ECONOMY & WORK
MONEY 101
NEWS
PERSONAL FINANCE
NET WORTH
About Us Contact Us Privacy Policy Terms of Use DMCA Opt-out of personalized ads
© Copyright 2023 Market Realist. Market Realist is a registered trademark. All Rights Reserved. People may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.
MARKETREALIST.COM / NEWS

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

Scammers are sending people postcards saying that they have unclaimed rewards on their accounts.
PUBLISHED DEC 14, 2023
Cover Image Source: Pexels | Photo by Ylanite Koppens
Cover Image Source: Pexels | Photo by Ylanite Koppens

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. 

Image source: Pexels | Photo by Leeloo Thefirst
Pexels | Photo by Leeloo Thefirst

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.

Representative Image of a Walmart Store | Getty Images | Photo by Jeff Zelevansky
Getty Images | Photo by Jeff Zelevansky

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.

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.

Image source: Pexels | Photo by Nataliya Vaitkevich
Pexels | Photo by Nataliya Vaitkevich

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.

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.

Representative Image | Getty Images | Photo by DIY Photolibrary
Getty Images | Photo by DIY Photolibrary

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.

MORE ON MARKET REALIST
What is Judy Sheindlin’s salary per episode? Here’s what we know about the TV judge and her new IMDb TV show, ‘Judy Justice.’
6 hours ago
Sajak was criticized by fans on the internet but the contestant clarified that it was just for fun.
7 hours ago
Danielle Perez had gone viral after talking about the awkward moment on "The Price is Right" on social media.
1 day ago
The singer also got Malone's number but is only focusing on sharing his work with him for now.
1 day ago
The incident did not bring down the woman's excitement as she kept jumping on stage.
1 day ago
The guest had no idea whose face was engraved on the top of the box and how much it cost.
2 days ago
The young entrepreneur saw a common problem kids his age faced and came up with an invention.
2 days ago
It was a gift from the father of his first client to whom he had sold a condo.
2 days ago
The singer wanted to celebrate his journey by sending fans to the place linked to his early days.
2 days ago
Wait till you hear the list of weird prizes that 'Price is Right' gave in the '50s.
3 days ago
The bottled water from the popular retailer has nanoplastic particles more than the firm's limits.
3 days ago
Most of the sharks had concerns about water pressure even though the product impressed them.
3 days ago
The host wanted to be sure about the signature that added a lot of value to the doll and the cards.
4 days ago
The incident took place on a busy Friday night and the staff failed to keep track of the group.
4 days ago
Some users also told her to just sell the car back and take cash for it instead of just paying taxes.
5 days ago
The man was initially convinced that there was a gold nugget inside the rock but he just couldn't crack it.
5 days ago
The question may not have been suggestive but fans read between the lines and interpreted it their way.
5 days ago
Sajak acknowledged that his farewell was robbing the players of time and winning opportunities.
5 days ago
The user finally decided to spend what he found on a camera and still had $500 left.
5 days ago
The guest made it clear that he intended to hold on to the precious instrument for life.
6 days ago