If a caller threatens to shut off your power unless you pay right now, it is a scam.

What they say

“A caller says they are from your electric or gas company, your account is seriously past due, and a truck is on the way to disconnect your service within the hour. The only way to stop it is to pay the balance immediately, usually by gift card or a money-transfer app.”

How to tell it’s a scam

• A real utility sends written notice before any shut-off and gives you time and ways to dispute it. It does not threaten disconnection in minutes by phone.
• Demanding payment by gift card, wire, or cryptocurrency is a guaranteed sign of a scam, because those payments are nearly impossible to trace or recover.
• The countdown exists to panic you into paying before you can call the real company and check.

What they say

“A caller claims you accidentally overpaid your utility bill or qualify for a credit, and they need your bank or card details to send the refund. They may already have some of your account information to sound convincing.”

How to tell it’s a scam

• A real refund or credit is applied to your account automatically. It does not require you to hand over your bank login or card number over the phone.
• Asking you to “confirm” your card to receive money is how they capture it to take money out, not put it in.
• Knowing part of your account number is not proof. That data leaks from breaches and is reused to make the call believable.

What they say

“A cold caller says a new government or utility program will install solar panels for free or slash your power bill to nothing, and you have been pre-approved. They want to confirm your address, your utility, and your details to schedule it.”

How to tell it’s a scam

• There is no blanket “free government solar” program that cold-calls homeowners. Real incentives come through licensed installers and your own utility, not surprise calls.
• “Pre-approved” and “only in your area today” are sales hooks, and the call often hands you to high-pressure installers or harvests your information.
• Promises of a zero-dollar bill or guaranteed savings with no paperwork are not how real solar financing works.

What they say

“A caller offers to lower your energy rate or says they represent your utility and need to “verify” your account to apply a discount. They ask you to read the account number off your bill to switch your supplier or confirm the deal.”

How to tell it’s a scam

• Reading your account number off your bill can let them switch your energy supplier without your real consent, a practice known as slamming.
• Your own utility does not need you to verify your account number to a caller, because it already has it.
• A “limited-time” lower rate pushed over a cold call is a sales or harvesting tactic, not a real account update.

What they say

“Someone shows up claiming to be from the utility. They may say they need access to your meter, that you owe a deposit to avoid disconnection, or that they can lower your bill if you sign or pay on the spot.”

How to tell it’s a scam

• Real utility workers carry official identification and do not demand on-the-spot cash or gift-card payments to keep your service on.
• Pressure to sign, pay, or grant access immediately is the warning sign, whether it comes by phone or at your door.
• An unexpected visitor pushing a same-day deposit or contract is steering you to decide before you can verify them.