Dubious advertising attempts by telephone and at the front door

Stadtwerke Gießen warns against giving out customer data and personal information over the phone or at the front door.

In Giessen and the neighbouring municipalities, some low-cost electricity providers are apparently increasingly targeting customers. Several customers of Stadtwerke Gießen (SWG) have reported dubious advertising calls and door-to-door salespeople in recent weeks. "Many consumers are unsettled by the discussion about the renewed increase in the EEG levy. Some dishonest providers want to exploit this to lure customers with false statements and tricks," explains Ulli Boos, Head of Marketing at SWG.
One of the advertising callers in recent weeks, for example, claimed that Stadtwerke Gießen would be increasing its prices by over 20 per cent at the turn of the year. "Completely out of thin air," emphasises Ina Weller, company spokeswoman for SWG, and points out: "Just a few days ago, we announced that our prices for electricity, gas and heat will remain the same in 2014 as they are today."

Contact SWG in case of suspicion
Some of the SWG customers who were called reported that the advertisers had asked them for their contact and customer details. When asked why this information was needed, the callers hung up immediately. "We advise you not to pass on any data - whether on the phone or at the front door. Stadtwerke Gießen itself would never ask for this information," assures Ulli Boos. If you suspect that something is wrong, you should hang up or close the front door immediately and contact SWG.

SWG customer service staff can be reached on the service number 0800 23 02 100 (free of charge from the German landline network and all German mobile phone networks) from Monday to Friday from 7 am to 7 pm.