North Texas small business owner Jennifer Junker was recently called and told her power would be turned off, but she quickly investigated the call and discovered someone was trying to scam her.
“I’m an Oncor technician, and I’ve been instructed to come and cut off your power for nonpayment, and I will be there in half an hour,” Junker said, reciting what the scammer told her, NBC News reports.
Junker checked her records and found that her power bill should be in good standing. She asked the caller for another contact number and was given an entirely new phone number to call.
“As soon as they said ‘billing’ and I heard the call center noises in the back, I said, ‘Thank you, goodbye,’ and hung up,” Junker told NBC News.
Oncor, founded in 1921, is the largest energy delivery company in Texas. These types of scam calls to customers like Junker are not new, according to the firm. The company pointed to the first thing to be wary of with any disconnection of services call: There would not be one.
“The first and most important thing to know is that Oncor does NOT bill customers for electricity use and does NOT call customers for payment,” the company said in a 2015 social media post.
Americans lose a lot of money to phone scams, sometimes their entire life savings. As many as 59.49 million Americans in 2021 (23%) reported losing money due to phone scams in that year — up from 56 million (22%) in 2020, a 2021 study conducted by True Caller claims.
“1 in 3 Americans (31%) report having ever fallen victim to phone scams, and 19% on more than one occasion,” according to the report.
Over the last 12 months, Americans have lost an estimated $9.8 billion to scam callers.
Scammers have devised numerous methods for defrauding you over the phone, according to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). Callers appear friendly and helpful in some scams; in others, they may threaten or try to intimidate.
“One thing you can count on is that a phone scammer will try to get your money or your personal information to commit identity theft,” according to an FTC consumer advice article. Don’t give it to them.”
“Oncor will never request payment to prevent your power from being disconnected,” the company said. “Furthermore, Oncor does NOT go door to door soliciting customer’s information to assist with your electric rate.”
In addition, electricity retail providers in Texas are required to provide written notice, at least 10 days in advance, of a disconnection, according to the Public Utility Commission.
Any Oncor customer who wants to verify that a person works for the company is advised to call 888-313-6862 to speak with an Oncor representative.
“If you’re ever concerned for your safety, please call 911 immediately,” the company added.