Just saw this on WAMU’s website via the Columbia Heights listserve: apparently people impersonating PEPCO workers are going around the neighborhood trying to scam people. They either seem to be trying to get your account number and personal info, or they pose as bill collectors. A few people have given them money. One lady on the Columbia Heights listserve had this interaction:
Yep. I had a very personable guy come to my door on Fairmont St. Ran the script described below [in the WAMU article]. I told him to leave me printed material and I’d get back to him if I wanted his services. He said that wasn’t the way this offer worked. We went back and forth for a few minutes. I finally told him I didn’t want whatever he was offering and he got snippy that I would refuse “money sitting on the table.” I told him that if it’s too good to be true then it’s probably not true and shut the door.
Apparently similar incidents have happened elsewhere in the region too.
A PEPCO spokesman tells WAMU that people should be wary:
Anderson advises people never to give out account numbers because Pepco already has it. In addition, he says the utility does not make a practice of popping up on doorsteps unannounced.“Ninety percent of the time, Pepco works outside of your home and when we are dealing with the smart meters and installation, then we may knock on your door,” he says. “But even before that, if we have to come into your home, we’re going to contact you and let you know we will be in your neighborhood at a predetermined time.”
Anyone else experience this? Pretty strange and brazen.
