Several customers have contacted Seattle City Light and Seattle Public Utilities with concerns about thieves posing as utility employees. Several customers have contacted Seattle City Light and Seattle Public Utilities with concerns about thieves posing as utility employees.
The reports share a common description of thieves approaching a customer with a ruse that they are going to turn off their power or water and need to go inside the customer’s home.
“We have not heard of any thefts, but want to make our customers aware of these reports so they can protect themselves from such scams,” Customer Care Director Kelly Enright said.
City Light and Seattle Public Utilities do not need to access customers’ homes for any tests.
City Light and Seattle Public Utilities employees should have identification badges available in plain view for customers to see and review.
If you are approached by anyone claiming to work for either utility:
Ask to see the person’s identification.
Do not allow any such person into your home without City of Seattle identification.
If the person at your door does not have identification, close the door, secure your home and call police. Be ready to provide a description of the person, the vehicle he or she is driving, license plate number and the direction they were traveling.
In our Powerful Neighborhoods program, which installs free compact fluorescent light bulbs for residents in targeted neighborhoods, Seattle City Light is working with Ecova, Cascadia Consulting, the Environmental Coalition of South Seattle (ECOSS), and Working Green to hire and train installers, schedule home visits, and deliver and install the products.
All installers undergo background checks and drug-screening. Installers fluent in more than a dozen languages, including Spanish, Vietnamese, Tagalog, Amharic and Cantonese, are available to visit homes where English is not the primary language. All staff carry Seattle City Light identification. Short profiles and photos of all installers can be seen at http://www.seattle.gov/light/install/installers.asp .