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Eugene

(61,592 posts)
Sun May 31, 2020, 08:31 PM May 2020

People are mistaking stimulus payments for junk mail or a scam

Source: Washington Post

People are mistaking stimulus payments for junk mail or a scam

By Michelle Singletary
5/28/2020, 6:08:49 p.m.

The IRS has to explain, yet again, a glitch in issuing stimulus payments.

To help speed the delivery of up to $1,200 in economic impact payments to individuals made available under the $2 trillion Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (Cares) Act, the Treasury Department last week began mailing prepaid debit cards to 4 million Americans.

The prepaid debit cards allow recipients to make purchases online and at any retail location where Visa is accepted. Recipients can also receive cash from in-network ATMs and transfer funds to their personal bank accounts without a fee. (Fees may apply if an out-of-network ATM is used.)

The cards, issued by Treasury’s financial agent, MetaBank, were intended to speed the process of getting out the payments. Tens of millions of others have received their money by direct deposit, check or the Direct Express prepaid debit cards used to deliver Social Security payments and other federal benefits.

-snip-

Eric Green and his wife, who live in Arlington, Va., received a card in the mail last week. But they thought it was a con because they had expected their stimulus payment would be direct deposited into the same bank account where they received their recent federal refund.

-snip-


Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2020/05/28/people-are-mistaking-stimulus-payments-junk-mail-or-scam/



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Related: Economic Impact Payments being sent by prepaid debit cards, arrive in plain envelope; IRS.gov answers frequently asked questions (IRS)
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People are mistaking stimulus payments for junk mail or a scam (Original Post) Eugene May 2020 OP
I damn near chucked mine yesterday. TheCowsCameHome May 2020 #1
The only 'scam' is the guy who signed them. louis-t May 2020 #2
Fortunately mine went to my bank catrose May 2020 #3
I got a letter yesterday from that asslick in the WH RainCaster May 2020 #4
I did not even open mine. Doreen May 2020 #6
It is a scam. n/t Harker May 2020 #5
This seriously sucks. You have to enter your ss # and other details? WTAF? lettucebe Jan 2021 #7

TheCowsCameHome

(40,161 posts)
1. I damn near chucked mine yesterday.
Sun May 31, 2020, 08:35 PM
May 2020

It looks just like any other junk mail. Seriously. Four million of them went out to unsuspecting recipients.

Fast forward to today - I activated the card to the tune of $2400.

Whew!...

catrose

(5,047 posts)
3. Fortunately mine went to my bank
Sun May 31, 2020, 08:40 PM
May 2020

But a friend received mail for a former client and dear friend to "Joe Smith, deceased." They knew he was deceased and sent a debit card anyway? Still a few bugs in the system.

Doreen

(11,686 posts)
6. I did not even open mine.
Sun May 31, 2020, 10:12 PM
May 2020

I put it in the bag with the nightly cat pan scooping and took it out to the garbage.

lettucebe

(2,336 posts)
7. This seriously sucks. You have to enter your ss # and other details? WTAF?
Mon Jan 11, 2021, 08:20 PM
Jan 2021

I am really not comfortable with this at all. I do not want to submit any details like my social to any site (outside of official government sites), so what to do? And why a plain envelope? That's why I don't trust it.

Who else has done this and was it or was it not a scam?

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