I For some people, winning a “prize” could be

I

For some people, winning a “prize” could be a costly mistake. The Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services has recently received reports from consumers about several promotional schemes involving promises of fabulous prizes coupled with urgent demands for money.

According to the Virginia Prizes and Gifts Act, however, if you are told that you have won a prize, that item must be delivered to you at no expense within ten days.

“This sort of scam never seems to disappear completely,” notes J. Carlton Courter III, Commissioner of the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. “It just keeps reappearing in slightly different forms.”

According to one report, a woman received a call from a Houston-based company, telling her that she has won a luxury car or its equivalent in cash. To receive the prize she had to send in $299, supposedly to pay the taxes on the prize. The money had to be sent overnight via a courier service for her to qualify. ,

In other versions of this same ploy, consumers were told the money was for insurance, handling charges or shipping. Sometimes they were also asked to provide snapshots of themselves posed beside the prize “as a record of the winners for the quarter.”

In a similar situation, another consumer was told by a caller that she was a “first place winner.” The caller mentioned the name of the spokesperson for a nationally known sweepstakes and then told the consumer that in order to receive the prize she had to pay $999.99. Again, the money had to be sent via a courier service, this time arranged by the caller. The consumer declined the offer, as well as a second offer with a lower payment. When the caller reacted angrily, the consumer hung up.

In each of these situations, the intended victim took the time to consider the offer and ask questions before sending the money, thereby avoiding significant financial loss.