You pick up the phone and a Pacific Gas & Electric representative tells you your utility service is on the verge of disconnection. All you have to do is make an immediate payment to keep the lights on, but take a beat before you act.
That’s because there’s an increasing chance these days that it isn’t your utility company on the other end of the line.
In the first four months of 2023, PG&E customers have lost more than $340,000 to scammers impersonating the gas and electricity provider.
Residents have reported more than 19,000 scam attempts this year, according to PG&E. That’s up from 23,000 reports for all of 2022 which led to close to $950,000 in fraudulent payments.
“They’re kind of at an all-time high,” PG&E spokesperson Megan McFarland said. “The scammers are getting more creative in different ways that they’re impersonating people. They’re doing it by email, phone calls and even showing up at people’s doors.”
It’s been an ongoing issue for North Coast communities, with 203 scam reports coming out of Santa Rosa, 31 from Rohnert Park, 29 out of Sonoma, 82 in Napa and 56 reported from San Rafael.
“Up and down the North Coast, in just the first few months of 2023, we have seen more than 600 scam attempts on customers,” Ron Richardson, PG&E’s regional vice president for the North Coast, said in a statement. “These numbers are concerning and we want our customers to be on alert.”
Often, scammers who threaten service shut-off will ask for payment by prepaid debit or gift card or through a money transfer service like PayPal or Zelle. PG&E will never request payment that way. Customers with delinquent accounts should receive disconnection notification in advance rather than in the moment, typically by mail and included with the monthly bill.
Another common ploy to get at personal financial data is to offer rebates or claim a customer is owed a refund. It’s a tempting tactic with energy bills as high as they are, but real PG&E representatives won’t ask for financial information over the phone or by email.
In 2022, consumers nationwide reported losing roughly $8.8 billion to fraud schemes, a more than 30% increase over the year before, according to new data from the Federal Trade Commission. Impostor scams were the most common, bilking victims for $2.6 billion.
Scams have become increasingly sophisticated with impostors now able to use caller ID spoofing to make it look like a trusted business is calling via an 800 number. Calls can even register on phone displays as the company in question.
While people like older adults, nonnative English speakers and people struggling financially are often targets, anyone can get hit. In 2021, Gen Z, millennials and Gen X were more likely than their 60-plus counterparts to report losing money to fraud.
Younger adults were more likely to fall victim to online shopping fraud, often through social media ads, investment scams, like cryptocurrency offers, and fake job opportunity schemes. Older people more frequently fell for tech support and security scams and fraudulent lottery, prize and sweepstakes hustles.
PG&E reported that scams related to its services have also targeted small business owners during busy hours and, recently, real estate agents via their listings, threatening to shut off power.
If you have any doubts, best practice is to hang up and call the business or agency back directly. Banks can often intercept or reverse credit card payments if contacted immediately. When it comes to PG&E, if you doubt a caller’s or even door knocker’s legitimacy, call 1-833-500-SCAM (1-833-500-7226).
“In Your Corner” is a column that puts watchdog reporting to work for the community. If you have a concern, a tip, or a hunch, you can reach “In Your Corner” Columnist Marisa Endicott at 707-521-5470 or marisa.endicott@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @InYourCornerTPD and Facebook @InYourCornerTPD.
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