Contract trap · Terms of service
Forfeiture of balances/credits
Wallet funds, prepaid credits, virtual currency, loyalty points, 'purchased' games/media or data are declared revocable licences with 'no cash value', forfeited on termination, expiry or inactivity; disputing a charge locks the account; some terms let the vendor render the device 'permanently unusable'.
- Severity
- Serious
- How often it turns up
- Regular
- Holds up?
- Depends where you are
- Clause phrases
- 24
What it looks like in a contract
Redline matches these phrases against your document verbatim. Drafters rarely invent new wording — they copy it, which is why the same sentences turn up across unrelated contracts.
In English-language contracts
- no cash value
- non-refundable and non-transferable
- do not constitute a personal property right
- limited, revocable, non-transferable license
- you will forfeit any
- credits expire after
- inactivity fee
- if you initiate a chargeback we may suspend or terminate
- virtual items have no monetary value
- may be modified or eliminated at any time
- render the device permanently unusable in whole or in part
- remote deactivation
In Russian-language contracts
- бонусы не имеют денежного эквивалента
- баллы не подлежат обмену на денежные средства
- не подлежат возврату или передаче
- не являются частной собственностью
- не имеют ценности за пределами
- сгорают по истечении
- виртуальные предметы являются лицензией
- внутриигровая валюта не является имуществом Пользователя
- неиспользованный остаток не возвращается
- при блокировке аккаунта все средства и предметы аннулируются
- в случае оспаривания платежа (chargeback) аккаунт блокируется
- ограничить или заблокировать работу устройства
Check your own contract
Paste a clause, a page or the whole document. Nothing leaves your browser: the matching runs here, on this page, against the phrases above.
Why it bites
Real money becomes a revocable licence; a ban wipes hundreds or thousands in purchases; credits expire quietly; chargeback retaliation deters legitimate disputes; hardware you paid for can be bricked on the company's own judgment.
Is it enforceable where you are
The same clause can be routine in one country and void in another. What follows is what the law says where you are — not advice on your particular contract.
In the EU, platform terms are covered by Directive 93/13, the Digital Content Directive 2019/770 and DSA Art 14; in the US, ROSCA and FTC Act §5 apply to consumer sign-ups, and browsewrap acceptance turns on notice.
United States
Enforceable as licence terms; FTC Epic order (2022) bars chargeback lockouts; CARD Act 5-year gift-card minimum and state no-expiry laws; California AB 2426 (from 1 Jan 2025) bans advertising revocable digital licences as 'buy' without clear disclosure; Magnuson-Moss/state warranty law for hardware.
- Cited
- AB 2426
- FTC
European Union
93/13 Annex (d),(f); Digital Content Directive termination and refund rights; Sale of Goods Directive 2019/771 conformity for devices; e-money/voucher rules; CRD Art 16(m).
- Cited
- 93/13 Annex (d)
- CRD Art 16
- Directive 2019/771
United Kingdom
CRA 2015 Sch 2 paras 4, 7, 13; goods and digital-content conformity rights (ss.9-11, 34-36); Electronic Money Regulations for stored value; CMA gift-card guidance.
- Cited
- CMA
- CRA 2015 Sch 2 paras 4
Russia
ст. 32 ЗоЗПП — возврат аванса за вычетом фактических расходов, условие о невозврате ничтожно (ст. 16 п. 2 пп. 3); ст. 1102 ГК; ст. 18 ЗоЗПП — права при недостатках товара; произвольное ограничение работы устройства ущемляет права потребителя (ст. 16).
- Cited
- ст. 1102 ГК
- ст. 16 п. 2 пп. 3
- ст. 18 ЗоЗПП
- ст. 32 ЗоЗПП
Where this has actually happened
Regulator actions, court rulings and the contracts they were fought over.
- Steam Subscriber Agreement — Wallet funds 'do not constitute a personal property right, have no value outside Steam'; RU: «не являются частной собственностью, не имеют ценности за пределами Steam»
- Roblox Terms of Use — Robux are a 'limited, non-transferable, revocable license' forfeited on termination
- Nintendo Account User Agreement, May 2025 — Nintendo may render the device 'permanently unusable in whole or in part'
- Ubisoft 'The Crew' servers shut down March 2024; California class action Nov 2024
What to do
In order, from the thing that takes a minute to the thing that takes a letter.
- Do not preload large balances
- Spend credits before expiry
- Keep receipts and inventory screenshots
- Understand lock risk before a chargeback
- EU/UK: invoke unfair-terms and digital-content/goods conformity rules
- RU: требуйте возврат неиспользованного аванса (ст. 32 ЗоЗПП) и права при недостатках товара (ст. 18)
- US: gift-card expiry laws and CA AB 2426 disclosure rules.
Traps that travel with it
Drafters who use one of these usually use several.