Consumers who have not received their federal stimulus check have been asking the Better Business Bureau about the prepaid debit card they received in the mail from MetaBank, thinking it may be a scam.
But, the BBB says it is a legitimate debit card. MetaBank is the US Treasury’s financial agent. The card was sent instead of a stimulus check to nearly four million Americans who don’t have the necessary bank account information on file with the IRS.
BBB President Jim Hegarty says the cards are delivered in a plain envelope from ‘Money Network Cardholder Services.’ He says nothing on the envelope identifies it as an Economic Impact Payment from the government, so it may look like junk mail, but please be careful not to throw it away.
The card itself is a VISA with the blue background and white stars of the American flag and is preloaded with the money the person is eligible for. Each mailing includes instructions on how to activate and use the card. Hegarty says you will need to verify personal information to activate the card and to find out how much money is on it. But, he says, the government will not call, text or email you asking for that information. If you do receive such a communication, that is probably a scam and it should be reported to the BBB at bbb.org/scamtracker/.
How to activate your EIP Card:
Call 1.800.240.8100 or go to eipcard.com to register and activate your card. During activation, you will be asked to validate your identity by providing, at minimum, your name, address, and social security number. You will also be asked to create a 4-digit PIN required for ATM transactions and automated assistance. You can also find out the amount of money that is on the card. For your Account security, do not use personal information as your PIN. For Cards with more than one name, only the primary Cardholder (listed first on the Card) may activate the Card.
For questions you may have and specific step by step instructions, go to eipcard.com/faq. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau also put out a video explaining the process at youtube.com/watchv=8_b7wBr8d7I&feature=youtu.be.
