charged for amazon prime but not a member

Help! I was charged for Amazon Prime but not a member, what do I do? If I cancel Amazon Prime Now, Does it End Immediately? These are probably two of the most common problems several users experience while they’re using the top e-commerce platform in the world.

In fact, based on a survey, about 28% of Prime members are just accidental members. And by accidental, we mean they neither planned nor wanted to be an Amazon Prime subscriber.

If ever you are worried that this continues on, do not worry because we’ll help you!

In this guide, we will be walking you through what you need to do if you are billed for something you did not know.

How Did You “Accidentally” Subscribe?

The wide majority of users aren’t even sure how they signed up! How do you actually accidentally signup to Amazon Prime?

They’re so good at it that they actually does it subtly – and in most times, we won’t even notice if we don’t have a keen eye on detail!

Delivery Option

Say you’re trying to purchase an item from them and you’re at the checkout. You’ll see a lot of different delivery options.

delivery prime

The default option would be the Standard Delivery, but what they’re trying to promote is, of course, the “prioritized delivery,” which promises fast and expedited delivery.

It’s one of the most efficient and the most effective ways on how they get you to signup for the premium membership service.

Free Trial

Another is the free 30-day trial to Amazon Prime. It’s free and they keep their word. However, the problem is that most people forget about it.

amazon prime website

When the trial passes and they haven’t cancelled it, it’ll bill them automatically.

What to Do if Charged for Amazon Prime but you’re not a member

what to do if charged for amazon prime but not a member

So, are you charged for Amazon Prime but you’re not a member? Get your money back by following these steps!

Cancel Your Premium Subscription

The first step that you need to think of is to cancel your account.

You don’t want any more future payments to them, right? So, from here, decide to kill the subscription.

cancel prime

You can do so by following these steps:

  1. Login to your account and hover your pointer to your name to see the options you have under your Account
  2. Click on Account Settings
  3. From there, you’ll see multiple options, click on Prime
  4. You’ll be then taken and redirected to Amazon Prime
  5. Select Manage Prime Membership > End Membership

Cancelling through Prime Page

Alternatively, you can also just access their End Your Amazon Prime Membership Page.

prime end membership

You will see a prompt that says End Membership, and that’s what you need to click on if your decision is final.

It will ask you to confirm your action and just click on confirm to push with the unsubscription.

Doing these things would finally end your membership with the premium service. This means that you wouldn’t be billed for the next months to come, and you don’t have to worry about it any longer.

Note: You’ll get the cashback automatically if you haven’t used any Prime Services. The guide would be done here for you. Otherwise, you would have to continue to this guide to find out how you can get cashback.

If I Cancel Amazon Prime, Does it End Immediately?

This is also one of the most common questions out there. To answer it, no, it does not end real-time when you initiate the cancellation.

But here are a few things you should know when you are to discontinue the service.

1. Within the Trial Period

If you are currently within the trial period and you decide to cancel, you will still be able to use it until the last day of the trial.

You can be carefree to not be charged because you cancelled before the trial ended. 

2. Outside the Trial Period

If you choose to cancel while you are outside of your trial period, if you follow the flow of End My Membership, it’ll prompt you that your subscription will be done when your billing cycle renews.

But you can try contacting their team, telling them about your dilemma, which would be what we’ll talk about on the next step.

Contact Amazon

At this point, if you’ve used any of the Services such as the Prime Video Streaming, Free Fast Shipping, and the like, the only option you have to get your money back is to communicate with their team.

To get the cashback you have been looking forward to, you can contact them via the phone or through their website. Their email centers are notoriously known to be sluggish, so they might not be able to help.

Refund Over the Phone

You can contact them by calling them via their hotline at 1-888-280-4331 or 001-206-922-0880. Once a representative gets on the line, you just have to tell them what happened, and they will try giving you the return.

amazon contact

Take note, though, that they might not give you the full cashback. If they accept your situation, they can help you with a partial refund. It’ll depend on the story of how you subscribed and your powers of persuasion how you will convince them with a cashback.

Refund Through Their Website

Furthermore, you can also try getting the return through their website. To do so, follow these steps:

  • Access the Contact Us Form of Amazon Prime
  • In the tab selection, choose Something Else or Prime
  • Select Membership Management for the dropdown menu, then Other Prime Issue
  • You’ll then be asked to choose from a list of options, the chat option is the most recommended
  • Tell the story on why you want to be recompensed and if it’s valid, they’ll give you a go.

You will be speaking to a representative, too, so the amount of cashback will depend on the overall situation you’ve experienced.


When you think about it, the problem like charged for Amazon Prime but not a member is not actually with the e-commerce giant entirely. There are users and subscribers who are able to avoid this dilemma.

So, if you do not want to go over being charged for Amazon Prime but you are not a member again, be sure to take note of everything that Amazon prompts you.

Nicole B