Scammers target Southern California Edison customers for phone payment

LOS ANGELES -- Southern California Edison is warning its customers about scam artists trying to get payments over the phone.

The scammers tell people that their bills are overdue and persuade them to pay with a prepaid debit card to avoid having their service disconnected. The crooks then cash out the card.

Scammers recently started claiming that police would be sent to the victim's home or business if an immediate payment wasn't made, according to SoCal Edison.

Some scammers have set up telephone lines with a message from a so-called "Southern California Edison Disconnection Department."

About 13,000 SoCal Edison customers have reported receiving such calls over the past several years, the company said.

SCE customers who suspect a caller is a fraud should ask for the person's name, department and business phone number. They should then end the call and report it to local police or SCE by calling (800) 655-4555.

SCE offered the following tips:

• Never give out credit card, ATM or calling card numbers.
• Never use a call-back number provided by an unknown caller to verify billing information.
• Never leave home based on a call from a supposed utility representative, who says the home needs to be vacant at a specific time for a utility-related cause. Instead call police, because it may be a burglar.
• Be suspicious of anyone who arrives at your house without an appointment, asking to check an appliance, wiring or suggesting that there may be some other electrical problem in or outside your home.

More tips are posted at www.sce.com/safety.

City News Service contributed to this report.