SCE Cautions Customers to Stay Alert Against Utility Bill Scam
May 27 2015 - 5:00PM
Business Wire
Southern California Edison (SCE) continues to advise customers
to stay vigilant and learn to protect themselves from a telephone
bill scam that demands immediate payment for allegedly past-due
electricity bills.
It’s getting costlier too since in April, SCE customers lost an
estimated $27,000 to phone scams, an increase from $17,000 in
March.
Recently, an SCE business customer was defrauded out of $3,000
after responding to a scam call. So far this month, more than 500
scam phone calls have been made to SCE customers, with some paying
between $1,500-$3,000. Some customers have even reported seeing a
red truck thought to be from SCE with the words “Service
Disconnect” parked outside their homes or businesses.
Scammers also have created fake telephone lines and recordings
that state: “Hello. Thank you for calling Southern California
Edison Disconnection Department.” Another trick is telling
customers local police will be called if they don’t pay
immediately.
Many impostors urge customers to use a reloadable prepaid card
to make payments.
“You should be leery of anyone who calls you asking for money.
Utilities are not going to call and request payments over the
telephone,” said Hector Tamayo, a detective with the Claremont
Police Department. “The biggest red flag is when these callers
request money on a reloadable prepaid card. Most people should be
able to catch on when the caller is asking you to send a payment
through a prepaid card.”
So how does the scam work? Phone impostors claiming to be with
SCE call customers and fraudulently threaten to disconnect their
electrical service unless immediate payment is made on a supposedly
past-due bill. The caller demands payment immediately and tells the
unsuspecting customer to buy a prepaid debit card — and there are
many different kinds — and load a specific amount of money on it
and call the impostor back, providing the serial number off the
back of the card.
Once you give out the serial number, the cash is untraceable and
gone for good.
And although more customers are learning to recognize phone
scams, impostors continue to cheat people out of their money using
more elaborate and deceptive ploys.
“We are doing what we can to inform our customers about these
criminals so they don’t fall victim to their scams. We often
include important information like this on our bill inserts, so I
would encourage customers to review those pages of their monthly
statements,” said Kari Gardner, manager, SCE Consumer Affairs.
“Also, helping spread the word to their employees and their friends
about these scams will help prepare them in the event they receive
telephone calls from individuals demanding money for payment.”
SCE customers who suspect a fraudulent call should ask for the
caller’s name, as well as their department and business phone
number. End the call and report the incident immediately to local
police or SCE at 1-800-655-4555. And never use the callback number
provided by the caller. Instead, call the SCE phone numbers printed
on your bill or go to the SCE website. Service representatives can
assist customers in multiple languages.
If you do pay an impostor, call SCE to report the scam and
provide the card number you used to pay the scammer. In addition,
call your local law enforcement agency and file a police report for
your loss.
Signs of a Scam
Here are a few red flags to help you spot a telephone bill
scam.
- Scam: Caller demands immediate
payment with the threat of shutting off your utility
service.Fact: SCE never calls customers over the telephone to
collect overdue bills and will never demand immediate payment with
the threat of service disconnection.
- Scam: You’re instructed to buy a
prepaid debit card at a store within the next 30-60 minutes and
load it with money.Fact: SCE does not accept prepaid cards for
bill payments.
- Scam: Caller claims to be from
SCE’s Disconnection Department.Fact: SCE does not have a
Disconnection Department.
- Scam: Caller asks for money in
person.Fact: SCE employees never ask for, or collect, money out
in the field.
- Scam: You get a call on a
weekend or holiday about an unpaid bill.Fact: SCE does not
conduct credit transactions on weekends or holidays.
- Scam: You’re told a truck with
SCE letters and Service Disconnect is en route to your home or
business, or parked outside.Fact: SCE does not own or operate
vehicles with Service Disconnection signage.
For more ways customers can protect themselves against scams,
click here.
About Southern California Edison
An Edison International (NYSE:EIX) company, Southern California
Edison is one of the nation’s largest electric utilities, serving a
population of nearly 14 million via 4.9 million customer accounts
in a 50,000-square-mile service area within Central, Coastal and
Southern California.
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version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20150527006354/en/
Southern California EdisonMedia ContactSusan Cox, (626)
302-2255
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