UES Warns Customers to Beware of Ongoing Scam Phone Calls

KINGMAN, Ariz.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–UniSource Energy Services (UES) is reminding customers to protect
themselves from phone scammers who try to solicit payments by claiming
to work for UES and threatening to disconnect service for unpaid bills.

Some UES customers recently have reported receiving such calls. The
callers instruct customers to make payment over the phone with a
pre-paid money card within a limited amount of time to avoid having
their power or natural gas shut off. In some cases, the caller instructs
customers to bring a money order or cashier’s check to a local pharmacy.

Customers who receive such phone calls should hang up right away. UES
does not call customers to demand immediate bill payment or require
customers to pay monthly bills with pre-paid money cards. UES only
contacts customers by phone with automated bill payment reminders as a
courtesy.

Customers with questions about their monthly bill are invited to call
UES’ Customer Care team at 877-837-4968. Current balances and bill due
dates are available through My Account at uesaz.com,
which also has a list of legitimate, secure payment options. UES’ new,
free mobile app also allows customers to view and pay bills.

Electric utilities and natural gas providers across the country have
received reports about these kinds of phone scams for several years.
Similarly, law enforcement agencies have reported that phone scammers
are also impersonating employees from the Internal Revenue Service and
other government agencies.

Customers are encouraged to report scam phone calls to the Arizona
Attorney General’s office by calling (800) 352-8431 or filing a consumer
complaint at azag.gov.
The Attorney General’s office seeks to protect the public and can take
legal action in situations that involve violations of state and federal
consumer protection laws.

UES provides electric service to approximately 93,000 customers in
Mohave and Santa Cruz Counties. The company also provides natural gas to
approximately 150,000 customers in Northern and Southern Arizona. To
learn more, visit uesaz.com.
UES and its parent company, UNS Energy, are subsidiaries of Fortis Inc.,
which owns utilities that serve more than 3 million customers across
Canada and in the United States and the Caribbean. To learn more, visit fortisinc.com.

Contacts

UniSource Energy Services
Joseph Barrios, 520-884-3725
jbarrios@uesaz.com