Utility Payment Scam

This is another scam that seeks to use your fear in order to extract money from you. It has been going around recently. You can read an FTC warning here.

Your phone rings. You hear that your account is in such a bad shape that your gas, water or electricity will be switched off now unless you pay immediately. If you panic and are ready to do anything to avoid losing your precious electricity or water, the caller will tell you an easy way out. You can pay by a GreenDot card, or pay by PayPal or use another cash equivalent. If you pay, you may never be able to recover your money.

If you get a call like that, you can resolve this situation in 3 easy steps:

1. Do not panic.
2. Get a phone number from the caller where they want you to provide payment information. Do not call it and do not pay anything yet.
3. Call your utility and find out what’s going on. Use the phone number from your bill. If you discover that the call you received was fraudulent, give your utility the phone number provided by your caller. The utility can contact the phone service provider and get that phone number disconnected.

If you receive a letter, a postcard or email with similar demands, go through the same 3 steps and provide your utility information they may use to go after the crooks. Only use the official phone number for your utility; never use any contact information from the demands.

You can also complain about scams to the Federal Trade Commission online or by calling 1-877-FTC-HELP.