Man Lost $1,500 in Gift Card Scam, Police Say

An upper Bucks County man who was attempting to sell a vehicle ended up becoming the victim of a scam, according to Pennsylvania State Police at Dublin.

In an April 18 news release, police said the 49-year-old Durham Township man was selling a 2015 red Ford Flex, for which he received a certified check for $6,500 that included $1,500 to pay for shipping the vehicle to the buyer.

“Prior to the check clearing, the victim was told to purchase $1,500 in Sephora gift cards to pay the shipper,” police said.

The man then sent the suspect the gift card numbers and PIN numbers, after which he said he no longer wanted the car.

When the man checked the six $250 gift cards, police said “all had already been taken to a balance of $0.”

“To date, the check has not cleared and is considered fraudulent,” they added.

In general, law enforcement agencies recommend that consumers not use gift cards to make payments, especially to unknown parties who request payment with them. This is because they are difficult to trace once they have been redeemed.

“Once you share the numerical information from the card(s) with the scammer, the money is gone, and you are not likely to get your money back,” an infographic by the Pennsylvania Department of Banking and Securities, Pennsylvania State Police and Pennsylvania Department of Aging advises.