CASH BACK SCAM--beware

[Faster horses]

I received this in an email and decided to pass it along here.
I haven't had this happen to me, but you never know when it
could. Being forewarned is forearmed...


This could probably happen here!!! Or anywhere !!!



It happened at Wal-Mart (Supercenter Store #1279, 10411 N Freeway 45, Houston,
TX 77037 a month ago. I bought a bunch of stuff, over $150, & I glanced at my
receipt as the cashier was handing me the bags. I saw a cash-back of $40. I
told her I didn't
request a cash back & to delete it. She said I'd have to take the $40 because
she couldn't delete it. I told her to call a supervisor. Supervisor came &
said I'd have
to take it. I said NO! Taking the $40 would be a cash advance against my
Discover & I wasn't paying interest on a cash advance!!!!! If they couldn't
delete it then they would have to delete the whole order. So the supervisor
had the cashier delete the whole order & re-scan everything! The second time I
looked at the electronic pad before I signed & a cash-back of $20 popped up.
At that point I told the cashier & she deleted it. The total came out right.
The cashier agreed that the electronic pad must be defective. Obviously
the cashier knew the electronic pad was defective because she NEVER offered me
the $40 at the beginning. Can you imagine how many people went through before
me & at the end of her shift how much money she pocketed?

Just to alert everyone. My co worker went to Milford, DE Wal-Mart last week.
She had her items rung up by the cashier. The cashier hurried her along and
didn't give her a receipt. She asked the cashier for a receipt and the cashier
was annoyed and gave it to her. My co worker didn't look at her receipt until
later that night. The receipt showed that she asked for $20 cash back. SHE DID
NOT ASK FOR CASH BACK! My co-worker called Wal-Mart who investigated but could
not see the cashier pocket the money. She then called her niece who works for
the bank and her niece told her this. This is a new scam going on. The cashier
will key in that you asked for cash back and then hand it to her friend who is
the next person in line.

Please, please, please check your receipts right away when using credit or
debit cards!
This is NOT limited to Wal-Mart, although they are the largest retailer so they
have the most incidents

I am adding to this. My husband and I were in Wal-Mart North Salisbury and
paying with credit card when my husband went to sign the credit card signer he
just happen to notice there was a $20 cash back added. He told the cashier that
he did not ask nor want cash back and she said this machine has been messing up
and she cancelled it. We really didn't think anything of it until we read this
email.


I wonder how many "seniors" have been, or will be, "stung" by this one????

To make matters worse ...THIS SCAM CAN BE DONE ANYWHERE, ATANY RETAIL OR
WHOLESALE LOCATION!!!

 

[Kato]

I think this has been going on more than people think. Our Walmarts here all ask you to sign your receipt when you get cash back, even though you take it with you.

 

[Cal]

Hmmmmm......WalMart claims that the cashiers can't initiate a cash back transaction, and that they're on constant surveillance.

http://www.snopes.com/inboxer/scams/cashback.asp

 

[Anonymous]

I received this in an email and decided to pass it along here.
I haven't had this happen to me, but you never know when it
could. Being forewarned is forearmed...


This could probably happen here!!! Or anywhere !!!



It happened at Wal-Mart (Supercenter Store #1279, 10411 N Freeway 45, Houston,
TX 77037 a month ago. I bought a bunch of stuff, over $150, & I glanced at my
receipt as the cashier was handing me the bags. I saw a cash-back of $40. I
told her I didn't
request a cash back & to delete it. She said I'd have to take the $40 because
she couldn't delete it. I told her to call a supervisor. Supervisor came &
said I'd have
to take it. I said NO! Taking the $40 would be a cash advance against my
Discover & I wasn't paying interest on a cash advance!!!!! If they couldn't
delete it then they would have to delete the whole order. So the supervisor
had the cashier delete the whole order & re-scan everything! The second time I
looked at the electronic pad before I signed & a cash-back of $20 popped up.
At that point I told the cashier & she deleted it. The total came out right.
The cashier agreed that the electronic pad must be defective. Obviously
the cashier knew the electronic pad was defective because she NEVER offered me
the $40 at the beginning. Can you imagine how many people went through before
me & at the end of her shift how much money she pocketed?

Just to alert everyone. My co worker went to Milford, DE Wal-Mart last week.
She had her items rung up by the cashier. The cashier hurried her along and
didn't give her a receipt. She asked the cashier for a receipt and the cashier
was annoyed and gave it to her. My co worker didn't look at her receipt until
later that night. The receipt showed that she asked for $20 cash back. SHE DID
NOT ASK FOR CASH BACK! My co-worker called Wal-Mart who investigated but could
not see the cashier pocket the money. She then called her niece who works for
the bank and her niece told her this. This is a new scam going on. The cashier
will key in that you asked for cash back and then hand it to her friend who is
the next person in line.

Please, please, please check your receipts right away when using credit or
debit cards!
This is NOT limited to Wal-Mart, although they are the largest retailer so they
have the most incidents

I am adding to this. My husband and I were in Wal-Mart North Salisbury and
paying with credit card when my husband went to sign the credit card signer he
just happen to notice there was a $20 cash back added. He told the cashier that
he did not ask nor want cash back and she said this machine has been messing up
and she cancelled it. We really didn't think anything of it until we read this
email.


I wonder how many "seniors" have been, or will be, "stung" by this one????

To make matters worse ...THIS SCAM CAN BE DONE ANYWHERE, ATANY RETAIL OR
WHOLESALE LOCATION!!!

FH if this happens to you take the receipts to Walmarts loss prevention department as well as a district supervisor. Demand investigations by the local DA you might be suprised just how quick this will get nipped in the bud locally.

Not meant for you but just a statement in general. If we are no tpart of the solution then we are part of the problem.

 

[Faster horses]

Thanks, PF; good to know.

Cal, I wish I believed Snopes; but I don't--not any more.
I said at the beginning that I had never had this happen to me
and I check my cash register receipts closely. Helps that I don't
shop at Wal-mart unless I absolutely have to. But as the
article said, it can happen anywhere a debit card is used.

I don't use a debit card anymore either; after I found out it
is easier to steal or for others to misuse than a credit card.

 

[hillsdown]

I have never heard of that, but it is a good reminder to double check everything while at the till.

Here everything is pretty much self automated no more cashiers anymore. 20 tills/checkouts and 2 casheirs; the rest are self check out. Which is fine if you have a few items but if you have a huge cart full and you have to scan and pack with the little dinky counter they give you it is a pain in the you know what. I think they should give you a 20% discount when you use those.

 

[Liveoak]

I would agree. After all, they are saving a great deal on labo. It wouldn't hurt them to pass a little bit of it on to the customer. The self checkouts aren't too bad until you have to figure out how to input the price of a purple onion or a summer squash :x

 

[Richard Doolittle]

Thanks, PF; good to know.

Cal, I wish I believed Snopes; but I don't--not any more.
I said at the beginning that I had never had this happen to me
and I check my cash register receipts closely. Helps that I don't
shop at Wal-mart unless I absolutely have to. But as the
article said, it can happen anywhere a debit card is used.

I don't use a debit card anymore either; after I found out it
is easier to steal or for others to misuse than a credit card.

Why is it easier to steal with a debit card? My Visa debit card works the same as a credit card.

I have a regular credit card that I use for travelling. I purposely did not sign the back to see how many store clerks check. I would say that less than a third of them even look. If they do check, they ask for an Id, which I gladly show them and thank them for checking.

 

[PATB]

The rules governing debit cards and credit cards are different. You are only liable for the first $50 dollars of fraudulant charges on a credit card. A debit card you are liable for all charges. The rules may vary between states. Use a credit card and pay the balance when bill is received and rack up the perks with the card. I belong to the Hilton honors program and I get points towards a stay in a Hilton family hotels. In a course of a year we rack up enough points to cover the hotel cost for a short getaway every year.

 

[Faster horses]

With a debit card, they can be used fraudulently before you are aware
someone is using it, and you are liable for all the charges.
With a credit card, most companies will call you if they see large
purchases being made.

 

[jcummins]

Thanks, PF; good to know.

Cal, I wish I believed Snopes; but I don't--not any more.
I said at the beginning that I had never had this happen to me
and I check my cash register receipts closely. Helps that I don't
shop at Wal-mart unless I absolutely have to. But as the
article said, it can happen anywhere a debit card is used.

I don't use a debit card anymore either; after I found out it
is easier to steal or for others to misuse than a credit card.

Why is it easier to steal with a debit card? My Visa debit card works the same as a credit card.

I have a regular credit card that I use for travelling. I purposely did not sign the back to see how many store clerks check. I would say that less than a third of them even look. If they do check, they ask for an Id, which I gladly show them and thank them for checking.

This is a bit disturbing to me. Seems everywhere you look, there is a crook. This happened to my wife at the Walmart in Tomball, TX, which is northwest of Houston.

You can get cash back on a credit card, it does not have to be a debit card. She was using Discover. They run up $20 cash back, and she was certain she said NO to cash back. She ended up taking the $20 once she brought it to their attention.