FTC Begins Sending Refunds in Epic Games Settlement

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has begun sending over $72 million in refunds to consumers as part of a December 2022 settlement with Epic Games.

The settlement resolved the FTC’s allegations that the Epic Games tricked consumers into making unwanted purchases, the regulator said in a Monday (Dec. 9) press release.

The FTC sent 629,344 total payments Monday and will distribute more at a later date, according to the release. The average payment is around $114.

The first distribution amount in this case is the seventh largest the FTC has ever sent, according to the regulator’s interactive dashboards for refund data.

The FTC alleged that Epic Games, the maker of the video game Fortnite, tricked players into making unwanted purchases by using design tactics called “dark patterns,” let children rack up unauthorized charges without parental involvement, and blocked some users who disputed unauthorized charges from accessing content they purchased, according to the release.

When announcing the settlement in December 2022, FTC Chair Lina M. Khan said in a press release: “As our complaints note, Epic used privacy-invasive default settings and deceptive interfaces that tricked Fortnite users, including teenagers and children. Protecting the public, and especially children, from online privacy invasions and dark patterns is a top priority for the commission, and these enforcement actions make clear to businesses that the FTC is cracking down on these unlawful practices.”

Epic Games said at the time in a statement posted on its website that the video game industry experiences fast-moving innovation, that player expectations are high and that decades-old statutes don’t specify how today’s gaming ecosystems should operate.

“The laws have not changed, but their application has evolved and long-standing industry practices are no longer enough,” the firm wrote in the Dec. 19, 2022, statement. “We accepted this agreement because we want Epic to be at the forefront of consumer protection and provide the best experience for our players.”

In the first round of payments sent Monday, half were sent in the form of PayPal payments and half were sent as checks, per the release.

“Consumers selected their payment method when they completed their claim form,” the release said.