Can I sue Incomm for my loss of funds due to fraud

[iaskin]

What is the name of your state? IL

I purchased a prepaid gift card about three months ago, and recently loss under $50 due to fraud after likely visiting a phishing site that stole my gift card information. There was only $1 and change left after the fraud occurred. The gift card company denied my claim without providing a reason or explanation.

 

[quincy]

What is the name of your state? IL

I purchased a prepaid gift card about three months ago, and recently loss under $50 due to fraud after likely visiting a phishing site that stole my gift card information. There was only $1 and change left after the fraud occurred. The gift card company denied my claim without providing a reason or explanation.

You are responsible for controlling the use of your gift card. Sorry. Any legal recourse you have would be against the card thief.

 

[Taxing Matters]

What is the name of your state? IL

I purchased a prepaid gift card about three months ago, and recently loss under $50 due to fraud after likely visiting a phishing site that stole my gift card information. There was only $1 and change left after the fraud occurred. The gift card company denied my claim without providing a reason or explanation.

Gift cards do not get the kind of protection against theft or fraud under federal law that credit cards and, to a lesser extent, debt cards do. For the most part, these cards are treated like cash. You lose the card or card number and someone else uses it to buy stuff that is essentially the same thing as if you dropped cash on the sidewalk. So treat it like cash. Don't give the card information to some web site you never heard of or a site that is made to look like the site of a well known company (there are easy ways to check that out before you put in your information). Don't give the number to someone over the phone. Keep the card safe and use it only at places that you know and can trust. Gift cards are one of the most common things that scammers ask for because once they have the card it's pretty much impossible to trace who used it. A site that accepts only gift cards for payment is a huge red flag that you are about to be scammed. See the FTC site regarding gift cards for more details:

https://www.fdic.gov/consumers/consumer/news/december2019.html

 

[Terminal1]

No. Does not matter if it says VISA or whatever on it. It is basically "cash" that you can use in a digital form. And, just like cash, if you lose it or someone steals it or phishes your money away it is gone forever. A LOT of money, maybe they would look into it. Under 50 bucks? No. Nobody will look into that at all.

Even if you used your debit card, banks like mine have stopped entertaining claims where we would receive services not as described. Only my credit card companies do that.

Try to be more careful about the sites you visit, or you could try using a credit card because they have the most protection against fraud. Amex has always went to bat for me the few times I needed them harder than anyone else. But, just an FYI I have almost totally stopped using my bank debit card if I buy anything other than groceries or gas. Just in case. If you cannot get a CC you can always try paying through Paypal linked to your bank account as Paypal has some protections against fraud. But a credit card is your best bet to get and then keep for these types of purchases.

IDK how you got on the phishing site but if you know you want to purchase something from a site, type the sites address into your search bar, or use their app. There are promoted companies on Google that are phishing, I found a Banana Boat sunscreen phishing site being promoted by Google last summer they don't scan the sites on there to see if they are legit links to the real company.

 

[iaskin]

Thanks. I did find that lots of people had experiences like mine. But the site I went on the transactions didn't go through. And I read on several news sites that Incomm has had issues with their cards. One attorney thinks the problem is the gist card offers no protection and that an employee may be stealing funds off cards from consumers. I did end up finding someone that was interested in my case.

 

[iaskin]

Gift cards do not get the kind of protection against theft or fraud under federal law that credit cards and, to a lesser extent, debt cards do. For the most part, these cards are treated like cash. You lose the card or card number and someone else uses it to buy stuff that is essentially the same thing as if you dropped cash on the sidewalk. So treat it like cash. Don't give the card information to some web site you never heard of or a site that is made to look like the site of a well known company (there are easy ways to check that out before you put in your information). Don't give the number to someone over the phone. Keep the card safe and use it only at places that you know and can trust. Gift cards are one of the most common things that scammers ask for because once they have the card it's pretty much impossible to trace who used it. A site that accepts only gift cards for payment is a huge red flag that you are about to be scammed. See the FTC site regarding gift cards for more details:

https://www.fdic.gov/consumers/consumer/news/december2019.html

A major company executive I read bought over $3,000 worth of the same Vanilla gift card I did and they said they won't ever buy any prepaid cards again. I did have bad experiences with PayPal. They don't always have your back. There seems to be no perfect , secure way to pay. Some podcasters are suggesting the safest is gold and silver.

 

[quincy]

… One attorney thinks the problem is the gist card offers no protection and that an employee may be stealing funds off cards from consumers. I did end up finding someone that was interested in my case.

Has this “interested” person asked you for money (or a credit card number)?

 

[iaskin]

Has this “interested” person asked you for money (or a credit card number)?

They are legit. I signed their retainer today. No money upfront. No fees. I found their law firm website today. It's nationwide. They were looking for clients that lost funds or had gift cards that didn't work from the same company I purchased from. So they want to try my case.

 

[quincy]

They are legit. I signed their retainer today. No money upfront. No fees. I found their law firm website today. It's nationwide. They were looking for clients that lost funds or had gift cards that didn't work from the same company I purchased from. So they want to try my case.

Interesting.

 

[quincy]

Following is a link to a consumer class action suit filed in June 2025 against InComm Financial Services over the “draining” of funds on their gift cards. The Court held that “no reasonable consumer would fail to recognize the possibility that a gift card they bought might be subject to a third-party scam.”

Ira Schuman, et al, v. VISA U.S.A., Inc., et al:
https://pbwt2.gjassets.com/content/...c-et-al-Docket-No-124-cv-00666-SDNY-Jan-1.pdf

 

[Taxing Matters]

That is the first federal district court opinion I've read where the judge has made full use of modern word processing and digital printing technology to incorporate color images of the subject at issue, used the extended character set to properly set the registered trademark symbol (i.e. Visa®), and used color text, notably red, to replicate the red notice printed on the card. I'm impressed, I studied a little bit of proper typesetting about 20 years ago. Few people know those rules outside professional newspaper, magazine, and book publishers. This judge, however, apparently knows a lot of them and used them to good effect, IMO. Bravo!

Too many people still use the rules they learned for using typewriters (especially the older ones, my age and older) when using word processing software and modern laser and ink jet printers. The result looks a bit odd. The rules for typewriters evolved to make the most of a very limited technology. Modern word processors and document creation programs are capable of handling proportional text, bolding, italics, special symbolsd (note the judge's use of the registered trademark symbol, Visa®), small caps, different colors and more. Intelligently using those capabilities will create documents that look as professional as you see in a major newspaper or a book put out by a long established publisher. It makes documents more readable, draws attention to what's important, and in long documents reduces eye strain.

 

[quincy]

That is the first federal district court opinion I've read where the judge has made full use of modern word processing and digital printing technology to incorporate color images of the subject at issue, used the extended character set to properly set the registered trademark symbol (i.e. Visa®), and used color text, notably red, to replicate the red notice printed on the card. I'm impressed, I studied a little bit of proper typesetting about 20 years ago. Few people know those rules outside professional newspaper, magazine, and book publishers. This judge, however, apparently knows a lot of them and used them to good effect, IMO. Bravo!

Too many people still use the rules they learned for using typewriters (especially the older ones, my age and older) when using word processing software and modern laser and ink jet printers. The result looks a bit odd. The rules for typewriters evolved to make the most of a very limited technology. Modern word processors and document creation programs are capable of handling proportional text, bolding, italics, special symbolsd (note the judge's use of the registered trademark symbol, Visa®), small caps, different colors and more. Intelligently using those capabilities will create documents that look as professional as you see in a major newspaper or a book put out by a long established publisher. It makes documents more readable, draws attention to what's important, and in long documents reduces eye strain.

Haha. Yes. It’s pretty.

I have seen some equally pretty documents, including opinions, coming from courts in a few copyright and trademark cases. I agree that presentation can make a big difference in readability.