What Should I Do if a IRS Check Has Been Stolen? This is What the Law Says

By Lucas

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What Should I Do if a IRS Check Has Been Stolen This is What the Law Says

When filing your income tax return in the United States, you must also demonstrate that you have no outstanding debts with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), which assists US taxpayers in understanding and complying with their tax obligations under tax law.

However, if you owe money to this institution, there are several options for settling that debt: sending an electronic check or a payment to the IRS directly from your bank are the most common, but you can also use the traditional method and send a check by mail, though there may be some issues with this option.

One of the potential issues is that the check may get lost in the mail, and if the IRS does not receive it by the tax return filing deadline, the sender may be required to pay interest and penalties on their tax debt.

However, there is an even worse possibility when sending a check to the IRS by mail: a criminal steals the check you received in the mail, alters or duplicates it, and then commits fraud against you by running away with the money. This is exactly what happened to a U.S. citizen.

What should I do if someone steals a check with money on it?

Check fraud is relatively common in the United States. In fact, a 2024 survey of American society found that 45% of people have been victims of financial fraud. Specifically, check fraud affected 17% of them, or more than 20 million people.

What should I do if a IRS check has been stolen? This is what the law says
Source (Google.com)

 

Similarly, one of the most common criminal practices is to wash the check, which means stealing it from the mail, erasing the original writing with chemicals, and then reissuing the check in the name of a new beneficiary for collection.

Additionally, some criminals may steal a check from the mail and duplicate it. In this case, things can get very dangerous, as a scammer may issue a series of additional checks on a specific account.

As a result, if you have been a victim of check fraud, you must report it to your bank and the police as soon as possible, according to the institutions’ announcements. If a person’s check has been stolen in the mail, they should notify the United States Postal Inspection Service.

Likewise, banks have ten days to investigate this scam. However, if no clear conclusion is reached within that time frame, the bank may need to temporarily credit the customer’s account while the investigation is ongoing.

Finally, the Office of Consumer Financial Protection maintains that check-theft victims are protected under state law if their signature was forged. However, if you discover that one of your checks has ended up in the wrong hands, you must notify your bank immediately.

Also See:- It Has Been Confirmed: These Retirees Will Get an Increase in Their Social Security Checks

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