National Consumer Protection Week: Tips to protect yourself from utility scams

by Dan Kaneko | March 7, 2022

Rarely a day goes by that I don’t receive a spammy phone call, text, or email. While those spam calls are annoying, they’re usually harmless as long as you ignore them. But now scammers are becoming more sophisticated, and their attacks are becoming more personalized. At Hawaiian Electric, we prioritize safety, and we hate to see when our customers become victims. As we kick off National Consumer Protection Week, I’d like to discuss a few of the most common utility scams and share some tips to keep you safe.

Power disconnection

This scam involves an email, phone call, text or visit from someone claiming to represent your local utility company threatening to shut off your service if you do not make an immediate payment. As a reminder, Hawaiian Electric doesn’t threaten customers with disconnection if immediate payment is not made, and we will never demand payment over the phone, via money transfer, prepaid debit cards or by Bitcoin.

Door-to-door sales

In this scam, an imposter may visit your home attempting to sell you a product, like rooftop solar. Always ask for proper identification when someone claiming to represent a utility company approaches your property. Hawaiian Electric employees and contractors working for Hawaiian Electric will always present their identification.

Replacement & repair

This scam involves scammers posing as utility employees on a service call to inspect electrical outlets or other equipment inside your home. Once inside, these imposters can commit a robbery or other crimes. Hawaiian Electric employees will never show up unannounced to inspect equipment inside your home.

Here are some other tips to protect yourself from becoming a scam victim:

• Your best defense is to exercise caution.
• Don’t provide personal, confidential, or financial information — including billing information — to any unidentified individuals.
• Don’t be afraid to ask questions. Get the caller’s name, phone number and company name, and offer to call back after you have verified the information.
• If you have any doubt if a call, email, or visit from someone claiming to represent Hawaiian Electric is legitimate, please call our Customer Service Contact Center.
• If you have made a payment, do not call an 800 number to provide the confirmation number or to report it. Instead, call our Customer Service Contact Center.
• Report any suspicious activity to police.
• Hawaiian Electric employees do not direct you to make a payment at any location other than through our approved payment locations and methods.

For more fraud prevention tips you can go to hawaiianelectric.com/stopscams. Stay vigilant and be safe!

Dan Kaneko is a digital communications and social media specialist at Hawaiian Electric Company.