Abbeville business scammed

Calls from an 800 number claiming to be from the City of Abbeville are a scam and should be ignored.
That is the message from city officials after one business received a call last week from 800-341-6445. The caller claimed to represent the city and told the owner the business owed more than $1,000 in utilities. The unidentified caller told the owner that if the bill was not paid immediately, electricity would be shut off.
The owner paid the bill using a prepaid debit card last Friday. Realizing later that the situation could be a scam, the owner reported the incident to the Abbeville Police Department. Officials with the department alerted City Hall. Shirley Bertrand, the city’s billing manager, said she attempted to call the 800 number several times.
“It is a payment processing center,” Bertrand said. “The voice is speaking English and it tells you to hold for a representative, who will be with you shortly. A few seconds later it hangs up on you.”
Mayor Mark Piazza said Monday morning that the calls should be ignored because the city does not operate under those circumstances.
‘The city never uses an 800 number,” Piazza said.
In fact, the city rarely makes calls in regard to delinquent accounts.
“We always send out notices in the mail on delinquent accounts,” Piazza said. “It’s only in very rare instances when we will call some commercial accounts before they are disconnected.
“That call would come from a local number, though.”