Utah consumers who may have lost money in scams involving Western Union money transfer services have until Feb. 12 to file refund claims with the Federal Trade Commission.
Consumers who used Western Union between Jan. 1, 2004 and Jan. 19, 2017 in money transfers that turned out to be fraudulent are eligible to apply online with the court appointed claims administrator, the Utah Division of Consumer Protection (DCP) said in a Monday news release.
According to data obtained from Western Union, 3,790 Utah consumers filed complaints alleging over $4.6 million in fraudulent wire transfers, the news release said.
Those Utah consumers and others may be eligible for restitution through the $586 million settlement fund with the U.S. Department of Justice by filing a claim at FTC.gov/WU.
Consumers also may call 1-844-319-2124 for updates on the process and details on victim eligibility.
“Time is running out on the opportunity to recover lost funds,” said DCP Executive Director Francine A. Giani, in the news release.
Giani said the DCP “encourages Utahns to visit the FTC website to be part of this historic settlement win for consumers.”
In the settlement agreement, FTC investigators found that criminals used the business reputation and wire services of Western Union to conduct schemes across the country.
Some of the common scams involving wire transfers are: lottery and contest scams in which consumers are told they have won a large sum of money but must first wire money to pay required taxes or fees before receiving their winnings, grandparent scams in which a consumer believes his or her loved one is in immediate danger and needs money right away, and romance scams in which someone poses as a love interest and then soon begins asking consumers to send money for various reasons, such as medical emergencies, car accidents, muggings, emergency travel, etc., according to the DCP news release.
“The FTC has hired an outside firm to handle payments from the lawsuit. Please be advised that no one from the claim adjustor will contact you to request your bank account, credit card information, or ask you to pay a fee,” stated FTC Division Director Daniel O’Bannon, in the DCP news release.
The FTC $586 million settlement requires Western Union to develop and put into action a comprehensive anti-fraud program designed to help detect and prevent incidents where consumers who have been the victims of fraud use Western Union to wire money to scam artists.
