Consumers who sent money to scammers using Western Union’s wire service between 2004 and early 2017 may now apply for compensation from a $586 million fund. The fund is related to a settlement that Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine announced in January.
You may be eligible to receive compensation if you lost money to a scam and sent the money through Western Union between Jan. 1, 2004, and Jan. 19, 2017. The fund is held by the U.S. Department of Justice’s victim asset recovery program.
Attorney General DeWine announced the claims availability in November, saying “it’s not often that scam victims have a chance to recover some of their money, so we want people to know about this opportunity. If you think you’re eligible, file a claim.”
A settlement administrator is sending claim forms to over 500,000 consumers. You may receive a form in the mail if you reported to Western Union or to the Ohio Attorney General’s Office that you had been the victim of a scam using Western Union. The form will contain instructions on how to file a claim.
If you do not receive a claim form but believe you may have a valid claim, visit
www.WesternUnionRemission.com or call 844-319-2124 for details on filing a claim.
Completed claim forms must be submitted online or mailed back to the settlement administrator by Feb. 12, 2018.
In January, Attorney General DeWine announced a multistate settlement with Western Union requiring the company to develop and put into action a comprehensive anti-fraud program designed to help prevent consumers from wiring money to scam artists. The agreement was related to a federal settlement in which Western Union agreed to pay $586 million to provide refunds to victims of fraud-induced wire transfers.