Delaware Taxpayers Getting Two Tax Refund Checks - KMSP-TV

John O'Connell and his girlfriend opened their mail Thursday and started seeing double.

" I  said Holy Cow! This looks like the same check that

came yesterday," explained O'Connell's girlfriend Mary Van De Hey. "I opened it and looked at the amount. The check number and the date and everything was the same."

O'Connell is one of 1,860 Delaware tax payers state officials say will get two tax refund checks this year.

Patrick Carter, the  director of the division of revenue says an employee printed duplicates after a printer problem while processing the checks.

"They restarted the check run and instead of starting where the problem check was,  they started at the beginning. Then someone picked up all the checks and they went out in the mail "

State officials say ultimately you'll have to reimburse them

if somehow both checks clear.

They say check cashing services have been alerted

And they're clearing bank is taking precautions.

"You can deposit the first check and destroy the second," explained Carter. "If you deposit the second eventually it will be kicked back because PNC will not honor the second "

O'Connell and his girlfriend are just glad the state caught the problem considering those second checks are taxpayers dollars that could have been wasted.

"We're all in this together and we've got to save as much money

as we can being in financial situation were in," said O'Connell.

According to Carter this is the first time something like this has happened in the 18-years he's been director. He says letters alerting taxpayers about the problem will be mailed out soon.