The decision to refund eligible individuals and businesses for the wrong collection of GST by six agencies is appropriate (Govt to refund $7.5m in GST wrongly collected by 6 agencies over 5 years, Feb 15).

The Government has said it will make the refund process as seamless as possible. I hope the refunds will be credited directly into the bank accounts of those affected to prevent scams from arising.

Scammers will now seize the opportunity to send messages purporting to be from these six agencies, informing individuals and businesses that they are eligible for the refunds.

Although there is a published table showing the categories of the wrongly charged goods and services tax to be refunded, some people may not be aware and would be pleased if they receive a message informing them of their eligibility for the refund.

When a message like this is received, one should be vigilant and err on the side of caution to avoid being scammed.

In view of the increase in the number of online scams (Scams soar to record 46,500 cases in 2023, with $652m lost, Feb 19), perhaps the media could give more publicity to this case to remind people of the need to be alert. If in doubt, people should call the relevant agencies for clarification.

Andrew Seow Chwee Guan