Virginia lawmakers are taking action to protect consumers from a cell phone scheme known as the parking lot scam, following an investigation by WTKR.
House Bill 190, introduced by Delegate Kelly Convirs-Fowler, recently passed the General Assembly and is waiting for the governor's signature. The governor has until April 13 to sign the new legislation.
"It's passed through the General Assembly and is waiting for her signature, and we don't anticipate any issues there," Convirs-Fowler said.
watch related: The parking lot scheme plaguing Navy Federal customers
The bill directs the office of the Attorney General to create a workgroup to review the Electronic Funds Transfer Act. The group will develop recommendations to prevent fraud and submit a report with their findings by December 1, 2026.
Originally, House Bill 190 would have required financial institutions to temporarily suspend accounts, reverse fraudulent transactions, and prevent further fraud once they become aware of fraudulent activity however, upon further review it was determined that more investigation needed to be done with a work group before passing new laws.
The goal is to introduce new legislation next session after the findings in the work group are released.
"We don't want to put a band-aid on a problem that just helps one or two people," Convirs-Fowler said."We want to make sure that the whole system is progressing, and we're progressing with it legislatively, so that way the laws always are going to protect our consumers.”
watch related: Eight of 10 defendants plead guilty in parking lot scam
Since September 2024, the WTKR News 3 Investigative Team has been investigating the parking lot scam, where criminals ask victims to use their cell phones. The suspects then quickly transfer money or take out personal loans.
Federal prosecutors have indicted 10 people in one case citing over 500 potential victims and cities around Hampton Roads have prosecuted other criminals.
Federal prosecutors say the suspects target victims near Navy Federal branches in many cases.
Consumers who tried to help a person they thought needed their phone were left on the hook paying thousands of dollars in loans they did not take out, plus interest.
"Those people that did not take those loans out should not be paying for them, and that's the part of it that is important with this work group," Convirs-Fowler said.
watch previous coverage: Navy Federal scam victim reaches settlement, lawyer says
The News 3 reporting caught the attention of attorney Gary Byler, who is now trying to help victims get their money back in the courts.
Our reporting also caught the attention of lawmakers working to better protect the public.
"I’m grateful for your coverage on it and bringing it to the attention and I wouldn’t have gotten to it if I hadn’t heard about it," Convirs-Fowler said.
