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The FTC works to fulfill its mission in many ways, including bringing cases against companies who are being unfair or deceptive. And it’s happy news when those cases result in refunds. Last year, FTC cases returned $483 million to people who lost money to companies the FTC sued. The FTC’s latest refund announcement involves checks totaling over $11 million going out to more than 11,000 people who paid E.M. Systems & Services, a company that falsely promised consumers with credit card debt that they would reduce their interest rates and save them thousands of dollars. After settling with First Data Merchant Services — the payment processor that made it possible for this company to collect credit card payments — the FTC is sending customers of E.M. Systems & Services 100% of their lost money back.

Earlier this month, the FTC sent over 10,000 checks totaling over $4 million to fully refund people for the amount they paid to Stark Law, a company that the FTC says collected payments for fake debt by threatening to sue or arrest people who didn’t pay. And in the FTC settlement with ABCmouse, over $9.7 million went back to more than 200,000 people, mostly through PayPal. According to the FTC, ABCmouse failed to make it clear to their customers that their memberships would automatically renew and made it difficult to cancel.

To find out which recent FTC cases led to refunds, and who to contact with questions, check out ftc.gov/refunds. And remember that the FTC will never require you to pay fees in advance, or ask for sensitive information, like your bank account number. If someone contacts you claiming that they’re from the FTC and want you to spend money in order to get a refund, it’s a scam. Report that to us at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.

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.

JAShields
April 28, 2021
I qualify for almost all of these refunds I have lost 99,000.00 personal money I have contacted FTC for 6 years I’m so overwhelmed with this I need help with what I do to be refunded I trust nobody & nothing anymore
Ms. G
April 28, 2021
Do I ever gonna get my money back?
Cell phone problems
April 28, 2021
Tons of text come into my phione, using my now public cell number claiming walmart has !000 waiting on me or CVS has money for me or Amazion has giftted me with a stupid product I. Only pay the shipping, ya right and if your keep it or dont cancel they charge me 100.00 2 times and sent me another box of merical sking cream. They dont tell ya there will be a charge later on for the gift.
RJ
April 28, 2021
HI, forgot my case # you have my information to send, I do have several things to add. Do not want to loose you, you guys and girls have been my angels from above.
Pharmgirl347
April 28, 2021
Hello, I just received an email regarding refunds for scams. The site is so confusing, and I am having trouble contacting the right person or department . Am I receiving a refund?
FTC Staff
April 29, 2021

In reply to by Pharmgirl347

There is a list of FTC cases and refunds at ftc.gov/refunds.

If you got an email from the FTC about a case, the case will be listed on the ftc.gov/refunds page. The FTC will never require you to pay fees in advance, or ask for sensitive information, like your bank account number.

If someone contacts you and says they're from the FTC, and they want you to spend money in order to get a refund, that's a scam. Don't give them money. Report the scam to www.ReportFraud.ftc.gov.

ttredwell
April 28, 2021
This is just the best news. The FTC is the greatest! I think the FTC and affiliates are the last real heroes left in the US government. You really get the bad guys! You really get justice for those who have been victimized. It’s like a miracle. Thank you FTC! You’ve given me some hope. Thanks again.
deritamary
April 29, 2021
Great news - Keep on keeping on!
CatherineHarvey09
May 04, 2021
Hello I have misplaced my case number. I have supporting documents to add to my fraud claim. Any assistance is greatly appreciated
FTC Staff
May 05, 2021

In reply to by CatherineHarvey09

If you reported fraud to the FTC at www.ReportFraud.ftc.gov, you can update your report, even if you don't have the report number.

If you don't have your report number, click Update Report and tell us you don’t have the information. It will lead you to a new form, but we will link your new report with your original one. An update is helpful if you have more information about whoever you're reporting.

Bonbon1014
August 23, 2021
I just received a check from FTC? I was confused so I called them plus I went online and yes it legit. I know I was being harassed a few years back but didn’t think no action will be taken . It was against Stark Law . Hang in their people