Don’t do as we do, do as we say;-)
Well, I have to admit that the headline caught my attention. The Houston Police Union is suing Kroger because the Visa cards that they gave away had been drained.
I am no cop, but I don’t buy gift cards from stores because I know better, and I expect the same from the person who purchased them.
Scammers are stealing gift card funds
Scammers are known to tamper with the card packaging to steal information. They record the gift card number and PIN and cover up their tampering, so the cards look untouched. While the tampered-with cards hold no value until an unsuspecting customer activates them, scammers use technology to steal the funds before customers use them.
Computer programs allow scammers to follow the cards they tamper with and get an alert when a card has been activated. Once they find out a card is active, they can quickly drain the funds before the recipient uses the card themselves.
Gift card theft may go unnoticed for a long time because it’s not unusual for people to keep unused gift cards in their wallets for months or to give someone a gift card long after the card has been bought. But the funds may have already been drained by a thief. For this reason, it’s best to avoid buying gift cards from display racks if possible.
Now the story about HPD suing Kroger; Houston police union suing Kroger after members’ $100 gift cards drained by thieves of all but $2
When Houston Police Officers’ Union President Doug Griffith bought a handful of Visa gift cards as a reward for members, everything appeared normal. The cards, purchased from a display rack at a Kroger store, were activated by a cashier with what Griffith believed was $400 in total value.
But when the cards were finally used two months later, union members discovered they held only a fraction of that amount. Houston police officers had apparently fallen victim to scammers who spent the money before the buyers realized anything was wrong.
The union’s financial loss was minor, but it hopes the case will lead to broader consequences.
A lawsuit now winding through the Southern District of Texas alleges the union was bilked by grocery aisle “pirates” before its members even made a purchase – and that Kroger should have done more to stop it.
The union sued Kroger in February 2024, arguing the company knew about an ongoing card-draining scam targeting customers and failed to act.
“Our position is Kroger knew, or should have known, about the issue – and should have done more to secure the cards,” said Jarrett Ellzey, an attorney representing the union, during a hearing last year.
Think about that comment, our position is Kroger knew, or should have known, about the issue – and should have done more to secure the cards. How can HPD reduce crime if it did the same?
The lawsuit claims the store wasn’t properly set up to prevent scammers from accessing card information. The case has been pending for more than 18 months. As recently as June, Kroger renewed its request for dismissal.
On Aug. 3, 2023, the union bought four $100 Visa gift cards from the Kroger store on Studemont Street. The cards were intended as rewards for its members.
When one recipient tried to use a card Sept. 26, they found only $2 remained. The union later discovered the other three cards had also been drained.
After the discovery, Griffith returned to the Kroger store. According to the lawsuit, he was told that scammers had likely scanned the cards’ information while they were still on display, used a program to detect when they were activated, and drained the funds before recipients could redeem them.
HPD was aware of the scams, yet they still purchased vulnerable cards. Maybe HPD should read the bulletins they put out about scams?
The company said that because the cards were functional at the time of sale, there was no breach of contract and the union received exactly what it paid for: loaded gift cards.
“The facts alleged conclusively establish the cards were in fact purchased for their ordinary use – to be used as a gift card,” Kroger’s lawyers wrote in a motion to dismiss. The company argued that the union’s theories about how the cards were drained weren’t sufficient to sustain a lawsuit.
The union countered that Kroger has long been aware its customers have fallen prey to gift card thieves. It cited a news report from Kentucky where shoppers lost hundreds of dollars on drained cards.
Wonder if they reported it?
