How a Self-Serve Portal Can Protect from Utility Scams

You work hard to provide the best possible customer experience, and your community trusts you to keep their lights on and their water flowing. So, when a scammer calls, emails, or texts claiming to be your municipal utility representative, your customer may fall for the scam.  Since your customers trust you, the scammer can benefit from that trust.  But with a bit of education and your self-service portal, your customers can be safer from scammers. 

Don’t think so? Imagine this scenario. Your customer Betty has paid her bill faithfully every month through your auto-draft program.  Late one Saturday afternoon, Betty gets a phone call from someone claiming to be from your utility, and that person tells Betty that she’s overpaid her bill and is owed a refund. All Betty has to do to get her refund is give her bank card or bank account information to the scammer. Because you and Betty have built up trust over the years, she willingly gives her private information to a scammer.   

What happened to Betty happens to thousands of utility customers every year. And as the scams get more sophisticated, your customers will continue to be a target. However, if Betty had access to your self-serve portal, she would have been able to log into her account and verify her payment history. And with that information, she could tell the scammer to get lost.  

Now we all know that you have late payment and delinquent protocols, and scammers know that too. But, they also understand that a threatening email, phone call, or text seemingly from your organization can be a real shock to your customers. And scammers use that shock to keep your customer off balance to take money from them.  

As a utility provider, you want to protect your customers from scammers. So how can you?   The best way is to educate your community and encourage them to use a self-service tool like SilverBlaze to take charge of their account.

Educate Your Community About Utility Scams

 The three most common scams are listed below, how to spot them, and what to tell your community to do if they are targeted.

 Scam #1 – Power Shutoff Scams

 What is it?

A power shutoff scam is a phone call,  email, or a person at a customer’s door who poses as one of your municipal utility’s representatives. No matter how they contact your customer, the scammer will claim that a bill is past due and that your utility will shut of services immediately. To avoid delay, your customer must pay in a hard-to-trace payment like a prepaid debit card, a gift card, or even cryptocurrency.

How will your community know it’s a scam?

The scammer will

• Will contact your customer by phone, email, text, or knock on the door,

• Demand immediate payment,

• ask for an untraceable payment, and

• be angry or threatening.

How can you educate your community about power shutoff scams?

 With a self-service portal, your customers can verify their account is up-to-date the minute the scammer contacts them. Second, your customers need to learn that Caller ID can be spoofed, and scammers know how to make a call appear to be any number they want. Third, remind your customers that you will never ask for an untraceable form of payment, and educate them on the only kinds of payments you accept.

 Scam # 2 Power Restoration Scams

 Scammers are ruthless and try to take advantage of your community when a natural disaster or power outage happens. Dressed as municipal utility workers, scammers will go from door-to-door saying they will restore a customer’s power for a one-time payment.  And you can imagine after sweltering in the heat or freezing in the cold your customers may fall for this kind of scam. Scammers will either claim the payment is necessary to restore power or claim the cost is an express-connect fee. If your community is desperate enough or not educated, then they could fall for this kind of scam.

 How will your community know it’s a scam?

 The scammer will

• Walk door to door speaking to your customers,

• Wear a credible-looking uniform, and

• Request a one-time power restoration fee or express-connect fee. 

How can you educate your community about power restoration scams?

Before a natural disaster occurs, it is vital to educate your community on how you will restore power, so they don’t fall victim to this kind of scam.  The only person who can restore services is an actual municipal utility employee, and your community needs to know how power is restored and in what order. Additionally, with a self-service portal, your community will have quick access to their account information, and by logging in, they will have immediate access to outage information and dynamic communication with your team.

Scam #3 Overpayment Scams

The overpayment scam is similar to the late payment scam but in reverse. Instead of not paying a bill, the scammer will tell your customer that they have overpaid and are due a refund, similar to the Betty scenario. It could be a call, text, or email, but all your customer has to comply and get the refund.  Once your customer has been roped into the scam, a fraudulent representative will ask for personal information, such as bank account information, credit card information, or even a social security number.

How will your community know it’s a scam?

The scammer will

• Contact your customer by phone, email, or text,

• Claim the customer has a refund coming to them for overpayment,

• Request personal information such as a bank account, credit card, or social security number.

How can you educate your community about utility overpayment scams?

We know that if a customer over-pays a bill, you’re going to credit his/her account. And educating your customers about this policy can save them from this scam. A marketing campaign with flyers, social media, and information on your website is a great way to get the word out about overpayment procedures.  Your customers can also log into your self-service portal to determine if they do indeed have a credit.

Making sure your customers don’t get scammed is another way to provide excellent customer service for your customers. By proactively educating your community about these three common scams, you can keep them safe. With a self-service portal, you’ll give your customers control over their accounts so that they can keep from getting scammed. So the next time a scammer calls, texts, or emails, all they’ll have to do is log into their account and check their account status.

Want to learn more about SilverBlaze and NorthStar CIS can protect your community from these three utility scams? Click on the button below to schedule your demo today.