ORANGE PARK, Fla. – Clay Electric is warning its customers about bogus phone calls and misleading flyers that are not coming from the utility -- even when it looks like they are.
Clay Electric has seen reports of these scam calls increasing and the cooperate wants its residential and commercial members to know it does not make calls to collect on past-due bills or offer unsolicited services.
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A member in Keystone Heights not only received a phone call with caller ID that identified itself as from Clay Electric, but the caller was impersonating someone with the utility.
Some are now reporting that flyers including a business reply envelope offering Clay Electric customers rebates on free attic insulation are not from the utility.
Clay Electric said it wants its members to be very suspicious of anyone who contacts them and claims he or she represents the co-op and wants to offer a service or be paid for an overdue bill. The cooperative does not offer services or collect past due amounts in this manner.
Clay Electric informs its members of services in official publications and sends a reminder letter for past-due bills. If you are at all suspicious of someone claiming they're with the power company, hang up and call Clay Electric at 800-224-4917.
"We especially urge our members to ignore suspicious requests for personal information, such as bank account numbers, credit card numbers, usernames and passwords, or Social Security numbers," said Derick Thomas, director of the member and public relations department. "Members should not share confidential personal information over the phone."