Fighting Fraud
By Better Business Bureau Serving Greater Cleveland
Navigating government programs and benefits can be complicated for veterans and their families. Scammers know this and will take full advantage of the confusion. Victims of veteran scams typically report being contacted by phone, email or messaging apps like Facebook Messenger.
These scams usually claim they represent a special government program for veterans. These may be loan forgiveness, mortgage aid, or even a “grant” meant to pay living or funeral expenses. No matter the offer, the scammers will claim veterans or their beneficiaries qualify for thousands of dollars of government aid. All one must do is pay a processing fee, typically through a pre-paid debit card. However, once this fee is paid, scammers will come up with more reasons for more fees and may even inquire about personal information so they have everything they need to commit identity theft.
To help protect veterans and their families this upcoming Veterans Day, Better Business Bureau® (BBB®) Serving Greater Cleveland is alerting the public to these scams.
Recently, a Lakewood woman contacted BBB after unwittingly losing $3,000 in a scam. The perpetrators called the Lakewood woman, who recently lost her Vietnam-era Army Veteran husband in June, and said they were from the “Veterans Commission.” The widow told BBB staffers that the scammer “asked me if I received the pamphlet from the funeral home and told me that my husband had a life insurance policy that needed to pay off what he was behind on paying them before I could receive the $30,000 benefit.”
The scammer, who went by the name of Susan Thompson, told the woman that if she didn’t pay the difference of what her husband owed, she would lose 85% of the policy money. After verifying personal information, the scammer instructed the widower to go to a local office supply store and purchase $3,000 in $500 increments on Reloadit cards. Once the widow provided the scammer with the numbers on the back of the gift cards, she was instructed to cut up the gift cards and mail them to an address in Washington, DC. The widow then spoke with another scammer who stated he was from United Insurance and informed her that she owed additional money, but they would take that out of the policy money they were going to deposit in her bank account. The Lakewood woman provided her routing and account numbers but no money was ever received. When the widow went to inquire about her money, she was told that “Susan Thompson” did not work there. Worried, the widow told BBB that she “contacted the police, canceled my bank account, and also reached out to Re-Load It to try and get my money back,” but unfortunately, lost $3,000.
BBB Serving Greater Cleveland is providing the following information on how to avoid scams targeting veterans:
- Do research first. No matter how good an offer sounds, don’t agree to anything immediately without doing research. Look up the program the person is claiming to represent. Read reviews or veteran experiences by doing a general search online. Search the government program along with the word “scam” to see if anyone has reported it as a fraud. Look to official government websites like USA.gov/benefits and USA.gov/military-assistance to see if the program exists.
- Don’t give in to pressure. Anyone with a legitimate aid program won’t mind if you need some time to think things over and do some research. Scammers often pressure people to act right away, claiming that if they need time to think about it, they’ll miss their chance. High-pressure tactics are a clear sign you’re dealing with a con artist.
- Be wary of unsolicited offers. The government will not contact you out of the blue with an offer. Usually, government communications come through the mail, not over the phone or through email, and certainly not through a messaging app. Even if you receive a letter about a government program, be cautious if you haven’t already requested information.
- Never pay upfront for a loan or grant. If someone asks you to pay upfront for a loan or a free grant, don’t do it. You should never pay for a free service for veterans, nor should you have to pay for a loan before you receive the money.
- Watch out for mortgage scams. Scammers maybe after your money with mortgage aid scams, or they could be attempting deed theft. In any case, if you are offered a special mortgage aid program, from the government or not, do plenty of research before agreeing to anything.
- Never give personal information or send money to a stranger. Make sure you are dealing with a trusted source before sharing personal information. Never send money to someone you don’t know and trust.
Get up-to-date information on government benefits for veterans at VA.gov. Read more about how government impostor scams work in this BBB impostor scams study and review the BBB Tip: How to avoid impostor scams.
If individuals have spotted a scam (whether or not they’ve lost money), they can report those to BBB.org/ScamTracker. Consumers can file a complaint at BBB.org/Complaint. Have additional questions? Reach out to your BBB at 216.241.7678 or [email protected]. Have a scam to report? Report it to BBB.org/ScamTracker.
