Electric bill scam: Hackettstown woman scammed out of nearly $1K after sending money to scammer

HACKETTSTOWN, NJ (Warren County) – A man who posed as a Jersey Central Power and Light representative scammed a Hackettstown woman out of $985.74, police said.

A 75-year-old woman received a phone call on Saturday from a person saying he was from Jersey Central Power & Light (JCP&L) and that she owed $492.92 for her electric bill. The victim was told to purchase a money card and she then provide the pin number to the person, police said.

The victim then received another phone call on the same day from a man who said JCP&L made a mistake and she actually owed $492.82. The victim then purchased another money card and provided the pin number to the person, police said.

Then on Monday she received a missed phone call from the same number and after speaking with someone she knew, she realized this was a scam, police said.

“Gift cards are for gifts, not for payments. If someone calls with urgent news or a convincing story and then pressures you to pay them by buying a gift card and then giving them the codes on the back of the card – stop. It’s a scam,” police said.

Here are some facts from JCP&L:

• If your account is past due, you will receive a written notice of your account status, with instructions on how to avoid disconnection of service.
• While our representative may call a customer whose bill is in arrears in order to remind them that a payment is due, the representative would explain how a payment can be made using our established payment options. They will not demand payment over the phone, in person, or at a particular physical location.
• Our utilities do not accept prepaid debit cards or wire transfers as payment, and our representatives will not demand your bank information or credit card number over the phone.

Police say to report scams by filing a complaint at ftc.gov/complaint. Be sure to include:

• Date and time of the call
• Name of the agency the imposter used
• What they tell you, including the amount of money and the payment method they ask for
• Phone number of the caller; although scammers may use technology to create a fake number or spoof a real one, law enforcement agents may be able to track that number to identify the caller
• Any other details from the call