HARRISBURG — Treasurer Stacy Garrity warned Pennsylvanians that scammers are calling residents who have applied for a Property Tax/Rent Rebate and asking for bank account information in an effort to steal valuable personal information.
She reminded people that the Pennsylvania Treasury Department will never call and ask for bank information.
In this scam, the caller claims to be from Treasury and asks for a bank account number – supposedly so a Property Tax/Rent Rebate payment can be made by direct deposit.
“The sad reality is that scammers never stop, and we all need to be constantly on guard,” Garrity said. “It sickens me that they’re targeting the seniors and people with disabilities who applied for a Property Tax/Rent Rebate, but these criminals have no conscience or compassion.”
She added that people should never give out their bank account information or other personal financial information simply because someone calls and asks for it. “If someone claims to be from the Pennsylvania Treasury Department, do not hesitate to contact us to confirm that it’s really us,” Garrity said.
The best way to contact Treasury is with the form available at https://www.patreasury.gov/contact/.
Direct deposit is available for Property Tax/Rent Rebates, but recipients must include that information on their application before submitting it to the Department of Revenue. Treasury recommends direct deposit over U.S. mail to expedite the process of receiving payment.
The Property Tax/Rent Rebate Program benefits Pennsylvanians age 65 and older, widows and widowers age 50 and older, and people with disabilities age 18 and older. The maximum standard rebate this year is $650. Some homeowners may qualify for supplemental rebates.
So far this year, Treasury has processed more than 355,000 payments totaling more than $167 million. More than half of those payments were sent electronically.
Applications can be filed online through the Department of Revenue’s myPATH system. Anyone who has already applied for this year’s rebate can check the status by using the Department of Revenue’s Where’s My Rebate? online tool.
