Sweepstakes / Prize Scams
Every day, thousands of American consumers receive sweepstakes promotions by phone, over the Internet or in the mail. Legitimate sweepstakes are advertising and marketing techniques that offer participating consumers a chance to win a prize or money with no purchase or entry fee required. But if you have to pay to play or pay to receive your "winnings," the promotion is a scam.
You should never have to pay to enter a sweepstakes. That includes paying shipping and handling fees, taxes, or buying a product to receive your "prize". Those sweepstakes that notify you by a postcard that you've won a free prize are run by con artists whose sole purpose is to rip you off. And that "free prize" could end up costing you hundreds of dollars.
A legitimate sweepstakes will never charge you to win. If you receive a promotion congratulating you on winning a prize, but requiring a shipping and handling fee, it is not a sweepstakes and may be fraudulent. You should never have to pay any fee in order to receive a prize in a sweepstakes.
Ask the following questions to evaluate the legitimacy of sweepstakes or other promotions:
- Are the rules and entry instructions for the promotion easy to find and understand? If you can't understand what you must do to be eligible, think twice about responding.
- Does the advertising copy state that no purchase is necessary to win? Remember, you never have to pay to play when the contest is legitimate.
- Are the prizes worth winning? Make sure the prizes you are trying for are desirable and worth the effort. Do you really want to win them? Is there a cash option?
- Does the prize company ask for your credit card number, bank account information or social security number? No legitimate prize company asks for this information to declare you a winner.
To learn more on how you can prevent being scammed, visit: http://postalinspectors.uspis.gov/
