A number of City of Austin commercial utility customers have reported receiving a phone call from someone claiming to be from City of Austin Utilities or Austin Energy, demanding payment of their utility bill within an hour, or power will be shut off. The calls come from a 1-866 number and the scammer asks for a credit card, gift card or bank account information over the phone to complete a payment and avoid utility shut off.
Austin Energy manages the City of Austin utility billing for water, electricity and other services.
Four things to know about your City of Austin utility bill:
- The City of Austin Utilities Customer Contact Center does not call customers with cut-off deadlines.
- We will never ask for credit card or wire transfer information over the phone.
- City of Austin Utilities accepts mail-in or walk-in payments or payments online
- If a City of Austin customer receives a phone call threatening to interrupt service, demand immediate payment, or request credit card or bank account information, hang up and dial 3-1-1 or 512-974-2000 and report the incident immediately.
Anyone who has received such a call and is uncertain of his or her account status can call the City of Austin Utilities Customer Contact Center at 512-494-9400.
Click here for more information on how to avoid phone scams.
