Imagine: you wake up early one morning to go to work, same as always, your usual routine. You get up, coffee, breakfast… “what should I wear today?” “where did I leave my keys?” and off to work. Everything is a normal day until you happen to check your bank account, and suddenly there’s an extra payment you weren’t expecting. Amazon has issued you a refund.
For what? No idea. Something you returned in 2018? Well, yes. That’s exactly what has happened to some users in the United States, who this week found unexpected deposits for products they returned up to seven years ago!!! Without requesting anything. Without claiming anything. Amazon simply did it.
Why? It seems the company has confirmed that an internal review of its returns system uncovered old errors that had been left unresolved… And even though most people didn’t even remember those purchases, the online retail giant decided to fix it on its own.
What exactly happened?
According to Bloomberg, Amazon discovered that in “a very small subset” of returns there were issues: in some cases, the refund was approved, but the payment was never completed; in others, the returned product couldn’t be properly verified, so nothing was ever paid out. But the items did come back, and the customers held up their end.
Maxine Tagay, a spokesperson for the company, explained that the error affected only a few specific cases, but even so, the company has updated its payment system and implemented new measures to make sure it doesn’t happen again.
And the money?
No forms or calls to customer service. If you were one of the lucky ones, the refund is already in your account. A user on LinkedIn shared that he received $1,800 for a TV he returned in 2018. Just like that. We haven’t had that luck…
How many people are receiving these refunds?
Amazon hasn’t released the exact figure, but everything points to it being more than a few. According to Business Insider, the total amount could add up to hundreds of millions of dollars. In fact, the company’s CFO, Brian Olsavsky, acknowledged that in the first quarter of 2025 alone, they took a $1.1 billion loss, partly due to these retroactive refunds.
Goodwill gesture or legal strategy?
Amazon says it’s doing it out of responsibility. But of course, some people see another angle: avoiding class-action lawsuits. Getting ahead of possible litigation and showing that they’re willing to correct mistakes without outside pressure might be a way to protect their reputation… and their pockets.
In any case, in a market where customer trust is worth gold, we don’t think it’s a bad move.
What should you do?
If at some point between 2018 and 2022 you returned something to Amazon and never got a response, keep an eye on your bank account. You might have a surprise waiting. There’s no public list or system to check if you’re in the group of lucky ones, but you can review your past orders in the “Your Orders” section of your account. And just in case, take a look at your bank account too.
The system is already fixed
The company says the issue is already resolved and that they’ve reinforced their protocols to make sure something like this doesn’t happen again. They also promise that if they detect other similar errors, they will notify affected customers directly.
The fact that Amazon is refunding money for mistakes made seven years ago without anyone asking for it is not just rare: it’s a sign of how complicated the world of online retail has become. And if that means one day you get an unexpected refund in your account, well, good for you!