Skip to main content

Refund checks worth about $147 million are going out to almost 33,000 people who sent money to scammers through Western Union wire transfers. The $147 million is a portion of the money Western Union paid when it reached settlements with the FTC and Department of Justice, and agreed to create a strong anti-fraud program. Western Union also admitted to criminal violations in its settlement with the Department of Justice.

 

These refunds are going to people in the US and other countries, including many older adults who lost money to grandparent, lottery, sweepstakes, or romance scams. They will get compensation for 100 percent of their verified losses. This is the second round of payments related to the Western Union settlement. In March 2020, refund checks worth about $153 million went out to more than 109,000 people.

 

The US Department of Justice (DOJ) expects to approve more refunds in the coming months. DOJ also plans to provide a way for people to apply for refunds for the first time, and to provide additional documentation to support claims that haven’t been approved yet. When there is information about how to apply for the first time or provide additional documentation, DOJ will post it on the Western Union Remission site.

 

The refund checks will come from “United States v. The Western Union Company.” If you’re in the US, you have to cash or deposit the check within 90 days. If you got a check but don’t agree with the amount, you can cash the check and contact DOJ’s administrator, Gilardi & Co. at 844-319-2124 and WesternUnionRemission.com. Learn more from the FTC at Western Union Refunds.

Search Terms
money transfer
refunds
Topics
Shopping and Donating

It is your choice whether to submit a comment. If you do, you must create a user name, or we will not post your comment. The Federal Trade Commission Act authorizes this information collection for purposes of managing online comments. Comments and user names are part of the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) public records system, and user names also are part of the FTC’s computer user records system. We may routinely use these records as described in the FTC’s Privacy Act system notices. For more information on how the FTC handles information that we collect, please read our privacy policy.

The purpose of this blog and its comments section is to inform readers about Federal Trade Commission activity, and share information to help them avoid, report, and recover from fraud, scams, and bad business practices. Your thoughts, ideas, and concerns are welcome, and we encourage comments. But keep in mind, this is a moderated blog. We review all comments before they are posted, and we won’t post comments that don’t comply with our commenting policy. We expect commenters to treat each other and the blog writers with respect.

  • We won’t post off-topic comments, repeated identical comments, or comments that include sales pitches or promotions.
  • We won’t post comments that include vulgar messages, personal attacks by name, or offensive terms that target specific people or groups.
  • We won’t post threats, defamatory statements, or suggestions or encouragement of illegal activity.
  • We won’t post comments that include personal information, like Social Security numbers, account numbers, home addresses, and email addresses. To file a detailed report about a scam, go to ReportFraud.ftc.gov.

We don't edit comments to remove objectionable content, so please ensure that your comment contains none of the above. The comments posted on this blog become part of the public domain. To protect your privacy and the privacy of other people, please do not include personal information. Opinions in comments that appear in this blog belong to the individuals who expressed them. They do not belong to or represent views of the Federal Trade Commission.

Margit-Katharina
August 07, 2021
Thank you FTC, money is available on my bank account. Sent additional papers for the last approx 2000$. I am so happy
Chezza- Ozzie victim
August 16, 2021
Five years with this process and all I can say is the repetitive, standard replies and false, misleading information from alleged Gilardi reps do not give me any confidence in obtaining any form of reimbursement. Second distribution form DOJ I was informed of 3 separate check amounts, none of which were related to my claim, I did not receive them although I was assured they had been sent. Move forward to September 2021 and the third distribution by DOJ 30/6/2021 and I am supposedly going to be receiving a check for half of what was provisionally approved. Due to the misinformation and outright lies I have received from Gilardi reps I really do not have any confidence or trust in anything they convey to me. As far as I am concerned their behaviours are on par with the people who scammed me. I am disgusted and appalled. I have made a formal complaint and awaiting a response, tend to think the response will be the same as so called renumeration- ZILCH!! Pretty bloody poor in my opinion.
DJ
September 02, 2021
My dad, who is deceased, sent a lot of money thru Western Union to a crook. This was back in 2006. In order to get any type of settlement I need to provide the Money Transfer Control Form. I have most of them and provided them, but I’m missing one. Even though I have the details (amount, date, names, locations, etc) W.U. refuses to give me what I need. They say they have NO records going back beyond 5 years. Absolutely RIDICULOUS! Please help! Thx!
Alfred
September 30, 2021
Greetings. I received a foreign cheque which cannot be liquidated in my country. I wrote 20 emails instructing them to send via other options which are accessible to me. I dont get any proper response. From December 2020 till now, I dont have the money. Or you claimed this money for your personal use. Why frustrating us the more after we have been frustrated already. The remission administrator provides a phone number which does not work. The Gilardi and company lawyers are unhelpful and work at their own pace. Please do not be bothering me anymore if this money, you consciously know I am not going to retrieve it. Lets not play with people’s emotions. WUU CLAIM: WUU-[number removed].
G.O
October 01, 2021
Hello, My Uncle was a victim of this form of fraud ("You won a Mercedes Benz!") not sure, but assuming that he went 3 blocks to the local Rite Aid to wire the $ requested ( "taxes/delivery costs?").. My Uncle has since passed away. Is He still eligible to recover the $ ?) Kind Regards
FTC Staff
October 03, 2021

In reply to by G.O

Go to WesternUnionRemission.com and read the Frequently Asked Questions. There is a question and answer about what to do if you represent the estate of a deceased person who transferred money. 

SED
October 06, 2021
This is so infuriating. I can’t even see straight. After Western Union stonewalled me, refused to give me any receipts that I needed, stating they only “go back five years,” I was able to get a very small amount of the refund that I had filed for - nearly 5 years ago. I submitted what I could, needed about a dozen more receipts, that Western Union could not provide, after keeping me waiting nearly a month and charging me a $30 research fee… now the deadline has passed, Gilardi (once I finally reached them) says they cannot provide any more answers nor process any more newly submitted paperwork, and I received a very small check. At least I got a check… ha. So anyway, after Gilardi has been virtually no help, I have not been able to deposit or cash this check at ANY BANK. It’s a bank from Ohio and I’m in a neighboring state! This is ridiculous- and WAY BEYOND INFURIATING!! This is nuts. Please advise on what to do!
Joe
October 09, 2021

In reply to by SED

@SED - I cannot deposit my remission check either ! I’m in the US as well . Is this a scam ?
FTC Staff
October 11, 2021

In reply to by Joe

You can get information about the refunds at WesternUnionRemission.com. Question #28 of the Frequently Asked Questions says that the refund checks come from Huntington Bank.  

Joe
October 14, 2021

In reply to by FTC Staff

The website & the people on the hotline are of no help. I cannot cash or deposit this check! Time is running out on it - what do I do? Please can you help me? -Joe
Joe
October 18, 2021

In reply to by FTC Staff

@FTC still no help from Gilardi or their website Q & A. Please advise. Check is expiring soon.
FTC Staff
October 18, 2021

In reply to by Joe

Joe, Gilardi & Co.manages the Western Union refund program for the Department of Justice, and is the best source of information about the refund checks. You can call Gilardi 844-319-2124 or send email to info@WesternUnionRemission.com. 

resa
January 18, 2022
I lost money to a scammer on two occasions hope it applies to me
Return to top