Microsoft Refunds $8k of In-Game FIFA Purchases to Canadian Parent

A Pembroke, Ont., dad is “very pleased” that Xbox has refunded more than $8,000 of in-game purchases that his son racked up on his credit card before Christmas.

But Microsoft has since relented, with the tech giant telling Perkins they would refund all the charges.

Lance Perkins was surprised to see $8206 charged to his credit card for something he didn’t remember buying, as it was his 17-year-old son buying copious amounts of in-game Federation Internationale de Football Association goodies.

Several weeks ago, we reported that a teen managed to rack up $8,000 in in-app purchases on the Xbox One while playing Federation Internationale de Football Association. The son claims he thought it was a one-time fee for the game.

Xbox also initially told him in an email that the bill would stand.

“It’s much better have it in my bank account than somewhere it never should have gone”, says Perkins.

Lance Perkins said he was stunned to discover the charges on his credit card bill in December, and criticized the company for what he called a misleading business scheme. “He’s just as sick as I am”.

What say you? Should Microsoft have processed that refund? We assume that Microsoft capitulated and took the charge on its own chin because of the bad PR. It may have done it grudgingly, particularly if you consider that a lot of companies make their money this way quite legitimately. He added: “Let’s thank them for making that choice”.

Perkins stated that this situation should serve as a cautionary tale to other families, and urged gaming companies to install safeguards that will prevent such an unfortunate event from happening.