MidAmerican Energy is warning business owners and the public of a new phone scam that is targeting Latino customers in Iowa. Since the beginning of the month, approximately 50 Spanish-speaking customers have reported receiving calls from someone pretending to work for MidAmerican Energy. The caller threatens to shut off their power immediately if payment is not made. Unfortunately, several customers have reported losing money in this scam. Vice President of customer service, Terry Ousley, says that education is the best way to stop these scams. If ever in doubt about the legitimacy of a call, hang up and call MidAmerican Energy back directly at 888-427-5632 to check on your account. Spanish-speaking representatives and interpreters are available to help. MidAmerican says that scammers will ask the customers to pay by using a credit card or by calling back to a specific number, which often resembles MidAmerican’s phone response system, and then paying with a pre-paid card. MidAmerican accepts many different forms of payment and will never insist on one specific method.
