County Warns Homeowners about Scam

Montgomery County emblemMontgomery County’s Office of Consumer Protection (OCP) is warning property owners not to be fooled by a deceptive letter, which encourages consumers to pay $99 to petition to have their property tax assessment reviewed.

According to county officials, the direct mail solicitation gives the false appearance that it is from a state or local government agency, provides a return address that is, in reality, a mail-drop location, and fails to disclose that there is actually no cost for property owners in Montgomery County to personally petition for a tax assessment review.

Information regarding this matter has been reported to the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, officials said. Consumers who have provided credit card information or sent checks to this merchant may file a complaint with Montgomery County’s Office of Consumer Protection.

The Maryland State Department of Assessment and Taxation provides information on its website regarding how to file a petition to have a property tax assessment reviewed.

OCP, the County’s consumer protection agency, investigates thousands of complaints each year involving automotive sales and repairs, new home purchases, home improvements, credit issues, retail sales, internet services and most other consumer transactions. OCP also provides pre-purchase information to consumers, as well as speakers to the community on consumer issues.

For more information, call 240.777.3636 or visit OCP’s website at www.montgomerycountymd.gov/consumer.

 
Related:

A Montgomery County Consumer Alert (VIDEO)

OCP Eric Friedman consumer alert letter

Montgomery County’s Office of Consumer Protection (OCP)  investigates and solves consumer complaints. In this consumer alert, OCP Director Eric Friedman provides important information about a deceptive letter that you may have received: Visit our PEG partner County Cable Montgomery to view more of its local programming. Related:

Read more

Office of Consumer Protection Shuts Down Deceptive Mail Solicitations

Office of Consumer Protection Logo

Officials from the Montgomery County Office of Consumer Protection (OCP), the Better Business Bureau serving Greater Maryland (BBB) and U.S. Postal Inspection Service-Washington Division worked together to stop a company from mailing letters that solicited Maryland homeowners to pay a fee to petition a review of their property taxes. According to a news release, the […]

Read more

County Warns Homeowners about Scam

Montgomery County emblem

Montgomery County’s Office of Consumer Protection (OCP) is warning property owners not to be fooled by a deceptive letter, which encourages consumers to pay $99 to petition to have their property tax assessment reviewed. According to county officials, the direct mail solicitation gives the false appearance that it is from a state or local government […]

Read more

Like this post? Sign up for our Daily Update here.
Sonya Burke

About Sonya Burke

Sonya Burke is the Multimedia Manager at Montgomery Community Media (MCM). You can email story ideas at sburke@mymcmedia.org or reach her on Twitter @SonyaNBurke.

Comments

| Comments are closed.

Engage us on Facebook

Follow us on Twitter