The Muskegon Public Safety Office would like to make residents and businesses aware of a phone scam that has been going around the State and has reached our area.
These criminals attempt to inform the recipient that their power will be shut off in two hours if they do not pay the balance on their utility bill with a pre-paid credit card. Should you receive a call similar to this do not respond directly to the caller. Consumer’s Energy states that they would never solicit for payment over the phone in this manner and would never give such a short notice.
It is recommended that you hang up the phone and if you want to check the status of your account you can call Consumer Energy’s customer service number at 1(800) 477-5050.
It is wise to follow this same procedure if you should receive a call from anyone claiming to represent a company that you do business with whether it be a utility company, credit card company etc… Do not give out any personal information over the phone unless you can verify that who you are dealing with is legitimately with that company. The best way is to hang up and call that company directly using a phone number you know to be a company number such as the number listed on your bill.
These types of activities are becoming more and more prevalent and the Muskegon Public Safety Office urges caution.
