Town of Hillsborough issued the following announcement on Apr. 5.
The town will never call and demand payment immediately to avoid disconnection of water and sewer services.
If you get a call saying your water and sewer service will be cut off if you don’t pay the town immediately, this is a scam.
A utility provider in the area has noted that Spanish-speaking customers are being targeted by scammers. The Town of Hillsborough will never call and demand payment immediately to avoid disconnection of water and sewer services. Notices regarding payment due and disconnection are mailed and printed with town branding.
How to avoid utility scams
Below are tips from the Federal Trade Commission on how to avoid utility scams:
- Hang up and call the utility company ― Use the number on your bill or the utility company’s website even if the person who contacted you left a call-back number. Often, the call-back numbers are fake. If the message came by text, don’t respond to the text. Instead call your utility company. If your bill says you owe anything, pay it as you normally would, not as the caller says.
- Never wire money or pay with a reloadable card, gift card, or cryptocurrency to anyone who demands it ― Only scammers will require one of those types of payment. Your utility company won’t ask you to pay that way. Once you send the money, you probably won’t get it back.
Report utility scams
The Federal Trade Commission advises that if you were contacted by a fake utility company to:
- Report the scam to your utility company online or by calling a number you know is real.
- Report the scam to the commission at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.
- Report the scam to your state attorney general.
- Let other people know about the scam so they can avoid it, too.
The Hillsborough Financial Services Department handles billing and collection for Town of Hillsborough water and sewer customers. Call customer service at 919-296-9450 and select Option 2. Or contact the department through the town website’s contact form or via the payments platform.
If you have paid a scammer, see the Federal Trade Commission’s What to Do If You Were Scammed page, which includes information on how you might get your money back.
Original source can be found here.
Source: Town of Hillsborough
