FORNEY, Texas — A local business owner is warning of an Atmos Energy phone scam after receiving a call threatening to cut off his gas service unless he same-day wire transferred nearly $500.
FORNEY, Texas — A local business owner is warning of an Atmos Energy phone scam after receiving a call threatening to cut off his gas service unless he same-day wire transferred nearly $500.
Earlier today, 4T’s BBQ restaurant owner Mike Thomas received a phone call from someone representing themselves as an Atmos Energy technician who was en route to his restaurant to shut off the gas and wanted to confirm someone was at the restaurant. Thomas was instructed to call another number to resolve a billing dispute.
When called, Thomas says the representative had personal account details such as his account number, knowledge of a personal and business account, his deposit amount, and his last month’s bill amount.
The representative told Thomas his account had been “red tagged” and his smart meter had been placed on an automatic cutoff if he didn’t same-day wire transfer $498.66 — more than quadruple his normal monthly rate.
Thomas says when the representative was confronted with information that his bill had already been paid, and well in advance of the due date, the representative said unfortunately they were not able to verify the payment and were unable to remedy the situation unless a wire transfer was received.
“The scary thing is, they were able to give me specific details about my account,” said Thomas.
Thomas says he contacted Atmos directly through an emergency contact number and was assured his account was in good standing. The real Atmos representative told him, if there were to be any account cutoffs, they would have been done during normal service hours and with proper notice.
Less than an hour away in Farmersville, Texas, the Farmersville Police Department issued a warning of the same scam stating, “Please be aware, verify any utility company or any organization that wants you to go through an expedited process for payment.”
“Atmos advised that this is a scam going around the country currently,” stated the department.
Thomas says he has notified the Forney Police Department and hopes nobody falls victim to the scam, especially during the holidays.
Atmos was unavailable for comment on Thursday afternoon.