PSEG Long Island is urging customers to be alert to ongoing payment scams targeting both residential and commercial utility customers. Scammers demand immediate payment via a pre-paid card and threaten termination of service if payment is not received.
The utility would never call to demand immediate payment and such calls should be reported to police and to PSEG-LI, the company said in a press release.
Here is how this latest payment scam works, PSEG said:
An individual pretending to be a PSEG Long Island employee calls a customer and tells them that without immediate payment via a pre-paid card, their service will be shut off.
Customers are given a telephone number to call back after they have purchased the card. When they call that number, they hear interactive voice response prompts that imitate those they would hear when calling the authentic PSEG Long Island customer service line.
When a fake representative answers the line, they ask for the number on the back of the pre-paid card. After the scammers have that number, they can take the money from the card – usually within a matter of minutes.
“If you receive a call from anyone demanding immediate payment, do not give them any personal or account information,” PSEG Long Island vice president for customer relations Dan Eichhorn said. “Hang up the phone, and call the number listed on PSEG Long Island’s website and bills: 1-800-490-0025 and report scamming activity to your local police department.”
Before terminating service, PSEG-LI said it alerts customers in a number of ways: messages on bills, letters and phone calls. The utility offers a number of payment options, and would never require a customer to use one specific type of payment.
PSEG Long Island is working with local and national law enforcement to investigate the matter and is also reaching out to its contacts at local community service agencies asking them to spread the word to their clients, the company said.
