Facebook must provide refunds for purchases made in apps and games by children should they or their parents request it, a California court has ruled.
The decision means that hundreds of thousands of people across the US could legally claim back money from the social network.
It’s the culmination of a class action lawsuit brought against the social network in February 2012 by two children and their parents over purchases of the discontinued virtual currency Facebook Credits, now known as Facebook Payments, made using the parents’ credit cards. The currency was designed as a site-wide form of payment for virtual goods within games like Farmville and Bejeweled.
One child’s mother let him spend $20 on her credit card to let him unlock features within the game Ninja Emblem, but the account was charged several hundred dollars for purchases the child subsequently made with what he thought was fake money.
The other child racked up charges of $1,059 after taking his parent’s debit card without permission.
The plaintiffs brought the case on behalf of all Facebook users under the age of 18 who made purchases through their accounts between February 2008 and March 2015.
“These kids don’t really know what they are doing,” explained the lawyer John R Parker, the lead attorney representing the families in the lawsuit. “They’ve got a credit card they put into their account and they don’t realise that every time they click on some button in the game to get some extra magic coin, the company is charging the parent’s account.”
The case, which applies across the US, centers around a piece of California legislation called the Family Code, which is designed to shield children from their lack of judgment and prevent companies from exploiting their immaturity. The code states that any contracts with minors can be voided by the minor at any time before they reach the age of 18.
Facebook makes users declare their age at sign-up, allowing users as young as 13. Although the company advised young users that purchases should only be made with the permission of their parent or guardian, the company did not require any evidence that purchases were authorised by the person whose account was charged.
The Menlo Park-based tech firm argued that the children in question had received and used the electronic goods they paid for, but the court rejected this reasoning and ruled that the minors were entitled to refunds even for items they used.
Parker described Facebook’s line of reasoning as “a joke”. “It’s remarkable to me that Facebook has been arguing that line since we filed the case and it’s had absolutely no traction from any of the judges,” he said.
As a result of the settlement, which was approved by the US district court for the northern district of California on 26 May, Facebook has been forced to introduce a feature that allows users to request refunds for purchases made by minors.
Ben Edelman, a lawyer and associate professor at Harvard who also worked on the case, said he was glad that the settlement has been approved.
“It’s not unheard of to talk to parents who have lost $1,000 or $2,000,” he said. “I’m thrilled that Facebook will give that money back – but it would have been even better if they’d given it back earlier or not taken it in the first place.”
We don’t know exactly how many US Facebook users are minors, but a 2014 report suggested that as many as 73% of 13- to 17-year-olds still use the platform. There are also many younger users who have lied about their age to open accounts. Provided their stated age was under 18, these children may also be able claim refunds.
If you have been charged for virtual items bought from a Facebook account belonging to someone 17 or younger, you may be entitled to a refund. To request your money back you can head over to Facebook Payments Support and follow the instructions to dispute the charges.
Facebook told the Guardian that the company was still putting a plan in place for handling the fallout from this settlement, including how to communicate the decision to users who may have been affected. For now it will be reviewing each case individually as they are submitted through the reporting system.