027, where the Court may hear arguments concerning approval of the Settlement. If you wish to speak at the Final Approval Hearing, you must request it in your written objection or comment, but you don’t have to attend to receive your payout.
December 1st is also the deadline to opt out, sue, continue to sue, or be part of another lawsuit against Amazon for the claims this Settlement resolves. If you exclude yourself, you will give up the right to receive any payment from this particular Settlement.
The Court in charge of this case still has to decide whether to approve the Settlement. No Settlement Class Member payments will be provided unless the Court approves the Settlement, and it becomes final. You can check your eligibility via the Claims Website here.