A statement from PG&E this week said that almost 15,000 customers reported energy scam attempts in the first half of the year. Of those, almost 700 were in Santa Clara County and 32 were in Mountain View alone.
About 15,000 attempts have been made, and PG&E says that more than 500 people have lost money to scams, with each losing an average of over $600. Utility scams caused people to lose more than $334,000 from January to June.
“This number is likely just the tip of the iceberg, though, because many scams go unreported,” PG&E said about the 500 victims.
A PG&E spokesperson told the Voice that they did not know right away how many people in Santa Clara County and Mountain View had fallen for the scams or how much money had been lost in these places.
PG&E said that in the scam numbers, there are 528 reports of scam attempts from small and medium-sized companies.
Tips to avoid a PG&E scam
The utility company says that a common scam is for someone pretending to be from PG&E to call and threaten to cut off service if the customer doesn’t pay right away with a prepaid debit card, a digital payment app, or some other way to send money.
PG&E doesn’t say how customers should pay their bills, and they will never ask for money to be paid with prepaid bank cards, gift cards, cryptocurrency, or mobile apps like Venmo or Zelle. It also says in the press release that the company will not ask for financial details over the phone or email.
A PG&E spokeswoman told the Voice that the company always tries to get in touch with a customer more than once before cutting them off, and they wouldn’t send a single notice at the last minute. According to the release, customers whose accounts are past due get an early warning of disconnection, which is usually sent by mail along with their monthly bill.
“Scammers try to make people scared by saying that utility services will be cut off if payment isn’t made right away,” Matt Foley, PG&E’s lead customer scam investigator, said in a press release. You shouldn’t fall for a phone call, visit, or email that doesn’t feel right. Put the phone down, close the door, or delete it.
The release says that con artists have made websites with fake PG&E phone numbers that show up when people look for services related to PG&E. Customers can call PG&E’s customer service line at 800-743-5000 or go to www.pge.com and log in to their account.
Scam calls may leave you with an 800 number that looks like it’s real, but when you call it back, it won’t connect you to PG&E. The news release says that customers who aren’t sure about a call should hang up and either go to pge.com to check their bill or call PG&E at 833-500-SCAM. A customer should call 911 if they think they are in danger.
PG&E says that a customer should call the cops if they think they have been a victim of fraud or feel threatened by a con artist.