BANGOR and PRESQUE ISLE — Emera Maine is warning its customers to be suspicious of individuals claiming to be representing the utility, especially in situations demanding immediate payment.
A number of small businesses have been targeted recently in the Bangor area, company representatives said.
“We’ve seen an increase over the summer months amounting to a few reports a week. While we’ve received seven reports so far in August, many that receive a call may not report it. Calls can be very convincing and we have seen cases where payments to scammers have been made,” said Allison Gray, communications and marketing manager.
Scammers may demand immediate payment or threaten disconnection with little notice, and may say that they require payment be made by a prepaid debit card or other non-refundable form of payment (e.g. Green Dot cards).
Suspect calls may appear to be coming from an Emera Maine number on caller ID and happen outside of normal business hours.
“Emera Maine customers will never receive a call from a representative demanding immediate payment with the threat of disconnection,” said Karen Holyoke, vice president of customer experience for the utility. “Customers facing disconnection are notified by mail, may receive a notification by automated or personal call, and are encouraged to contact us to work out an arrangement.
“We make every effort to work with our customers and disconnection is a last resort,” Holyoke said.
Customers should keep the following things in mind if they are contacted in a manner that sounds suspicious:
Never give out credit card or other payment information over the phone unless you’ve initiated the call.
End suspicious calls immediately and contact the Emera Maine Customer Contact Center at (207) 973-2000 or 1 (855) EMERA-11 to ensure you are speaking with an Emera Maine representative.
If you are contacted by an Emera Maine representative, they will ask for the primary account holder by name and will know your account and bill information.
Holyoke said Emera Maine’s security team works closely with the Office of Consumer Affairs at the Attorney General’s office, as well as local authorities, to investigate scams.
Anyone who may have fallen victim to a scam and paid a fraudulent caller is encouraged to report the scam to both their local law enforcement agency as well as the Attorney General’s office at 1 (800) 436-2131.
