Many electric, water and natural gas customers throughout the country are being targeted by impostor utility scams every day. Utility Scam Awareness Day is an advocacy and awareness campaign focused on educating customers and exposing scammer tactics. The theme of this year’s campaign is “Anytime, anyone, anywhere.” Small business owners, non-English speaking customers and the elderly are frequently targeted, but any customer can be a victim to fraudulent utility scams. Customers can easily come in contact with a scammer over the phone, in-person and online. For years, scammers have posed as utility workers and attempted to steal financial information or obtain immediate payment from customers by threatening service interruptions. This is known as a utility impostor scam.
As a public power utility, raising awareness and educating customers about scams is one of our top priorities. Here are some helpful tips to keep in mind to protect yourself from scams:
- If someone calls threatening to cut off your power if you don’t pay them immediately, hang up. This is a scam.
- NES does not provide a toll-free number to call for making a payment.
- NES never goes door-to-door to solicit payment information.
- If someone in a utility uniform shows up at your door for unscheduled service, check for proper identification and have them wait outside while you call NES at 615-736-6900 to verify their information.
- All NES field employees wear uniforms and carry photo ID badges and company vehicles are marked with an NES logo and/or vehicle number.
- If you have doubts about a phone call, email, text or on-site visit, reach out to NES directly before taking any action.
- Never give personal or financial information to an unsolicited caller.
- If you think you are a victim of a scam, contact the police.
Use the hashtag #StopScams on social media to help spread awareness about utility scams, and click here to learn more about utility scams.
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