Feb 8, 2019 | Safety and Security
Scammers never sleep. Their targets are many, including electric utility customers.
Utilities across the U.S. are in constant battle with these thieves who try to fleece their customers. Don’t let it happen to you.
A common theme of scammers is threatening to disconnect power immediately if payment is not made, usually via a prepaid debit card. If you’re a PPL Electric Utilities customer, we want you to know that’s not how we do business.
We’ll give plenty of notice when there’s a possible risk of shutoff, and we don’t pressure anyone to use specific payment methods. We try to work with all customers to help them maintain uninterrupted service.
One recent scam report involved our current meter replacement project. We’re replacing our meters to better serve you and to comply with state energy-efficiency law regulations. We don’t demand immediate payment for the new meters and threaten to shut off your power. Meter project costs are being recovered over time through a charge on customer bills.
Remember, you can always check your account status by logging on at pplelectric.com or calling us at 1-800-DIAL-PPL. If you get a suspicious or threatening call that claims to come from another company – like a utility or a bank – do the same thing: Hang up and contact the company directly using a trusted method, like the phone number on your monthly statement, or a website you know belongs to that company.
Working together, we can stop these scammers from causing financial loss and heartache.
May 13, 2015 | Safety and Security
Would you know what to do if you received a phone call telling you that your electricity would be shut off if you did not pay immediately with a prepaid card?
Scam artists nationwide continue to target electric utility customers by threatening to shut off their service based on false claims of overdue bills.
In the past, we’ve received complaints from both business and residential customers about callers claiming to be from the utility. The scammers falsely claim that the customers are behind on their bills. They demand an immediate payment by way of a pre-paid debit card for the customer to avoid having service disconnected.
How can you avoid these scams?
- Be informed about your account. You can check their account balances by logging on to pplelectric.com with your computer, tablet or smartphone. You can also call PPL Electric Utilities for your account balance at 1-800-DIAL-PPL (1-800-342-5775).
- Know your payment options. Be guarded about anyone who requests immediate payment by phone. We accept payment online, by traditional mail, at payment centers and through the use of credit or debit cards.
- Check with us. If you have any doubts about a caller claiming to represent PPL Electric Utilities, or about information given to you, hang up and call us 1-800-DIAL-PPL (1-800-342-5775) for verification. If things don’t check out, you should call your local police department.
- Know when we’d visit your home. Most visits to customer homes by us or our contractors are prearranged by the customer or through a call to the customer. If someone claiming to be from PPL Electric Utilities comes to your door, ask for proper identification that all of our employees and contractors carry. Most service employees also wear company uniforms and drive company vehicles.
Remember: If you have any doubts about whether someone is representing PPL Electric Utilities, you can always contact us for verification.
