FEMA Alert: Watch for Fraud After April Storms in Kentucky

FRANKFORT, Ky. – If you are a survivor of Kentucky April storms, straight-line winds, tornadoes, floods, landslides and mudslides, you may also be a target of con artists and criminals who try to obtain money or steal personal information.

Protect Your Identity

In some cases, thieves try to apply for FEMA assistance using names, addresses and Social Security numbers they have stolen from survivors.

• If a FEMA inspector comes to your home and you did not submit a FEMA application, your information may have been used without your knowledge to create a FEMA application. If so, please inform the inspector that you did not apply for FEMA assistance, so the inspector can submit a request to stop further processing of the application.
• If you did not apply for assistance, but received a letter from FEMA, please call the FEMA Helpline at 
  800-621-3362. The Helpline will submit a request to stop any further processing of that application.
• If you do wish to apply for FEMA assistance after stopping an application made in your name without your knowledge, the Helpline will assist you in creating a new application.

Identify Legitimate FEMA Staff

FEMA Disaster Survivor Assistance teams, housing inspectors and other officials are working in areas impacted 
by the April severe storms throughout Kentucky. They carry official identification badges with photo. FEMA representatives never charge applicants for disaster assistance, inspections or help in filling out applications. 

• Don’t believe anyone who promises a disaster grant in return for payment.
• Don’t give your banking information to a person claiming to be a FEMA housing inspector. FEMA inspectors never collect your personal financial information. 

Report Scams and Fraud

If you believe you are the victim of a scam report it immediately to your local police or sheriff’s department, or contact the Office of the Attorney General by calling 502-696-5485 or visit its website at Natural Disaster Scams - Kentucky Attorney General. To file a fraud complaint, go online to Scam Report (kentucky.gov).

If you suspect fraudulent activity involving FEMA, you can report it to the FEMA Fraud Branch at:  StopFEMAFraud@fema.dhs.gov, or write to: FEMA Fraud and Internal Investigation Division, 
400 C Street SW Mail Stop 3005, Washington, DC 20472-3005.

If you suspect identity theft, please visit Identity Theft | FTC Consumer Information or IdentityTheft.gov. 

How To Apply for FEMA Assistance

Survivors in the Anderson, Butler, Carroll, Christian, Clark, Franklin, Hardin, Hopkins, Jessamine, McCracken, Mercer, Owen and Woodford counties who have disaster-caused damage or loss from the April storm can apply for federal disaster assistance under the major disaster declaration DR-4864 in several ways:

• Online at DisasterAssistance.gov.
• Visit any Disaster Recovery Center. To find a center close to you, visit fema.gov/DRC, or text DRC along with your Zip Code to 43362 (Example: “DRC 29169”).
• Use the FEMA mobile app.
• FEMA works with every household on a case-by-case basis.
• Call the FEMA Helpline at 800-621-3362. It is open 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time. Help is available in many languages. If you use a relay service, such as Video Relay Service (VRS), captioned telephone or other service, give FEMA your number for that service. 

For more information about Kentucky flooding recovery, visit www.fema.gov/disaster/4860 and www.fema.gov/disaster/4864. Follow the FEMA Region 4 X account at x.com/femaregion4.