Accidental Duolingo Yearly Subscription – Denied Refund Twice, No Way to Escalate

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Accidental Duolingo Yearly Subscription – Denied Refund Twice, No Way to Escalate

Hi everyone,

I’m writing out of frustration and in the hope that someone here has found a solution. I accidentally subscribed to a yearly Super Duolingo plan through the App Store. I’m a student with very limited funds and did not intend to make this purchase. I contacted both Duolingo and Apple, and both are pointing to each other. Duolingo says they can’t process refunds because the subscription was made through Apple — fair enough.

So I followed Apple’s official process and submitted a refund request through reportaproblem.apple.com.

My request was denied twice, and now the system doesn’t let me submit another one. I then called Apple Support in Finland, but the representative said they’re not in the team that makes refund decisions, and that they couldn’t do anything.

I tried contacting Apple Support again through the “Get Support” website and asked to speak to someone with decision-making authority. But again, I was told they couldn’t help. I asked to escalate to a senior advisor or someone who could forward the case to the internal refund review team, but they said it wasn’t possible.

So now I’m stuck:

I didn’t mean to buy the subscription
I’ve canceled renewal
I was denied a refund twice automatically
Apple support says they can’t help and won’t escalate

Is there any real way to escalate this and speak to someone with the power to actually help? It feels unfair to pay over €100 for something I never intended to purchase, especially as a student.

If anyone has successfully pushed a refund through after two denials, or managed to escalate their case, I’d really appreciate your advice.

Thanks in advance!

iPhone 15, iOS 18

Posted on Jul 30, 2025 08:05 AM

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Answer 1

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Limnos

Level 10

423,905 points

Jul 30, 2025 10:19 AM in response to An3yyy_

The people responding on this support forum are users like you. We have no special access to Apple information or your accounts, so unfortunately all we can do is guide you to the information Apple does provide. Apple, however, does not have much on its criteria for refusing refunds. Here are two sections from the U.S.A. version of Apple Media Services Terms and Conditions - Legal - Apple Media Services - Apple You can see if the terms are different for where you live by clicking on this link Legal - Apple Media Services - Apple select your location and then your language.

- "All Transactions are final."

I understand this as meaning Apple is starting from a point where any refund is considered an exception. Apple may provide a refund but can also simply say no without having to provide a reason. I understand this can be frustrating but by using the service you agree to the terms.

- "From time to time, Apple may suspend or cancel payment or refuse a refund request if we find evidence of fraud, abuse, or unlawful or other manipulative behavior that entitles Apple to a corresponding counterclaim." Remember that Apple has no way of removing a purchase from your device. They have to trust you are being honest when asking for a refund. It may be certain refund requests might be considered suspicious or excessive.

According to https://reportaproblem.apple.com/static/en-us/privacy.html , Apple uses an automated system to detect fraud. Your request may not have met the automated system’s criteria for a refund. If you feel you want to discuss a refund request with a person, try to contact an Apple representative by email —> “If you disagree with your final decision, contact dpo@apple.com “

If you wish to try a telephone or chat method, click here --> Choose your country or region - Official Apple Support Select your country, then a product. If you don't see one that handles your issue then keep experimenting with selections until you reach one that gets you a chat session or a telephone call and get the representative to redirect you.

or:

"See a list of Apple phone numbers around the world." Click here --> Contact Apple Support - Apple Support

Apple’s position appears to be that people need to be proactive with purchases, canceling subscriptions at least 24 hours before trials end.

I can add I have seen many posts where people have said they have not been able to get a refund from Duolingo.

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