[Chat] "Extending less costly gas supplies through BGE" door-to door visitors?????

[Sarah Weissman]

I have had someone come to my door and give me a similar pitch and ask for
my bill and it was definitely someone from an alternate supplier. I'm not
sure this guy ever outright said he was from BGE, but he didn't identify
what company he was from. I suspected that the guy wanted the bill so that
even if I didn't sign up he could change my supplier without my consent and
earn whatever commission from it (and I told him as much). Apparently a key
piece of information that alternate suppliers need to sign you up, the
energy choice ID number, is on your BGE bill (
http://www.bge.com/myaccount/choosingsupplier/commonquestions/pages/what-is-a-choice-id-number.aspx
).

This article from last year in the Sun suggests that there have been scams
in the state where people have had their providers switched without
permission:
http://articles.baltimoresun.com/2013-11-03/business/bs-bz-retail-energy-market-20131103_1_maryland-public-service-commission-bge-electricity-market/2



On Sun, Aug 10, 2014 at 6:58 PM, <macnmum at gmail.com> wrote:

> This weekend, I was visited by a man who said he was with the company that
> supplied my gas via BGE, and wanted to offer me the option to extend my
> contract at the lower prices which I had been receiving and were about to
> run out.  This sounded off to me and when I asked some questions I couldn't
> get a really satisfactory answer, but acknowledge that it may have been in
> part because
> I actually wasn't at home and conducted this conversation with him via
> phone.    One thing I did understand was that he said he needed to see one
> of my last bills, to confirm that I was, in fact, eligible for the lower
> rates...something I found extremely suspicious.
>
> He finally got tired of my questions and I suspect decided to hunt for
> easier prey elsewhere.  But I'm wondering if anyone else in the
> neighborhood has encountered these folks and if anyone can confirm my
> suspicion that, if not an outright scam, this was a fast-talking sales
> pitch to get me to sign up for some other gas supplier?
>
> Melissa
>
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