Callers posing as City of Tampa Utilities are demanding bill payment by phone, sometimes from a spoofed city number. How real city calls work, and who to call.

People pretending to work for the City of Tampa are calling utility customers and demanding immediate payment for bills they say are overdue. Some of the calls appear to come from the city’s own Utilities Call Center number.

City of Tampa Utilities issued the warning Thursday. It said it had received multiple reports from customers. You can read the city’s scam warning in full on its website.

How the scam works

The city described the calls this way:

  • The caller says they represent City of Tampa Utilities.
  • They tell the customer they owe money on their utility account.
  • They demand payment right away, over the phone.
  • The caller ID may show the Utilities Call Center. The city said the callers may be spoofing its phone number to make the call look real.

Spoofing means faking the number that shows on your screen. A familiar number is not proof that the city is on the line.

How a real call from the city works

The city said its own representatives do these things when they call about an account:

  • They give their last name.
  • They explain why they are calling.
  • They verify the account’s address and utility account number.
  • They let you choose how to pay.

If you want to pay by credit card, a real representative points you to the city’s online payment tool so you can enter the card yourself. “No credit card information will be exchanged with the City of Tampa representative,” the city said.

So a caller who asks you to read out a card number, or who insists on payment during the call, is not following the city’s own rules.

What it means for you

If you get a call like this:

  1. Hang up. Do not pay and do not give account or card details.
  2. Call the city back yourself at the Utilities Call Center, 813-274-8811. Use the number on your bill or this page, not one the caller gives you.
  3. Check your balance online at the City of Tampa Utilities customer portal, which the city said you can do at any time.
  4. Report it. The city asked anyone who thinks they were targeted, or who got a suspicious call, to contact the Tampa Police Department. Its non-emergency line is 813-231-6130.

You can also report an impostor call to the Federal Trade Commission at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.

For your trash pickup days and what goes in each cart, see our guide to trash and recycling in Tampa. For other city departments and their numbers, see who to call at City Hall.