Feb 15, 2010 4:00 pm US/Eastern
3 On Your Side: Don't Pay For Tax/Rent Rebate
PHILADELPHIA (CBS 3) ―
How would you like a property tax or rent rebate? In Pennsylvania, may seniors citizens and disabled residents are eligible to get just that. But as 3-On Your Side's Jim Donovan warns, you don't have to pay to apply.
The Pennsylvania state program provides rebates up to $975 for residents who meet certain criteria. But some are trying to cash in at your expense.
"There are a number of entitlements out there that people are eligible for and there really aren't any that you have to pay money to get, you shouldn't pay money to get them," says Diane Menio, Executive Director of Carie, The Center for Advocacy for the Rights and Interests of the Elderly. Menio is warning senior citizens about a letter that some may have received in the mail.
The letter is about the Pennsylvania Property Tax and Rent Rebate. According to Menio, "This is a rebate for people who are fixed income and it varies, the amount might vary according to what your output is in terms of your rent and your property tax."
In the letter a company offers to process a claim form, but for a fee. Menio says, "They are asking for $39 dollars. Some of the people who pay the $39 may or may not be eligible, and if they are eligible, they've just reduced their rebate by $39 dollars."
The letter came from a group called the Senior Advisory Center and listed a Harrisburg address, which 3-On Your Side found to be a closed mailbox drop business. Menio says the bottom line is "it's not a government mailing and it's not something that people need to use."
That's because there are many places including CARIE and senior centers where help is available so you can fill out a claim for free.
For more information visit the links below:
Carie:
www.carie.org
Mayor's Commission/Aging:
www.phila.gov/aging
Senior Centers:
http://www.paseniorcenters.org
PA Rebate Form:
http://www.revenue.state.pa.us/
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