The Federal Trade Commission is sending refunds totaling more than $72 million to consumers who were tricked into making unwanted purchases by Epic Games, maker of the popular video game Fortnite.

As part of a settlement first announced in December 2022, the FTC obtained an order requiring Epic Games to pay $245 million to resolve allegations that the game maker used design tactics called dark patterns to lure players into unwanted purchases enticing and tricking children into making money illicitly, charging fees without parental involvement, and barring some users who disputed unauthorized charges from accessing their purchased content. The FTC alleged that Fortnite’s counterintuitive, inconsistent, and confusing button configuration resulted in players of all ages receiving unwanted charges based on pressing a single button. For example, players could be charged while trying to wake the game from sleep mode while the game was in a loading screen, or by pressing an adjacent button while simply trying to preview an item.

The FTC is sending its first round of payments in this matter and will distribute additional funds at a later date. Today, the FTC is sending a total of 629,344 payments, about half of which are PayPal payments and the other half are checks.

Consumers selected their payment method when filling out their application form. Recipients should clear their PayPal payment within 30 days and clear their checks within 90 days as indicated on the check. The average payment is about $114.

Consumers who have questions about their payment should contact refund administrator Rust Consulting, Inc. at 1-833-915-0880 or by email at [email protected] or visit the FTC website for Frequently Asked Questions to view refund procedure. The Commission never requires anyone to pay money or provide account information to receive a refund.

Eligible consumers can still file a claim online. The application form is available at www.ftc.gov/fortnite.

The Commission’s interactive refund data dashboards provide a state-by-state breakdown of refunds in FTC cases. In 2023, FTC actions resulted in $330 million in refunds to consumers across the country.