22 Oct DREMC warns members about phone scams
Duck River Electric Membership Corporation (DREMC) warns members about recent phone scams impacting several communities in which the caller demands immediate payment be rendered to avoid disconnection of services or informs you of a pending discount/credit you are entitled to after supplying your financial account information.
The phone calls are reported to be from either a 931 or 615 area code, and the callers identify themselves as DREMC personnel. In some instances, the caller ID also appears to be from Duck River Electric. The cooperative reminds members that all calls coming from a legitimate DREMC office will have a 931 area code.
The details of the scam calls vary but have a consistent theme of threatening disconnection if immediate payment is not issued. The following should be considered red flags:
- Threatening or abusive language.
- Requests to issue payment through a gift card or non-DREMC app.
- Short timeframes to issue a payment.
- Calls made outside of DREMC’s normal business hours—8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday.
- Caller states your account has a credit balance, and DREMC will refund the amount after you share banking account information.
DREMC will never request that payment be made through any non-DREMC app or through the purchase of any type of prepaid gift card. All payments are handled through the DREMC website, over the phone, or in person at one of the eight DREMC offices.
Members are encouraged to hang up and call their local DREMC office to verify their account status should they receive a phone call requesting a balance be paid.