Your Holiday Mail Could Be a Scam; Here's How Postcard Scams Are Trying To Steal From You

Beware of holiday season scams

This holiday season, postcard scams are trying to steal money or sensitive information from residents of various states.  A report from WGAL 8 recently warned people about an ‘unclaimed reward scam.’ Further authorities in Oakland County are warning residents about a mail scam where fraudsters are claiming to be tax collection officers.

In West Texas, the president of the Abilene Better Business Bureau has sounded alarms about a home warranty scam where criminals are sending fake mail impersonating various authorities. Here are more details on these scams and how to be safe from being fooled. 

What is the unclaimed reward postcard scam?

The WGAL 8 report said that several of its viewers have alerted the outlet about an ongoing scam where scammers send people postcards saying that they have unclaimed rewards on their accounts. As per the postcard, the reward is good at Walmart, Target, and more.

When the number given on the card is called, victims are asked to provide a credit card number for the $1.95 shipping charge. If they claim they don’t have a card, the scammers ask for a bank account number instead. In this, the scammers can potentially use the information to empty the accounts of the victim. Thus, it is best to avoid believing in any such schemes sent via mail from unknown sources.

What is Oakland County tax debt postcard scam?

Lisa Brown, a clerk at the Oakland County Register of Deeds which provides Property Records Notification (PRN) services, raised an alarm over a tax debt payment scam in the WXYZ report.

As per Brown, several residents have complained about receiving postcards in the mail with the headings “County Deed Records” and “Home Warranty Division” urging them to call an 1800 number to satisfy their tax debt. Other mails may also carry the heading of “Notice of Tax Lien” demanding a tax payment which may have already been done. These emails often threaten the receivers of property loss, a bank levy, and/or wage garnishment in case the recipients don’t pay the debt. Thus, Brown has urged residents to be wary of unsolicited demands for money and contact the respective authorities directly to verify such information.

What is the Texas home warranty postcard scam?

The president of the Abilene Better Business Bureau, John Riggins has raised alarms of another postcard scam related to home warranty in Texas, KTXS12 ABC reported. Riggings said that scammers are sending postcards from a fake company called the ‘Home Warranty Division’ claiming that the recipient’s home warranty is expiring.

They scam people into falsely renewing their home warranty or simply paying for one that doesn’t exist. According to Riggins, there are several things that people can do to avoid being scammed. People can look up the company’s name that is sending these postcards and verify its legitimacy. Further, he said that if the mail is from an unknown company, it is best to trash it. “What we’re telling consumers is to be aware of the fact that this isn’t a company you’ve already signed a contract with. This is a solicitation. You’d never know it looking at the mailer,” Riggins said in the report. Riggins also recommended people to use the tool BBB Scam Tracker which tracks and provides information on the locally reported scams.