An Amazon Prime delivery vehicle is seen in downtown Pittsburgh on March 18, 2020. The Federal Trade Commission sued Amazon on Wednesday for what it called a years-long effort to enroll consumers without consent into its Prime program and making it difficult for them to cancel their subscriptions. /Gene J. Puskar, File)
WASHINGTON (7News) —Amazonwill pay $8.25 million in refunds and penalties and change its delivery practices to settle a lawsuit brought by the D.C. attorney general over Prime delivery services in parts of the District.
Attorney General Brian Schwalb announced the settlement Thursday, saying Amazon had failed to tell customers in two D.C. ZIP codes that the company had stopped using its own delivery network there, resulting in slower Prime deliveries.
The lawsuit, filed by the Office of the Attorney General in 2024, alleged Amazon was “secretly excluding” ZIP codes 20019 and 20020 from its delivery service beginning in 2022.
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Instead, officials said Amazon used third-party carriers, including UPS and the U.S. Postal Service, to deliver packages to those areas.
According to the attorney general’s office, about 69,000 Prime members in the two ZIP codes were affected and continued paying the full price for Prime membership despite experiencing slower delivery times.
“Amazon deceived thousands of its customers who live East of the River, collecting their Prime membership fees while secretly excluding them from full Prime membership benefits. Now, we’re putting more than $7 million back in the pockets of people who were taken advantage of,” said Attorney General Schwalb. “No company is above the law, no matter how big or powerful. My office will always fight to make sure businesses compete on a level playing field and treat their customers fairly so that DC residents get what they pay for, regardless of what zip code they live in.”
Amazon Prime currently costs $14.99 per month or $139 per year, according to the attorney general’s office. The D.C. lawsuit alleged Amazon did not disclose the delivery exclusions to existing or prospective Prime customers and, when customers complained about delays, attributed them to other circumstances.
Amazon stopped the delivery exclusions in April 2026, according to the attorney general’s office.
Under the settlement, Amazon will pay $7.25 million in refunds to eligible Prime members who lived in the affected ZIP codes during the exclusion period.
The company will also pay $1 million in penalties to the District.
Eligible customers will be notified in the coming weeks about whether they qualify for a refund and how much they will receive.
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