Lost your stimulus card? Tossed it in the trash?
I reported earlier that some taxpayers were mistaking their Economic Impact Payments, sometimes called stimulus checks, for trash – tossing cards and checks away.
Last week, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) issued a reminder to taxpayers that some Economic Impact Payments, sometimes called stimulus checks, were being sent by prepaid debit card. Nearly 4 million people are being sent their Economic Impact Payment by prepaid debit card, instead of a paper check. The debit card will arrive in a plain envelope from “Money Network Cardholder Services.” The Visa V -2.3% name will appear on the front of the card; the back of the card has the name of the issuing bank, MetaBank®, N.A. The information included in the envelope will explain that the card is your Economic Impact Payment Card.
Paper checks will be sent in a marked envelope from the U.S. Treasury.
As of the date of my first story (May 27, 2020), the cost for a replacement card was listed on the fee schedule as $7.50 ($17 additional charge for priority shipment).
However, after the IRS announcement – and my story – the EIP prepaid debit website (eipcard.com) was quietly updated. As of May 29, 2020, the website states that the fee is “$0.00 for first reissued Card.” According to the new information:
If your Card is discarded or destroyed, it is important that you call Customer Service at 1.800.240.8100 (TTY: 1.800.241.9100) immediately and select the “Lost/Stolen” option.
Your Card will be deactivated to prevent anyone from using it and a new replacement Card will be ordered. Your first reissued Card will be free1 and then a $7.50 fee will be applied for each additional reissued Card. Please refer to the material in your Welcome Packet or see your Cardholder Agreement online at EIPCard.com for more information.
Neither MetaBank nor Treasury made much ado of the change. It might have gone unnoticed on my end, too, if Phyllis Jo Kubey, EA, had not pointed out the zero-fee. I checked the website and saw that the FAQs had been updated at several places to reflect the same change.
It’s a good reminder that things are changing at the speed of light these days. Keep checking in for the latest.
