PSEG Long Island: Utility Scams Increase During Holiday Season

Written by Long Island News & PR | 12. December 2018

Uniondale, NY - December 12, 2018 - The holidays can be a stressful time, and scammers impersonating utility companies ramp up their high-pressure tactics to exploit people and steal their money this time of year. To keep its customers safe, PSEG Long Island today issued a warning for customers to be aware of potential scammers, offering tips and information to determine whether a call is legitimate or a scam.

Scammers prey on customers by threatening to cut off service if a bill is not paid immediately — usually within the hour. Often scammers are able to spoof their caller ID systems to display “PSEG Long Island” to the caller. They may even provide a toll-free number for customers that appears to be an actual PSEG Long Island number. Scammers usually demand payment in the form of a pre-paid debit card, MoneyGram or similar money transfer service. PSEG Long Island accepts many forms of payment, but does not accept, and will never ask for, payment using pre-paid debit cards or MoneyGram.

If you are suspicious of a text message, email or phone call from someone claiming to be PSEG Long Island, contact us at 800-490-0025 and keep these tips in mind:

Never give out any personal or account information to verify specifics of your account.
Do not download attachments or click on any links.
PSEG Long Island offers a variety of options to make payments, none of which are pre-paid debit cards, QR codes or ATM usage.
PSEG Long Island customers scheduled for disconnection due to nonpayment will receive a written notice on their bill at least 10 days in advance.Be aware of the amount of money being requested in the correspondence and compare it to any balance you may have.
Note whether the address and name on the account are exactly the same as what is written in the text message.
Keep in mind that PSEG Long Island representatives will always ask to speak with the “Customer of Record” and will not discuss account details with anyone else without permission.
PSEG Long Island does not ask customers to provide personal information online without first logging into My Account.
To verify account information, contact PSEG Long Island at 1-800-490-0025.
Account information can be accessed 24/7 by logging into “My Account” on the psegliny.com website at: https://myaccount.psegliny.com/user/login

“Never arrange payment or divulge account or personal information, including Social Security numbers or debit or credit card information, over the telephone unless you are certain you are speaking to a PSEG Long Island representative,” said Rick Walden, vice president of Customer Services, PSEG Long Island. “We work closely with law enforcement to track and thwart scammer activity. If you have concerns, hang up immediately and call the number on your bill, which is 800-490-0025.”

For more information on payment scams, visit www.psegliny.com/scam.

PSEG Long Island operates the Long Island Power Authority’s transmission and distribution system under a 12-year contract. PSEG Long Island is a subsidiary of Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated (NYSE:PEG), a publicly traded diversified energy company with annual revenues of $9.1 billion.