Hillsborough County Tax Collector Warns Residents Of Appointment Scheduling Fraud

TAMPA, Fla., The Hillsborough County Tax Collector’s Office is announcing changes to their appointment scheduling system following an internal investigation that revealed scammers looking to take advantage of residents are bulk booking driver’s license appointments and reselling them to residents in need of services for a fee.

Following an influx of complaints regarding a lack of appointment availability and tip-offs that third parties were selling appointments, the Tax Collector’s Office launched an investigation which revealed a pattern of daily appointments being reserved under identical names and email addresses.

While an appointment is not required to visit the Tax Collector’s Office for most services, residents can reserve appointments on the Tax Collector’s website up to 30 days in advance at no charge.

It is believed that third parties are monitoring the scheduling software and immediately snapping up available appointments, possibly through the use of AI and bots, preventing residents from accessing available appointment slots.

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“This fraudulent behavior by individuals who are exploiting residents and denying them access to essential services is unacceptable. Unfortunately, appointment selling has become a growing trend across the nation, and in Hillsborough County, we are committed to putting an end to this interference and restoring fair and equitable access to services for all residents,” said Hillsborough County Tax Collector Nancy Millan.

Upon discovering that appointments were being sold, the Hillsborough County Tax Collector’s Office engaged with the Sheriff’s Office to investigate the situation.

It is believed that these individuals are targeting minority populations, with most of the suspected “sold” appointments taking place in the Hispanic community.

Residents are encouraged to report any suspected incidents of appointment selling to the Tax Collector’s Office.

To combat this fraud, the Tax Collector has implemented several changes to improve the integrity of appointment booking and to better serve Hillsborough County residents.

Changes to the Appointment Booking Process

• One Booking Per Person/Email Address: The new system only allows one appointment booking per person. The limitation aims to prevent the mass booking of appointments by unauthorized entities.

• Enhanced Verification Process: During the booking process, customers are required to enter their Driver License number, a parent’s Driver License number for minors, or an alien registration number.

• Residency Requirements: Appointments are exclusively reserved for Hillsborough County residents and customers are required to confirm this acknowledgment before booking.

• In-Person Confirmation: In accordance with these changes, staff at the Tax Collector’s branch offices check residency and ensure the names and ID numbers provided at the time of appointment booking match upon arrival to the office.  If they do not match, the appointment will not be honored.

“Hillsborough County Tax Collector’s Office prides ourselves on ensuring residents have access to services in a timely, efficient and convenient manner. Our goal is to make the process as smooth as possible, and the modifications to the booking system will allow us to meet the growing service demands and protect residents from fraudulent activity,” said Millan.

See story from Tampa Free Press here.