MANSFIELD TOWNSHIP, NJ (Warren County) – Police are warning local businesses about a telephone scam involving phony calls regarding their electric bills.
According to police, someone is calling pretending to be JCP&L and saying you owe money. The person will demand that you pay it now over the phone or they are going to shut your power or gas off.
“It will even say JCP&L on your caller ID,” police said.
Please do not give them money and if you are concerned hang up with them and call JCP&L yourself to check the status of your account, police said.
Jersey Central Power & Light issued these important safety reminders:
- Customers who are behind on their accounts receive written notices of a possible disconnection and how to prevent it. Our representatives will not call or email to demand immediate payment or threaten imminent shutoff.
- Scammers often use Caller ID spoofing software to misrepresent the source of a phone call to further mislead and confuse their targets. Call-back numbers provided by these criminals often use greetings and hold messages that mimic legitimate businesses. If you have any doubts about the status of your electric service, call your utility company using the numbers on our website to ask about your account.
- FirstEnergy employees do not contact customers to request sensitive information such as social security numbers or bank account information.
- Do not allow anyone claiming to be a utility employee into your home unless you scheduled an appointment and the employee has provided proper identification. Our utility employees typically visit a home only in response to a service request or after providing prior notification.
- FirstEnergy utility employees always carry photo identification, and many of our field employees wear uniforms and drive clearly marked company vehicles.
- Our utilities offer a wide array of approved billing and payment options. Only send your payments to your FirstEnergy operating company, and never use a payment account provided to you by an unknown individual.
- Our alert services can help you keep track of the amount and timing of your bill, and our eBill payment option can help ensure your account is always paid on time.
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By: Jay Edwards Follow on Twitter | Like on Facebook
