Warning: Telephone Scams

A new telephone scam is making the rounds in our area. Please be aware and conscious of anyone demanding money over the phone especially if they are asking you to pay a third party. The latest telephone scam is from someone that claims they are from Eversource that demands a late payment of your electric bill be paid or your electricity will be shut off.

The Stafford Resident Troopers Office issued the following advice to residents:

To protect you from being a victim of a scam, please keep the following information in mind.

Scammers create a sense of urgency. Slow down and ask the caller for detailed information and a contact number. Tell the caller you will call them back. Then, attempt to verify the caller’s story by calling Eversource at 800 286-2000.

• Never provide personal financial or utility account information to any unsolicited individual, in person, on the phone, or online, even if the individual seems legitimate. Eversource would never ask you to purchase prepaid cards or make an immediate payment at a third-party location, like a CVS or a grocery store.
• Customers who are scheduled for disconnection due to nonpayment receive written notice that includes the actions they can take to maintain service.
• Always verify whether these contacts are legitimate by asking for some basic information about your account. Eversource representatives will always be able to provide the name on the account, the account address, and the exact past due balance. If the caller cannot provide that information, the call is not from Eversource. Regardless of what the caller claims to know about your account, including basic account information, if the caller is requesting an immediate payment using a third party location, or with a cash card, hang up immediately and contact Eversource directly to verify the call was legitimate.
• Callers instruct customers to make an immediate payment at a third-party location, like a grocery store, or by purchasing a “Green Dot” VISA card. Customers are then asked to call another phone number where information is obtained from the credit card and the monetary value is removed.