Better Business Bureau is issuing a warning regarding an organization that tries to make consumers think that they are winners of the Publisher’s Clearing House Sweepstakes. Consumers have been contacted by a person who says he is calling on behalf of Ed McMahon and were informed that they had won a sizable amount of money.
A senior citizen in our BBB’s service area received a phone call on January 7, 2009 telling her that she had won $25,000. The “agent” instructed her to wire an “insurance” fee of $3,000 in order to claim the prize. After the consumer informed the scammer that she lives off Social Security and does not have the money, he negotiated the required fee to $1,500. Luckily, she balked at having to send any money to collect her prize and reported this call to BBB.
The phone call came from 876-872-4939. BBB has found that this number belongs to a person named “Jim” in Jamaica. “This is a new twist to the old foreign lottery scam that regularly targets local consumers, especially the elderly. By using familiar sounding names and titles, it tries to lure victims into sending monies to secure fraudulent winnings,” said Jim Hegarty, BBB president and CEO. “Besides losing significant amounts of cash, victims can also be charged as an accessory when they transfer funds in these fraudulent schemes.”
BBB advises any consumer receiving similar calls or checks from unknown sources not to cash the check or send any money. Be wary of phone calls saying you have won a prize. A real sweepstakes or lottery notifies all winners by mail, not by phone, and its notification letter includes a toll-free number for their headquarters. You should always check with BBB before claiming any kind of prize to be certain it is legitimate.
Be suspicious if people ask you for money to claim a prize. Other common scams may include asking winners to prepay taxes, to pay shipping and handling charges, to send a deposit or other bogus expenses. Also, never send money to someone you do not know. Con artists ask you to wire money, send it by overnight courier, or provide bank account information so they can debit your account. Don’t be foolish with your cash. Never pay anything to receive a prize.