Scammers pose as Seattle City Light, demanding payment

Scammers posing as Seattle City Light have been calling customers and demanding payment immediately … or they’ll shut off your power.

If that happens, hang up, says the utility company.

“We will never call, email, or make a home visit requesting an immediate payment,” said spokeswoman Julie Moore. “If somebody was in the position of potentially having, being shut off, they would receive at least two written notifications before that process even starts.”

These scammers have figured out how to look like the real deal, by making it look like the number is coming from Seattle City Light, or a 1-800 number. Moore said these scams tend to increase after a cold snaps, and the crooks tend to target older people and those who don’t speak English.

Meryl Schenker, a freelance photographer in Seattle, received one of these calls.

“It was a recording of a woman’s voice that said that if I didn’t pay in 30 minutes that my electricity would be disconnected,” Schenker said. (Schenker has freelanced previously for KUOW.)

Schenker had heard of this kind of scam before and hung up the phone right away.

City Light wants customers to report these calls to the utility straight away. Moore said the utility will go weeks without any reported scam attempts, and that on the day they hear about them, the reports are typically in the single digits. They have been happening for years, she said. But this latest run has been different.

Feb. 12: 16 reported attempts

Feb. 13: 21 reported attempts

Feb. 14 (Valentine’s Day): 68 reported attempts

Feb. 15: 3 reported attempts

And none so far this week.

Moore said that if someone falls victim to the scam, however, they should call 911 and request to file a police report.