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I received this e-mail about a new scam going around. I don’t know if it is a store rip-off or the check-out person taking the money. Here is the body of the e-mail by victims:
YES! THIS IS TRUE! It happened to me 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 Walmart 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 Walmart 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. There is a scam going on. The cashier will ask for cash back and hand it to her friend who is the next person in line. Please, Please, please check your receipts right away when using debit cards. The store has the cashier under investigation now. We can only pray that she is caught very soon.
I am adding to this. My husband and I were in WalMart 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 canceled it. We really didn’t think anything of it until we read this email. Please be aware
27 Comments
Thanks for the warning, acquarius74.
you’re welcome, letsgetitdone. If nothing else, this has taught me to be more aware and actually look at my receipts.
Yes, thanks for the warning, but it’s probably not a real scam.
I had my doubts about this even while reading it. None of my credit cards will allow me to get cash back at check out. Only my debit card (which goes against my checking account) will allow that. When I use my debit card, I don’t have to sign anything; instead, I enter my PIN.
Any time you get one of these e-mail rumors, it’s probably a good idea to search the Urban Legend Reference Pages and see if they have it, or a similar rumor, listed.
Thanks, Colin. I have never used a credit card to buy much, and have closed them all out. I do use my DR card and some electronic devises ask me if I want cash back. I can’t remember whether Wal-mart does. I quit going there.
aquarius, thanks for the head’s up. Will explore.
I went to an ATM this week, not my bank’s, and was stunned to see a charge of $3 required. I had to endure it, being late for an appointment. I told a friend who said that my own bank would probably charge me an additional $3. $6 to withdraw $100. Whaaaa?????
Yes, Libby, I did that same thing one time back when the rate was $1.50 and $.50 from my bank. There used to be an expression used to describe a big Truth: “you can take that to the bank”. Well, now-a-days that’s the last place you want to take valuables – wish we could do without them.
There was a program on pbs not long ago about rip-off artists that “washed” the amount sections of a signed check, increased the amount and robbed the signer. There is a Uniball 207 Gel that cannot be “washed” which can be found at most stores. It advertises on the pkg “Helps prevent check fraud” and “specially formulated ink”.
It’s a small price to pay to prevent being robbed; about the cheapest insurance that there is.
Recommended.
Thanks scout.
~~~Hey Boo, thank you for the recommend. I’ll never understand people who use their minds to figure out ways to cheat and harm others.
scout
It’s not new, it’s probably not a scam, and it may not even be true. See Snopes.
It may not be true, and may not be a scam, but it damn sure happens a lot!
I know several people that have had this happen to them (including myself and a separate incident to my spouse), at a number of different WalMart locations. I guess it must just be a “glitch” in all those card readers at all those different location.
Thanks, Mithras61. We need to hear about the actual experiences from folks here. And again, being alerted to the possibility and checking the receipts are a much smaller price to pay than the $20 to $40 or more rip-off.
Acquarius, WHY are you shopping at Walmart? It’s against everything you seem to stand for based on your postings here.
No kidding! I will not shop at any Walmart, for any reason. Screw them and their low prices.
Incidentally, I fired all my banks and now use a Credit Union, which has a cooperative agreement with all the other local Credit Unions, where they share each other’s ATMs, eliminating those user fees. I have a Debit Card from them with a deal where I accumulate some type of “rewards” for using the DC like a Credit Card, signing the receipts, and I will attest to ColinEscherich’s assertion that a CC will not offer the cash back option.
I suggest the employment of a Gel Pen along with Safety Paper Checks, which show when the paper has been tampered with. It has typically been used in the past for important documents such as birth certificates and academic certifications.
Safety paper is also increasingly being used to prevent check fraud. If a forger attempts to alter such a check, there will be evidence of this effort. Safety paper uses advanced technology to prove that the paper has been tampered with. Security Features include a microprint signature line, fluorescent fibers, staining agent, safety paper background, artificial watermark and high resolution border. Frank Abagnale once forged checks but now prevents fraud by creating security paper. He was portrayed in the movie “Catch Me If You Can”. Since his tale became famous, he has launched his own brand of Signature Watermarked Safety Paper.
Yes, I love how Abagnale redeemed himself and used his skills for good.
My hubby is very big on the use of “indelible ink”. He will not use any felt tipped pen, only ballpoint. I will tell him about the pens you mentioned.
You misread Acquarius’s words.
ubetchaiam, see my #4: I can’t remember whether Wal-mart does. I quit going there.
Sometimes checking receipts isn’t enough. Starbucks double charged one million people on May 22/23 2009.
**************
“One disturbing aspect of this incident is the fact that the receipts the store issued were factually correct, which means that even the most vigilant customers would have been unable to detect the mistake at the point of sale. In fact, the only way that customers could have noticed the error would have been if they carefully reviewed their bank statements.
In many ways, that explanation is actually far more disturbing. As one analyst noted, credit overcharges are very common; while most are later rectified by retailers, some slip through the cracks. Moreover, given that the vast majority of credit and debit transactions are for relatively small purchases, customers are less likely to notice little errors. Eventually, these small mistakes can add up to big money.
The moral of the story is clear: if you use a credit or debit card, check your balance sheet regularly! “
http://www.dailyfinance.com/20…..million-c/
Awesome post. Thank you so much for the heads up. I don’t shop at Walmart, but my daughter is starting too (low prices for starving students). She doesn’t like it very much and this may wave her off.
Also, we just wired her some money to her bank account. There’s a charge to send it (which we knew) and a nice fat charge to receive it!! unbelievable.
Bottom line: banks are driven by fee based transactions. If you sneeze, they will charge you for a tissue and saying “bless you”.
Thanks again for the alert. We will be extra vigilant.
Hi, sorry, one more.
Be careful if your ATM card is also used like a credit card. You might be able to make a charge with a negative balance as temporary “credit” until you make a deposit. Be sure you know how your debit/credit card is set up with your bank account. IOW, if you do make a charge and go negative and are not aware, you can get hit with an overdraft charge in addition to the original charge that put you over into the red.
You can request that the bank set up your card not to accept point of purchase transactions if your account is negative, as an added measure of self discipline and debt protection.
Many first time users get hit really hard discovering this the hard way eg college students (not just our student!).
Geez folks, I’ve scared myself. Think I’ll only pay in cash withdrawn from my bank, stop all debit card use, go to safety paper checks written with my anti-fraud gel pen and go back to paying utility bills with said checks.
[if postings by me cease and you also read about an old lady being arrested for blowing away her would-be robber assailant with her secret weapon walking cane –well you’ll know I’ve been hauled in.]….just joking, I hope.
Missed number 4; Walmart is using all the devices it can to get around the rejection of it’s banking application. Yes, they do offer ‘cash back’ at their atm devices; they’re getting into the ‘payday loans’ biz bigtime.
I hope you don’t blow away any robber/assailant BUT do hope you make them regret their actions for the rest of their life.
I’ll try to pull my punches. hee,hee,hee
“Think I’ll only pay in cash withdrawn from my bank”
If you’re carrying cash..you might get mugged..what a wonderful world.
Not to worry, Blue. I only leave The Reservation occasionally and carry only what I estimate I will spend on that trip out. Any robber who tried to find my stash at home and confronted the barricade of books would just say, “Hell, it ain’t worth it, ain’t nuthin in here but books!” (I look like maybe there might be $.50 cents in my handbag.)
Also, I’ve noticed when I strike up a conversation in the library or some such place it’s not long before they start talking about their grandmother!! I have a little bet with myself as to how long it will be before gramma is mentioned.
Cute..little does any thief know he/she is in mortal danger if they mess with your book collection while looking for money; especially one you haven’t read yet..’g’. One of the first comments I remember reading at FDL was about a woman in a library who was dying and wanted an opinion about whether she should tell her her family. Was that you? I’ll be surprised if it wasn’t.
Yep. I still see the expression in her eyes and hear the shy asking in her voice…may she have had a miracle.
Last trip out to the grocery I was studying the veggies when I felt a touch on my arm. Looked around and a woman of about 60 asked, “is that Estee you’re wearing? I smiled and nodded. Gently she said, “that was my mother’s scent.” Tells me she’s a teacher and the teenagers have found it, but douse themselves in it…we discussed the sickening effect of a roomful of girls bathed in Estee. As she rolled her basket a few steps away she turned and said, “Thank you for that little … moment of my mother’s memory…”
Sometimes I think we have no idea what the real Purpose of our lives is.
It is simple..but difficult…to learn to love one another. Can you think of a more difficult task? We are all connected and here to advance our souls, I think. Why else would spirits be having a human experience? Little reminders along the way happen all of the time throughout our lives. Your experience with both ladies demonstrates that. You were where you were meant to be to offer mental healing to those ladies. It was a coincidence…a co-in-cide. It was meant to be; there are no accidents.