Consumer who bought everything from cars to furniture were disappointed recently when they did not receive the prepaid gas cards promised as purchase incentives. This prepaid gas card scam, run by Tidewater Gas Vouchers, netted the CEO over $37 million in personal gain at the expense of the consumer. Tidewater Gas Vouchers worked with numerous companies, from Bassett Furniture Stores to Hyundai Motors, selling companies gas vouchers which they could give as purchase incentives to consumers.

A consumer with a gas voucher was to send in their receipts and receive a prepaid gas card for $25 a month until the card was paid. Consumers had to pay a $5 loyalty fee, and send in the receipts totaling $100 or more in gas purchases monthly in order to obtain the cards they earned through their vouchers.

Unfortunately, when consumer”s followed these directions, the prepaid cards never came. Crystal Clark, the woman selling the Tidewater Vouchers to stores, was instead purchasing clothes, traveling and paying rent for family members. Consumers, unfortunately, lost out, to the tune of over $16 million dollars in unsent prepaid gas cards.

Although Clark”s operation is no longer running, no charges have been filed against her as of October 2009. Consumer”s are left with little recourse, other then attempting to collect the money from a bankrupt company or going after the retailers who offered the incentives in the first place. Some consumer”s are doing just that, bringing small claims cases or class action lawsuits against the big-named companies who may be left holding the bag for placing their trust in the wrong promotions company.

Consumer”s affected by the prepaid gas card scam can file a claim .