Letter from Amex - scam?

[sawhorse]

I got a letter from Amex saying that I have an unclaimed check from 2015. The amount is in the 100s. They said that if I don't return the enclosed form by a certain date, the money would be treated as abandoned and handed over to the state.

Does this sound like a scam?

[Watty]

I would call the number on the back of your credit card and ask them.

[ResearchMed]

I got a letter from Amex saying that I have an unclaimed check from 2015. The amount is in the 100s. They said that if I don't return the enclosed form by a certain date, the money would be treated as abandoned and handed over to the state.

Does this sound like a scam?

This sounds VERY much like a scam.

If Amex can reach you by letter, then they can also send that check to you, or have you *call* them to discuss it.
What information is requested on the form?
Also, have you ever had an Amex card? If so, just ask them. Or ask them no matter what. By *phone*. Using their published toll-free number, and NOT any number on the letter.

Good luck!

RM

[Nate79]

Perhaps you had an old Amex account that was closed and forgotten that had some remaining money? Amex is not only credit cards but also banking products.

[sawhorse]

I got a letter from Amex saying that I have an unclaimed check from 2015. The amount is in the 100s. They said that if I don't return the enclosed form by a certain date, the money would be treated as abandoned and handed over to the state.

Does this sound like a scam?

This sounds VERY much like a scam.

If Amex can reach you by letter, then they can also send that check to you, or have you *call* them to discuss it.
What information is requested on the form?
Also, have you ever had an Amex card? If so, just ask them. Or ask them no matter what. By *phone*. Using their published toll-free number, and NOT any number on the letter.

Good luck!

RM

Yes, I have an Amex account. The form has a check mark to select either to receive it or to have Amex hand it over to the state. Then a line for a signature.

[HueyLD]

I got a letter from Amex saying that I have an unclaimed check from 2015. The amount is in the 100s. They said that if I don't return the enclosed form by a certain date, the money would be treated as abandoned and handed over to the state.

Does this sound like a scam?

It may be legit. The only place for an accurate answer is the Amex. Call their number on the back of your card, not the number on the letter.

Every state has an escheat law and this may just be one to remind you to claim your money. Call the Amex ASAP.

[ResearchMed]

I got a letter from Amex saying that I have an unclaimed check from 2015. The amount is in the 100s. They said that if I don't return the enclosed form by a certain date, the money would be treated as abandoned and handed over to the state.

Does this sound like a scam?

This sounds VERY much like a scam.

If Amex can reach you by letter, then they can also send that check to you, or have you *call* them to discuss it.
What information is requested on the form?
Also, have you ever had an Amex card? If so, just ask them. Or ask them no matter what. By *phone*. Using their published toll-free number, and NOT any number on the letter.

Good luck!

RM

Yes, I have an Amex account. The form has a check mark to select either to receive it or to have Amex hand it over to the state. Then a line for a signature.

That's not making sense, to ASK you IF you want them to turn over "your" money to the state.
Ordinarily, AFAIK, money is turned over "the state" when the owner cannot be located.

Is there ANY other info requested, ANY other questionable aspect to what they are asking you to return?
Is the letter sent to your regular Amex billing address? Again, why wouldn't they just send you the check.
I'm just finding it very strange that they are asking you if you want them to give your money to the state.
(I mean, if you want to pay money to the state, then you don't need Amex to help! )

RM

[GCD]

The only place for an accurate answer is the Amex. Call their number on the back of your card, not the number on the letter.

Yeah, contact AmEx directly and see what's up. Another alternative is to just ignore it and check your state's abandoned property website in a year. You can just claim it from the state by identifying yourself. It's not like you are going to lose this money. It's just a matter of whether AmEx or the state treasurer hands it to you. AFAIK, every state just hangs on to abandoned funds until the rightful owner or a heir shows up to claim it. The state won't actually take it away from you.

It's not a big deal if you live in a normal state. If you live in California do what you can to avoid the process. CA is the worst state I have dealt with in these matters.

[Coato]

I got a letter from Amex saying that I have an unclaimed check from 2015. The amount is in the 100s. They said that if I don't return the enclosed form by a certain date, the money would be treated as abandoned and handed over to the state.

Does this sound like a scam?

I got a similar letter from Citi. Check is in the 100s and from 5/2016. I called Citi and nobody knew what I was talking about. I figured I'd just wait and see if it got escheated or not. The number they say to call on and the address do match up with Citi. Probably easier to get it from the state than Citi anyway.

[MP123]

Where are you supposed to return the form to?

If the address is the palace of a certain Prince in Nigeria you'll know it's a scam.

[02nz]

I got a letter from Amex saying that I have an unclaimed check from 2015. The amount is in the 100s. They said that if I don't return the enclosed form by a certain date, the money would be treated as abandoned and handed over to the state.

Does this sound like a scam?

This sounds VERY much like a scam.

If Amex can reach you by letter, then they can also send that check to you, or have you *call* them to discuss it.
What information is requested on the form?
Also, have you ever had an Amex card? If so, just ask them. Or ask them no matter what. By *phone*. Using their published toll-free number, and NOT any number on the letter.

Good luck!

RM

Yes, I have an Amex account. The form has a check mark to select either to receive it or to have Amex hand it over to the state. Then a line for a signature.

That's not making sense, to ASK you IF you want them to turn over "your" money to the state.
Ordinarily, AFAIK, money is turned over "the state" when the owner cannot be located.

Is there ANY other info requested, ANY other questionable aspect to what they are asking you to return?
Is the letter sent to your regular Amex billing address? Again, why wouldn't they just send you the check.
I'm just finding it very strange that they are asking you if you want them to give your money to the state.
(I mean, if you want to pay money to the state, then you don't need Amex to help! )

RM

There's a perfectly reasonable explanation for why they would send a letter before a check - so they don't send a check to an old address, bounced by USPS, and then you call and say where's my money, they stop payment on the first check, send another check, hassle all around. That's exactly what happened with a refund USAA just sent me. Two other companies did what Amex (if it is indeed Amex) is doing here - they sent a letter first, which had the effect of confirming they had a current address.

[whodidntante]

Chase sent me a check for $200 on a day much like this one. Something about a credit that was received on one of my cards but never posted to my account. I don't know what they are talking about, but I checked the check and it was legit. I deposited it at Chase and they seemed happy, and there was no day of reckoning.

[sawhorse]

Okay, I called the number, and they said they don't know anything about it. This is the nighttime customer service staff though. The PO Box in the address is registered to Amex.

[whodidntante]

This sounds VERY much like a scam.

Does it?

Maybe if the form is asking identity thefty questions, it could be a scam. But I'm not seeing the play on this one so far.

[whodidntante]

Yes, I have an Amex account. The form has a check mark to select either to receive it or to have Amex hand it over to the state. Then a line for a signature.

Yeah, not seeing the scam here. I think you return that signed.

[dustinst22]

so instead of just picking up the phone to ask Amex directly you think asking internet strangers is the way to go?

[ResearchMed]

I got a letter from Amex saying that I have an unclaimed check from 2015. The amount is in the 100s. They said that if I don't return the enclosed form by a certain date, the money would be treated as abandoned and handed over to the state.

Does this sound like a scam?

This sounds VERY much like a scam.

If Amex can reach you by letter, then they can also send that check to you, or have you *call* them to discuss it.
What information is requested on the form?
Also, have you ever had an Amex card? If so, just ask them. Or ask them no matter what. By *phone*. Using their published toll-free number, and NOT any number on the letter.

Good luck!

RM

Yes, I have an Amex account. The form has a check mark to select either to receive it or to have Amex hand it over to the state. Then a line for a signature.

That's not making sense, to ASK you IF you want them to turn over "your" money to the state.
Ordinarily, AFAIK, money is turned over "the state" when the owner cannot be located.

Is there ANY other info requested, ANY other questionable aspect to what they are asking you to return?
Is the letter sent to your regular Amex billing address? Again, why wouldn't they just send you the check.
I'm just finding it very strange that they are asking you if you want them to give your money to the state.
(I mean, if you want to pay money to the state, then you don't need Amex to help! )

RM

There's a perfectly reasonable explanation for why they would send a letter before a check - so they don't send a check to an old address, bounced by USPS, and then you call and say where's my money, they stop payment on the first check, send another check, hassle all around. That's exactly what happened with a refund USAA just sent me. Two other companies did what Amex (if it is indeed Amex) is doing here - they sent a letter first, which had the effect of confirming they had a current address.

OP has an ACTIVE Amex Account. Presumably this letter was sent to the same address as that showing in the current account? They aren't looking up some old address...
If OP did *not* have a current Amex account, that would make more sense.

But the oddest thing is ASKING if the person "prefers that the money to be turned over to the state", by actually checking a box specifying that!? Really?
I could better understand something like "... and if we do not hear from you, then we will turn it over to..."
But not "please check the box if you WANT (or prefer, etc.) us to turn "your money" over to the state"...!?

If that's for real, that's the oddest wording I've come across in a very long time.

RM

[SrGrumpy]

What did AMEX say when you called to ask?

P.S. Oh, I see you finally called, albeit the "night staff."

[Jags4186]

It’s very possible that you are receiving this because of complaints towards the company to a policy that unknowingly to you affected you. For example, you have have been entitled to cash or points that you never received on a closed card account. Perhaps there were fees that were being charged that later determined to be excessive.

Or perhaps you had an old AMEX savings account that went dormant and they want rid of it. If this is the case, the folks you receive when you’d all the number on the back of your card won’t know anything about it. Look for AMEX Centurion Bank customer service number online.

If the form doesn’t have any real personal information on it just “yes I still live here” I’d fill it out and send it back to AMEX and see if a check shows up. Obviously if at any point you receive solicitations for you to send them money it’s a scam. If you receive a phone call and then are asked to reveal personal information for “security purposes” you should decline. Only give out security information to American Express (or any company really) when you initiate the phone call.

[Jack FFR1846]

Put scrap paper into the postage paid return envelope and send it off.

They'll have to pay the return postage.

[MillennialFinance19]

I'd run a quick Google search on the phone number that is on the letter. Normally this will tell you what organization and/or person the number is tied to, provided it's not a cell phone number.

[Quirkz]

I'd run a quick Google search on the phone number that is on the letter. Normally this will tell you what organization and/or person the number is tied to, provided it's not a cell phone number.

Yes. Also, Google search a relatively unique phrase from the letter and "put it in quotes" for an exact match. You'll probably find other people asking about similar letters. Zip to the end and find out if they were real or a scam.

[downshiftme]

What info is requested on the form? If all they want is an address or a signature that you do want the check sent to you, it's hard to see what problem could arise.

I had some funds at a different bank that somehow lost track of them and so did I. A few years later the dept that's responsible for sending abandoned funds to the state found the funds and sent me a letter. This is a routine thing that banks do do, so while it could be some tricky new scam it sounds a lot like normal banking practice.

[Omalley]

I worked Escheats at megacorp for a few years, and this is the exact process we used to try and confirm a current address so we could re-issue the payment or send the funds to the appropriate state. I am not surprised that Customer Service wasn't aware of the Escheat activity as most megacorps aren't integrated to that level.

Unpaid obligations from all corners of a company find their way to a dusty Escheats department where the liability is electronically maintained for 5-7 years. Six months before the required escheatment timing, a due diligence letter is sent to the last known address as required by State laws. If no response is received, then States will agree to accept the funds and maintain the liability in their own databases.

You have confirmed that the PO Box is owned by AMEX, so you have done your own due diligence to confirm that the letter seems legit. I would return the signed letter and wait for the check in 4-6 weeks.

[pancake19]

I worked Escheats at megacorp for a few years, and this is the exact process we used to try and confirm a current address so we could re-issue the payment or send the funds to the appropriate state. I am not surprised that Customer Service wasn't aware of the Escheat activity as most megacorps aren't integrated to that level.

Unpaid obligations from all corners of a company find their way to a dusty Escheats department where the liability is electronically maintained for 5-7 years. Six months before the required escheatment timing, a due diligence letter is sent to the last known address as required by State laws. If no response is received, then States will agree to accept the funds and maintain the liability in their own databases.

You have confirmed that the PO Box is owned by AMEX, so you have done your own due diligence to confirm that the letter seems legit. I would return the signed letter and wait for the check in 4-6 weeks.

This response is correct. I personally would not return via mail but would try to find the correct people via the main amex number. One avenue I'll suggest to you is to think about whether you had any amex prepaid products (bluebird, serve) or traveler's checks. This process frequently is used to reach out to people in those situations also.

[CAsage]

Note that one should also periodically check the abandoned property site for each state you ever lived in or did business with - especially for older relatives! There is an astonishingly large amount of money in state hands, due to lack of contact or executors....

I would probably return the letter, since it does not appear to ask for any additional info (your address isn't a secret).

[sawhorse]

Update:

Last week I received a check from Amex for the amount in the first letter, and the check cleared, so it turns out to have been legitimate.

[ResearchMed]

Update:

Last week I received a check from Amex for the amount in the first letter, and the check cleared, so it turns out to have been legitimate.

Thanks very much for the update!

RM

[krafty81]

Yes I got a call from a credit union that I thought I had closed out. They wanted to send me 500 that, if I did not reply, would have gone to the state. Seemed odd that it was a phone call, but we called the CU and it was legit.

[mountains]

Okay, I called the number, and they said they don't know anything about it. This is the nighttime customer service staff though. The PO Box in the address is registered to Amex.

That doesn't have to mean much. My "best" example was with BofA a couple of years ago. Got a voicemail about a fraudulent charge on my card, left a callback number. When looking up the number on the Internet, it didn't come back to BofA. So I called the number on the back of my card and asked about the voicemail. Nobody knew about a call to me. They said the voicemail was a scam so I left it at that. Guess what, a couple of days later I do see a fraudulent charge on my card. So it turns out that the voicemail was actually legit.

[Ice-9]

Each state has a website where you can search for unclaimed money that may eventually go to the state:
https://www.unclaimed.org/

On that page they also link to the https://missingmoney.com website which attempts to search one name across multiple states.

Every couple years this topic comes up on some message board or blog, and I enter my name at the above link and no soup for me. But then I type in a few friends' names and there's always one or two I get to inform, "Hey, go to your State's Unclaimed Property website and search on your name and follow the directions." One friend got $200 from the District of Columbia for what I believe was some sort of unusual retirement account at a job she worked at for only a short period more than a decade ago that she had completely forgotten about.

Anyway, if I received a letter like this, I'd check the State's Unclaimed Property page in addition to inquiring directly with Amex.

[cherijoh]

I worked Escheats at megacorp for a few years, and this is the exact process we used to try and confirm a current address so we could re-issue the payment or send the funds to the appropriate state. I am not surprised that Customer Service wasn't aware of the Escheat activity as most megacorps aren't integrated to that level.

Unpaid obligations from all corners of a company find their way to a dusty Escheats department where the liability is electronically maintained for 5-7 years. Six months before the required escheatment timing, a due diligence letter is sent to the last known address as required by State laws. If no response is received, then States will agree to accept the funds and maintain the liability in their own databases.

You have confirmed that the PO Box is owned by AMEX, so you have done your own due diligence to confirm that the letter seems legit. I would return the signed letter and wait for the check in 4-6 weeks.

Good perspective.

Frankly, I am surprised at the number of people who think it is a scam when a snail mail letter is involved. That is the means of communication most likely to be legit since (unlike emails and an autodialer) real costs are involved for each mail piece. Phishing scams need a high volume of potential marks to be effective.

[likegarden]

I would investigate such letters too. But we got voice messages from Microsoft and now Apple.com that there is a refund available for money paid by us on computer repairs which we did not do, and we never reply.

[JHU ALmuni]

It could be legit, the number on the back of the card may not be able to view what other departments are seeing. Research the phone number provided on the letter....

[MichCPA]

There is no way a front line customer service rep would handle escheat duties. That is more of a legal/compliance function. Due to the nature of escheat this is likely to relate to an account that no longer exists and therefore wouldn't be visible to an agent.