OKLAHOMA CITY - Over the years, we've introduced you to countless Oklahoma victims of wire transfer scams.
Many of them sent their cash to the fraudster through Western Union.
The In Your Corner bottom line, if scammers used a Western Union wire transfer to scam you between January 1, 2004 and January 19, 2017, this is your best chance to get back some of that money.
Find out if you qualify for a refund.
Kitt Letcher, President and CEO of Better Business Bureau of Central Oklahoma, says the deadline to file your claim was just extended to May 31st.
Last year, Western Union reached a $586 million settlement with the Federal Trade Commission and the U.S. Attorney's Office to reimburse crime victims, like the ones we've featured on In Your Corner.
“They're basically finding Western Union had a part to play, not necessarily vetting how people were sending their money, or the reasons they were sending their money, so there is some culpability in that transaction for Western Union," Letcher said.
A Western Union spokesperson telling the In Your Corner team they welcome the extension to give people more time to submit their claims and "share the government's goal of protecting consumers from fraud and cooperating fully with the Department of Justice to see that consumers are reimbursed in accordance with the terms of the settlement."
- Remember filing a claim is free, so don't go trying to pay someone to file a claim on your behalf
- Also, be patient because it could take the government up to a year to validate all of the claims and start sending out reimbursements