The Texas State Attorney General's Office says the refund program for the Western Union settlement in January 2017 is now under way.
About 39,000 Texans may be eligible for refunds, which will be distributed from a $586 million nationwide fund to benefit consumers who were deceived into sending payments to fraudsters using Western Union’s wire transfer service.
Fraudsters contacted consumers and sometimes posed as family members in distress who needed money to be wired to them and other times falsely promised to provide prizes, job opportunities or credit services to consumers.
Texans who believe they were a victim of these fraud-related money transfers between 2004 and Jan. 19 of this year are eligible to recover refunds through this settlement and may submit a claim (called a Remission Form) by going to the website of the Settlement Administrator at this website: www.westernunionremission.com.
Claims must be submitted by Feb. 12, 2018.
The global settlement requiring Western Union to forfeit $586 million was entered with the Federal Trade Commission and U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ). The related mult-istate settlement included Texas, 49 other states and the District of Columbia. The settlement is being administered by the DOJ’s Victim Asset Recovery Program.