Hudson Public Power and Hudson Water customers have been receiving calls from scammers demanding the customer pay their bill immediately on the phone to avoid service shutoff. These calls are not from the City of Hudson.
Current Scam
The scam caller tells the resident that they are out in the utility truck using the list they have been provided with to make disconnections for accounts with outstanding balances. The caller insinuates they are being nice by calling before disconnecting the resident's service and offers a chance to make a payment. The caller insists they are with the resident's utility company and that they have the resident's name on the list to disconnect service if payment is not received within 30 minutes. The caller then asks what card will be used to make payment. Sometimes messages are left saying they will call back in 30 minutes and to be prepared to make a payment at that time. These calls are not from the City of Hudson or your utility company.
What To Do
When legitimately contacted by the City of Hudson regarding an HPP or Hudson Water account, City staff will state they are with the City of Hudson Utility Billing Department. If your account is delinquent and at risk for service disconnection, a shutoff notice is always sent through the mail to notify you. The Utility Billing Department will never call or text demanding payment, and calls are only made during business hours (Monday through Friday between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m.) Do not pay over the phone to anyone who calls about your account. Always contact the City of Hudson Utility Billing Department at 330-342-1710 and leave a message or email utilitybilling@hudson.oh.us to confirm.
Similar scam calls are received by non-Hudson utility customers as well. Utility companies do not call to demand immediate payment either. Please contact your utility company directly to report scams, to see if they called you, and to check on your account.
Be Vigilant - Don't Fall for Scams!
Please remember, you should NEVER give payment information over the phone to someone who calls you. Hang up and call the number on your utility bill to make sure it's a legitimate call.
