PSEG Long Island Warns Customers of Phone Scam

PSEG Long Island is warning its residential and business customers to be alert of ongoing payment phone scams.

In these scams, which have been reported across the country, people pretending to be PSEG Long Island employees call customers and threaten to turn off electric service if payment is not made to them that day.

The scammers tell customers that in order to avoid having their service shut off, they must immediately pay their bill with a pre-paid card that can be purchased at many pharmacies and retail stores.

The person then gives customers a number to call back after they have purchased the card.

When customers call that number, they hear interactive voice response prompts that imitate those they would hear when calling the real PSEG customer service line and when the fake representative answers the line, they ask for the number on the back of the card.

After the scammers have that number, they take the money from the card.

“Scammers ask the customer to give them the number on the back of the pre-paid card and take the money from the card – usually within a matter of minutes,” said Dan Eichhorn, vice president of customer services for PSEG Long Island. “This scam has affected companies across the country. We urge our customers to always use caution when making payments.”

When PSEG Long Island makes an outbound phone call to customers, customer-specific information is shared with the customer.

That information includes the account name, address, number and current balance, PSEG officials said. If customers do not receive this correct information, they likely are not speaking with a PSEG representative.

When in doubt or suspicious in any way, PSEG Long Island urges customers to call the number listed on their bill: 1-800-490-0025.