Stadtwerke Gießen is once again warning against dubious sales scams on the phone.
The number of reports of attempted telephone scams at Stadtwerke Gießen (SWG) is increasing - less than a week passed between the last two reports. However, the current scam appears to be following a familiar pattern: A man comes forward as an employee of Deutscher Energiedienst. He gives an address and asks whether it is still correct. "Customers who have informed us about these calls have said no, because they no longer live there," explains SWG company spokeswoman Ina Weller. It is possible that the dodgy callers are looking for victims who they know have recently moved house. In this way, the suspected fraudsters try to start a conversation during which they ask for the meter number. But that's not all. Anyone who - quite rightly - refuses to provide this information is put through to an alleged superior in order to increase the pressure.
"I can only strongly advise you to avoid such conversations in the first place," recommends Ina Weller. At the latest, the more or less unmediated question about the meter number exposes the caller as a potential crook. For this very reason, Ina Weller has another piece of advice: "Anyone who senses the slightest sign that a caller is up to no good should simply hang up without comment. Politeness won't get you anywhere here."
Giving the meter number over the phone would be downright negligent. Because once the fraudsters have the meter number and the corresponding address, they can conclude an electricity supply contract for the customer who has been taken by surprise. In principle, nothing really bad has happened yet. After all, such a contract can be cancelled before it comes into force. But nobody needs the hassle and time involved.
In addition to this method, SWG is also familiar with a number of telephone numbers sent by Deutsche Energiedienst: Callers call 020 3585676, 020 358013 or 020 3585636. If one of these numbers appears on the display, Ina Weller's advice is: "Just ignore it".
Help requested
Calls with a fraudulent background are nothing new for SWG. However, the frequency with which the possibly different telephone scammers are targeting the Giessen region is increasing dramatically. SWG is therefore asking those affected to come forward and describe the cases. "The more precisely we can describe the behaviour, the better we can warn our customers and the greater the chances of prosecuting these scams," adds Ina Weller. The staff on the SWG service number 0800 23 02 100 are happy to take the time to document such incidents in detail and pass them on accordingly.