Scam victims can be repaid

It’s a plea we hear often at Team Clark headquarters …

“Please, can you help me? I wired hundreds of dollars over Western Union and scammers stole it … ”

Finally, we have some good news to share if you’ve faced this tough situation.

As the result of a classaction lawsuit, Western Union has funds ready and waiting to go back to consumers who were bilked out of their money by scammers.

Back in January 2017, Western Union admitted to helping scammers who stole millions from unsuspecting people.

The criminals who stole the money either falsely posed as family members in need or offered promises of prize money, job offers, and loans in return for upfront payment of funds via wire transfer.

At the time, Western Union agreed to pay $586 million to settle charges brought by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Department of Justice (DO J).

Now that compensation is available for those who were scammed from Jan. 1, 2004, to Jan. 19, 2017.

Be sure to fill this form out and return it promptly if it shows up in your mailbox. You only have until Feb. 12, 2018, to have your claim verified.

Meanwhile, if you believe you should be part of this settlement but did not receive anything in the mail, you’ll have to go online to file a petition for remission.

According to the FTC, you should submit a claim even if you no longer have the receipt or other paperwork related to your money transfer.

Special note: You will have to divulge your digits.

Your Social Security number is required in order to file a claim. That’s so the DO J can check with the Treasury Offset Program to make sure you don’t owe back taxes; if you do, your refund may be reduced by the amount you owe.

If you sent money multiple times between 2004 and 2017 that was stolen by scammers, you are encouraged to file a separate claim for each instance.

Once your claim(s) are verified, the amount you get back will depend on how much you lost and how many other people submit valid claims.

Finally, know that it could take up to a year for you to get your money back. Continue to check back for updates with the FTC or check WesternUnionRemission.com for status updates.