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Sent Money To Scammers Via Western Union? You Could Get Some Back

If you were conned into sending money to scammers using Western Union’s wire transfer service, you could get some back.

MORE INFO / FILE A CLAIM: http://www.westernunionremission.com or call 1-844-319-2124

MORE INFO / FILE A CLAIM: http://www.westernunionremission.com or call 1-844-319-2124

Photo Credit: Jerry DeMarco

You could qualify for compensation if you were the victim of a fraud-induced money transfer using Western Union services between January 1, 2004 and January 19, 2017 -- part of a $586 million settlement with the company by all 50 states and the District of Columbia.

The settlement resolved an investigation focused on fraud-induced money transfers – specifically, the wiring of money by unwitting consumers to third-party con artists using Western Union’s wire transfer service.

Under the settlement, Colorado-based Western Union was required to develop and put into action a comprehensive anti-fraud program designed to help detect and prevent future incidents in which consumers who are the victims of fraud utilize Western Union to wire money to those defrauding them.

If you think you qualify, you simply have to report it to Western Union or to the Attorney General’s Office in your state.

You will then receive a claim form in the mail from the settlement administrator within the following two weeks. The form contains instructions for consumers wishing to file a claim.

MORE INFO / FILE A CLAIM: http://www.westernunionremission.com or call 1-844-319-2124

All completed claims forms must be mailed back to the settlement administrator by Feb. 12, 2018.

“Filing a claim is free, so consumers should not pay anyone to file a claim on their behalf,” New Jersey Attorney General Christopher S. Porrino said Friday.

“No one associated with the claims process will call to ask for consumers’ bank account or credit card number,” he added.

“Unfortunately, con artists use all types of ruses and tall tales to convince people to wire them money – and they sometimes succeed,” Porrino said.

“Some of these ‘send money’ scams may appeal to the target’s humanitarianism or love of family, while others may suggest the would-be victim needs to wire money in order to claim a big sweepstakes prize,” the attorney general added.

“The position of the states in this matter was that Western Union must be more vigilant going forward,” he said, “but consumers can protect themselves, too, by exercising great caution in the face of overtures asking that they send money.

“If a person is being told a loved one is in need or in danger, we urge that he or she proceed with deliberation and make every effort to authenticate the story independently. And if a supposed ‘bargain’ or ‘contest prize’ sounds too good to be true, it probably is. We recommend that they not take the bait.”

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